{"id":15397,"date":"2015-06-17T00:00:00","date_gmt":"2015-06-17T00:00:00","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/blog.toggl.com\/how-does-music-affect-work-infographic\/"},"modified":"2024-06-12T06:29:27","modified_gmt":"2024-06-12T06:29:27","slug":"how-does-music-affect-work-infographic","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/toggl.com\/blog\/how-does-music-affect-work-infographic","title":{"rendered":"How Does Music Affect Work? [Infographic]"},"content":{"rendered":"

It\u2019s incredible how big of an effect music has on how we experience things around us.<\/span><\/p>\n

<\/p>\n

Years ago, I served in the Estonian Navy. One of the things you get to do a lot in any armed service, is marching. Nobody really likes it, so they try to make it less terrible with marching songs. But since not everybody likes marching songs either, they sometimes pick popular tunes to make the whole thing suck a little less.<\/span><\/p>\n

One song they used was a popular local punk rock anthem. I liked the song, and for many of us it helped transform marching from a mundane activity into something mildly uplifting.<\/span><\/p>\n

But all the marching eventually also transformed the song and needless to say, I\u2019ve hated it since.<\/span><\/p>\n

My point is this \u2013 music is absolutely intertwined with our lived experience, having the capacity to lift us up, or even drag us down. This is also true for work.<\/span><\/p>\n

Last year, Spotify did a survey together with Anneli Haake about workplace music habits. 61% of the people surveyed reported to listening to music at the workplace to boost their productivity and happiness. But not all music affects work equally.<\/span><\/p>\n

To shed some light on the matter, we\u2019ve\u00a0put together this infographic to explore the effect music can have\u00a0on work:<\/span><\/p>\n

<click to enlarge><\/em><\/p>\n

\"How<\/a><\/p>\n

What we found looking around for ideas for the infographic, is that while music can be a great thing for productivity, it\u2019s effects largely depend on the context of work.<\/strong><\/p>\n

By and large, there\u2019s two different situations that call for different soundtracks \u2013 getting ready to work, and for the work\u00a0itself.<\/span><\/p>\n

Music can get you motivated<\/b><\/span><\/h3>\n

Music is great for lifting your spritits<\/a>. We all have our different tastes, but everybody has some type of music that makes them feel better about their predicament. Some of us like speed metal or gangsta rap, while others like to shuffle along to Pharrell or Michael Jackson.<\/span><\/p>\n

Whatever your preference \u2013 music can make you pumped for the challenge ahead. As proof of this, movie history is littered with examples<\/a> of how music has been used for dramatic effect. Imagine watching Rocky without the iconic theme song<\/a> playing in the background. <\/span><\/p>\n

Yes, that\u2019s pretty weird.<\/span><\/p>\n

Music can help you focus<\/b><\/span><\/h3>\n

When it comes to actually doing the work, you might want to change the record.<\/span><\/p>\n

The trouble with music and work is that music can demand too much of our attention. Depending on what you\u2019re doing, this can potentially harm your productivity.<\/span><\/p>\n

Here\u2019s two examples:<\/p>\n

Case 1:<\/strong>\u00a0\u201cI\u2019m working on something repetitive and boring.\u201d<\/i><\/span><\/p>\n

Damn. But not to worry \u2013 this is exactly where music does help. Science says listening to music when working on a repetitive task<\/span><\/a> can significantly boost your productivity.<\/strong> Though keep in mind that t\u2019s not just any music that saves a dull day \u2013 according to more recent research, our brains prefer the happier tunes.<\/span><\/a><\/span><\/p>\n

Case 2:<\/strong> \u201cI\u2019m working on something really complicated.\u201d<\/i><\/span><\/p>\n

Metallica might be a great choice if you\u2019re trying to get pumped for work, but it absolutely sucks for\u00a0threading a needle. Music is ultimately a distraction, and if you\u2019re faced with a task that demands focus and deep concentration, it\u2019s perhaps best to do it in silence.<\/span><\/p>\n

But if you insist on listening to music while engaged in complex work, try to choose\u00a0music that doesn\u2019t distract.<\/strong> They key here is to have minimal variation. Also, try to avoid music with lyrics \u2013 being human, we\u2019re kinda tuned to pick up on words, and song lyrics can be bad for our cognitive ability<\/a>. It\u2019d also be good to pick something monotonous.<\/span><\/p>\n

By the way, some studies have shown that introverts are more easily distracted<\/a> by music than extroverts.<\/p>\n

So there it is \u2013 to make music work for your productivity, you have to play your playlist smart. Ultimately, we all have our favourite tunes, but knowing\u00a0when is the time to rock and when it\u2019s not can really help you make the most of it.<\/p>\n

Fancied the figures? Share this infographic on Twitter!<\/a><\/strong><\/em><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

It\u2019s incredible how big of an effect music has on how we experience things around us.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":51,"featured_media":31373,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_acf_changed":false,"footnotes":""},"categories":[857],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-15397","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-creative"],"acf":[],"yoast_head":"\nHow Does Music Affect Work? [Infographic]<\/title>\n<meta name=\"description\" content=\"Not all music affects work equally. 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