How listening to music at work affects your productivity

 How listening to music at work affects your productivity

Whenever I have a hard time concentrating on a repetitive task like inputting data into an Excel sheet, I find that when I listen to music, especially upbeat music I know well, I focus more on my work. Can and can complete. That's without much complaint. It would follow, then, that music makes me more productive. But is it really?

As it turns out, the answer is yes and no. That is, science shows that music helps improve your mood and, in turn, helps you be more productive. But eating something you like (say, dark chocolate) or smelling something you like (a campfire) can easily improve your mood and do the productivity trick.

Biologically, sweet sounds help stimulate the release of dopamine in the brain's reward region, just like eating something tasty, seeing something attractive or smelling a pleasant aroma, says Dr. Amit Sood said. Clinic.

People's minds tend to wander, "and we know that a wandering mind is unhappy," Dr. Sood said. "Too often, we focus on the imperfections of life." Music can bring us back to the present moment ... [and] it only takes 15 minutes to half an hour of listening time to regain concentration. Music without lyrics usually works best, he said.

Another expert on the matter, Teresa Lesiuk, a music therapy professor at the University of Miami, agrees that it's the mood, not the music.

Dr. Lesiuk's research focuses on how music affects workplace performance. In a study involving information technology experts, she found that those who listened to music completed their tasks faster and came up with better ideas than those who did not, because music improved their mood.

“When you're stressed, you can make more hasty decisions; Your focus is very narrow," she said. "When you're in a positive mood, you're able to take on more options."

There is science behind why music without lyrics works better than lyrical music.

Hearing words activates the language center of your brain, so trying to engage in other language-related tasks (like writing) would be like trying to hold a conversation while another person talks over you ... while playing the guitar.

There are times when songs can help you function. This includes when you are performing something that does not involve the use of words such as designing or photography. Lyrical music also doesn't hurt when you're doing repetitive tasks like data entry or sending emails that don't require much thought.

However, studies show that listening to new music, music you haven't heard before and don't know if you like yet, is not ideal because your mind will focus more on what comes next in the music. When you listen to music you know and like well, you don't lose that kind of concentration while listening.

Studies also show that when you're doing very difficult tasks—those that are new or complex—song music, as well as any kind of music, should always be avoided.

When it comes to absorbing and retaining new information, distraction in any form is a huge no-no … music is no exception. Music demands too much of your attention—even when the sounds are subtle—to listen when you're trying to learn or analyze new information.

Imagine trying to "read above your level" or read material beyond your skill set while being pulled away by the sound of music. It makes an already difficult task almost impossible.

All that said, it's important to note that different things work for different people. And so, it makes sense to find out what works for you and what doesn't to increase your productivity.

For example, here's what I've found worked and what didn't for me: 1) As mentioned above, upbeat music I know well (David Bowie, The Beatles, The Velvet Underground, Talking Heads, Radiohead, Fleet Foxes, just (about anything from the 80s) helps me focus when doing simple and repetitive tasks; 2) Some lyrical music, especially singer-songwriter stuff (Bon Iver, Bob Dylan, Sufjan Stevens, Diane Cluck, Elliott Smith, Father John Misty, Midlake), helps me regain my focus before I start working on something immersive. Helps, but I don't do it because the song's music is too distracting during listening immersive work; 3) Instrumental music like jazz or classical can help me get creative (I listened to jazz saxophonist, flautist, and bass clarinetist Eric Dolphy while writing this blog post, but I turned the music off while editing it, because Editing is, in part, listening to the rhythm and music of the words—and so it's not ideal to have any auditory distractions while doing it); and 4) full and complete mau, when performing very difficult and complex tasks Neither is ideal; But, if that's not possible, say, I'm working in an open-office setting, then the second best involves turning off the music, leaving my headphones on, and letting the sounds around me fade into the background.

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