Music is one of my first loves. I was brought up on it thanks to my parents. Music was constantly on in the car, in the house; pretty much everywhere! As the background noise to pretty much to everything I did, I realised at quite a young age it really helped me focus and produce good work for school, college and later university.
And now, running my own business, I’m lucky enough to be in a position to play music whenever I want, as loud as I want. For most of my writing sessions, I have music playing in the background.
I did wonder if it was just me as I know lots of people who don’t like noise while working, but it turns out that there’s tons of evidence that working to the right kind of music can improve concentration, focus and productivity!
Researchers from the University of Birmingham discovered that listening to music can help people complete tasks faster and with more creativity, while other research at Stanford found that music lights up the brain neurons concerned with focus and making predictions.
So, whatever kind of task you’re doing, music can help – especially if it’s your favourite songs.
While I find it impossible to name my favourite tunes (there are just so many!) here are the top three I like right now and use to get me in the right mindset for whatever I’m working on.
Brass In Pocket – The Pretenders
It can’t just be me who adores this song? Uplifting, fast and, well, rather special!
The Chain – Fleetwood Mac
Beautiful and simple I love the riff that carries this awesome melody to its final, crashing end.
Stairway to Heaven – Led Zeppelin
“Yes, there are two paths you can go by, but in the long run, there’s still time to change the road you’re on.” I think this is possibly the greatest rock song ever written and has some of the most brilliant and inspiring lyrics I’ve ever heard.
Does music distract you or help you focus? If you’re anything like me then let the music play get to work!
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