Beginning the article by clearing the doubt on which types of music help you concentrate?
It varies. Although the impact varies depending on the music and the sort of work, music in the office can increase productivity.
For instance, The Journal of the American Medical Association found that when surgeons performed their procedures while music played, their accuracy and productivity increased. A study published in “Applied Ergonomics” also discovered that background music inspired workers to do monotonous activities more effectively.
On the other hand, numerous studies have demonstrated that listening to popular music, particularly music with lyrics, hinders reading comprehension and information processing.
In conclusion, productivity music is influential—but only if you pick the appropriate song for the situation.
What Kind of Music Doesn’t Work, then?
When listening to different types of music, the listener is actively switching between an activity and the music, instead of the music just serving as background noise.
Once more, it is based on the listener’s preferences and the genre of music. Dr. Haake has conducted a study on workplace music listening and has identified several variables that may affect whether music is distracting:
- Complex Musical Composition: When compared to songs with a straightforward three-chord structure, such as John Denver’s “Leaving on a Jet Plane,” songs with a more complicated musical structure, like Frank Zappa’s “Muffin Man,” may be more disturbing to listeners.
- Lyrics. Lyrics can be distracting since they make you concentrate on the song’s message and derail your mental process.
- Listening Practises When someone gets acclimated to listening to music while working, it frequently has a positive rather than a negative effect. The opposite is also accurate.
- Complexity of the tasks. Music can make working well more challenging when a job demands more thought and concentration.
- Control. When someone is forced to listen to music, it’s typically more distracting than if they have a choice.
Now you may think,
What Are The Best Music?
1. Classical Songs
A brief daily exposure to classical types of music can improve one’s “abstract reasoning abilities.” Its tones are based on piano, string, or woodwind instrument composition, classical music is a good genre to listen to while working. The lack of lyrics in this genre of music may help listeners focus and think more clearly. Composers of classical music include, for instance:
- German musician Ludwig van Beethoven is best known for his compositions like Für Elise and Moonlight Sonata.
- Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart was an Austrian composer who was a master at creating music for any style that was popular at the time. Elvira Madigan and The Marriage of Figaro are two of his well-known works.
- Johann Sebastian Bach, a German organist and composer best known for The Well-Tempered Clavier and the Brandenburg Concertos.
- Popular Russian composer Pyotr Ilyich Tchaikovsky is most known for his ballet compositions, such as Swan Lake, The Sleeping Beauty, and The Nutcracker.
- Frédéric Chopin is a famous piano composer who was born in France and raised in Poland. His works include Nocturne and Heroic Polonaise.
2. Instrumental Music
It might not be easy to focus when others are talking. It turns out that lyric-driven music also boosts our productivity.
In one study, participants took a verbal test while listening to music or in silence. According to the study, “all individuals’ total performance was much better in quiet, supporting the notion that lyrics interfere with the task’s verbal information processing.”
According to a different study, almost three-quarters of the students (74.5 percent) performed worse on a reading comprehension exam while listening to lyrical music. Additionally, some research suggests listening to songs with dull or well-known lyrics.
Overall, listening to songs with lyrics might be annoying.
Consequently, if you need to write, speak, or listen intently, choose instrumental productivity music to help you concentrate.
3. Epic Music
Epic music might give you the impression that you are making a significant contribution to changing the world. It strengthens and elevates you. Therefore, to give yourself that additional motivational boost when you’re feeling drained and uninspired at work, try listening to epic music like rap beats that can also help you.
4. Nature Music
The benefits of listening to the sound of nature include improved focus and cognitive performance. While abrupt sounds like bird calls and animal noises might be distracting, soothing sounds like running water, rain, and rustling leaves work nicely.
One study found that listening to natural noises could improve cognitive abilities, focus, and satisfaction.
To encourage users to unwind and concentrate, Google Home now includes background nature noises.
What natural sounds ought you to listen to then? You may try listening to the sound of the ocean crashing, birds chirping, the wind roaring, waterfalls pouring, or streams trickling, although perhaps not all at once.
In contrast to typical productivity music playlists, these natural sounds can shut out distractions without becoming distractions themselves.
5. Ambient Soundtracks
We may be prevented from producing our best work by background noises such as neighbor commotion, office chatter, traffic, or children.
According to one study, “it is a common experience for noise to induce an elevated psychological feeling of ‘annoyance,’ leading to a drop in performance when carrying out intellectual activity involving memory or arithmetic skills.”
So, if the playlists mentioned above don’t help you increase productivity, try white noise or ambient soundtracks that can help you distract.
You can also listen to different types of music while working, including jazz, blues, hip-hop songs, and music for meditation. Try several things to see what works. While a high-energy piece can keep you motivated, something soft and soothing may help you concentrate on your work.
The bottom line is that music significantly impacts how we behave, feel, and think. So, have fun figuring out what suits you the best! Of course, there are occasions when remaining silent is the best option.