Roam Recommends – Music for Productivity

Did you know, the soundtrack of your workday can change the quality of your work?

In 1993, a study was conducted to find the differing effects of music as opposed to silence or relaxation instructions, designed to lower blood pressure. Researchers found that after listening to Mozart for 10 minutes, subjects scored 8-9 points higher on spatial reasoning skills than after listening to relaxation instructions or silence.

Of course the findings of this study has scientific roots, so let’s look at the brain. Studies have shown that listening to music activates different areas of the brain. Most music is composed of varying types of sounds based on pitch, rhythm, timbre, etc. Each of these components is processed differently. You are familiar with the right brain and left brain. Right processes creativity. Left processes rationality. It’s the same with music. The right side of your brain processes melody and timbre. The left processes rhythm and pitch. Listening to music with all of these elements can help activate more parts of your brain at once. Even some surgeons have been known to listen to music while operating on their patients. And it has proven to significantly improve the speed and accuracy of surgeons in their task performance.

With so many different music options, which is best for the workday?
Our brains have proven that they more quickly recognize visual images when listening to rock or classical music. You read that right. Rock or classical. Regardless of your musical preference, it can help improve your performance. In fact, music is great, but even just the bustle of a coffee shop has been proven to increase your creativity. And of course, there’s an app for that.

Here at Roam, we’re on mission to build environments where you can focus, collaborate, learn and socialize. These are the 4 states of being in which you might find yourself throughout the workday. The trick is to listen to the right music at the right time. It all depends on the nature of your work.

To help you out, we’re creating playlists to accompany you while you work. Check back each month for a new workplace playlist, and follow us on Spotify.

First up is FOCUS.
If you work requires you to focus, look for energy infused sounds without words.