Want to Boost your Productivity? Here's How...

Have you been feeling like you can’t quite get the tasks on your “to-Do” list done? Do you start projects but frequently find them being pushed aside or forgotten about? Do you find yourself looking for ways to be more productive? Turns out you may already possess what it takes to boost your productivity – Music.

It’s not hard to find the research to support the fact that music can improve your mood and concentration, make you more focused and boost your productivity. I can attest to personally finding that music has the magical ability of allowing me to slip into the zone and tackle my own heaping to-do list.

The Right Type

Music is a widely varied thing, and one size does not fit all. Background music can be good for minimizing distractions, but your personality plays a huge role in how you will reap these benefits. There are studies that show that extroverts tend to be naturally under stimulated and they find great benefit from background noise working to aid in performance. In contrast, introverted people can spend much longer times alone and in silence. More creative types are known to benefit from mind wandering to stimulate ideas and imagination. Background music is fertile ground and steady fuel to feed creativity.

Picking the right type of music matters and is key here. Some studies report that background music is more beneficial when it doesn’t have lyrics, thus making classical and instrumentals or jazz huge winners here. Most people perform best when they pick music that matches their natural personality: outgoing, assertive, extraverts often pick upbeat, cheerful songs; curious and intellectual people focus best with jazz or classical; and non-conformist, rebellious types may gravitate towards heavy metal, hip hop, or punk rock.

Here is my Jazz Playlist that I use to Get in the Zone:

The Right Time

Just like picking the right type of music matters, it matter how you are feeling at the time. Picking music that will enhance your current emotional state or choosing music that represents how you want to feel can boost productivity. For example, if you are experiencing trouble focusing on a task because you are angry about something in your personal life, putting on an upbeat Bossa nova instead of a love ballad, will help you better reset and focus on the moment.

Picking music over your noise cancelling headphones may be a better option to make you more productive in those times you find yourself in a noisy office or café. Music is a soothing distraction that can drown out all the other irritating noise interruptions allowing you to focus on the task at hand.

The Right Task

I am sure you will not be surprised to find out the type of task you are focusing on has a direct affect on how beneficial music will be at boosting your performance of that task.  Music is most likely to help you gain greater focus when you are working on those tasks you feel skilled, experienced and comfortable with.  This means background music is an excellent tool to boost productivity for when you have to work on boring or easy tasks (new or old) because it provides your brain extra stimulation.

On the other hand, if you are just learning to do something complex or if you are unskilled and need to avoid mistakes while working you will want to avoid the added distraction of background music – at least initially.

We all have a different relationship with music. Experiment to how music makes you feel, how you utilize music currently in your everyday life. Pay attention to what works for you. I personally have found that doing chores around the house on the weekends goes by a lot faster when listening to the right playlist OR my teenage daughter is much more likely to hunker down and push through her assignments when she can put her earbuds in and listen to her lo-fi playlist.

Do you utilize music in your everyday life while working or completing tasks.