Boosting Productivity with Music
Insights from an Aspiring Therapist
As an aspiring therapist who is going through her second bout of graduate school, there have been many opportunities where working occurred remotely, including instances where a mixture of repetitive and creative tasks occurred, such as filling out spreadsheets and responding to crisis calls.
While working, it can be incredibly frustrating when dealing with mitigating distractions, like the chatter of relatives in the next room, and the sounds of your neighbour mowing the lawn.
It’s possible that listening to music, such as through your local streaming service, may hold the solution.
Just as music can provide background noise, scientific literature has shown that music can improve one’s cognitive performance and productivity, especially as adults.
Listening to music provides many benefits, including reducing anxiety and increasing motivation. The key to optimizing our schedules is making the most ideal playlist suited to our personal and unique interests.
Crafting that Perfect Playlist
1. Using The Iso Principle
The iso principle is a technique often used by music therapists to help influence the mood of the client. For example, the therapist will find music that matches the client’s feelings and will gradually alter the songs to achieve a more desirable state.
Crafting the perfect playlist can follow elements of the iso principle, where the first songs include items that you might actually like and gradually veer towards that productivity mindset.
Depending on your individual needs, your personal interests are going to vary significantly. However, depending on streaming services that you use, auto-generated recommendations can make the search for songs much easier.
2. Starting off Calm and Veering Towards Energetic
If you find yourself feeling incredibly gloomy for most mornings, perhaps songs at the starting point of your playlist can include peaceful and calming tunes. For example, this study has shown that the sounds of nature can mask intelligible noises in your environment while also optimizing satisfaction and concentration.
As you continue to work, perhaps these songs can become increasingly motivational, until they have faster track speeds. For example, another study has shown that music with higher tempos can promote surges of productivity, prolonging motivation.
3. Finding the Songs as You Go Along
When it comes to productivity playlists, it shouldn’t feel like a burden or a chore. Instead of spending many hours at a time trying to craft the perfect playlist, you can opt to add random songs here and there, especially when you have the time.
As your playlists grow, you can arrange your songs in however way you feel like, at a pace appropriate to you. If you give yourself the flexibility to try out and get a feel for various songs, you’ll be able to optimize your productivity, one song at a time.
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