How music shapes what we remember and how we work
If you grew up in the eras of mixtapes or burned CDs, you know how powerful music can be. The songs you chose, the order you put them in, and even the way you named and decorated the disc all shaped how that music would be received.
Last month, an author I follow on Substack shared a playlist related to one of her books. What a great idea!
It got me thinking about all the ways music can be the soundtrack to our work life. It can communicate specific messages or just bring the vibes. Let’s look at other ways music can shape our motivation, energy, or productivity at work.
Set the Mood
Need to energize a team before a keynote, or excite folks before a big announcement? Music can do that!
Trying to calm your nerves before a presentation? Music can help.
Practicing gratitude, and finding ways to appreciate your colleagues? Jessica Eastman Stewart shared her “Round of Appreciation” playlist on LinkedIn the other week!
Get Focused
We can also use music to help with focus. If you are listening with headphones or earbuds, music featuring different tones in each ear create a phenomenon where your brain thinks there is a third tone.
Some research claims binaural beats enhance brainwaves, and aid in reducing stress and anxiety, while also helping with sleep and increasing focus.
Others find focus with “color noise.” Most people are familiar with white noise where it drowns out other sounds. Are you familiar with green noise that sounds like a stream, or pink noise that sounds like rustling or shuffling? If those seem distracting, maybe you’ll like brown noise, which is more like a moody thunderstorm (or what a baby hears when they are in the womb).
Try binaural beats and various color noise, and see what helps you get into “flow states” or “in the zone.” Finding what works for you, will help with deep concentration.
Amp up the Productivity
Another way to use music at work, is to seamlessly shift between tasks, based on the sounds. I’m always a big fan of the Pomodoro Method, and recommend TomatoTimers frequently.
In a recent session of my Lead with ADHD program, we were discussing co-working (or body doubling) and good music to help with focus during those sessions. One participant made us aware of themed pomodoro playlists on YouTube.
Whether you are Potter Head, Swiftie, or just want some chill lo-fi music chunked out in 25 minutes of work, followed by 5 minutes of breaktime, search “Pomodoro Playlist” on YouTube for options!
This article was originally published on Substack.
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