Can Music Make You Work Better?

​Whether your team likes to blare its favourite radio station on site, or you beaver away with a playlist on your headphones, music can not only boost your mood but your memory and productivity too.

Music elevates the brain’s dopamine levels; the neurotransmitter responsible for pleasure, and this is a big win at work. And workplaces tend to agree. According to The Music Licence, most companies support music at work, with 93% saying music has a positive effect on their business.

Here’s how you can harness the power of music on the job.

The benefits of music in the workplace

The major Sound of Productivity survey reported that 79% of workers would boost their productivity by listening to music at work regardless of age, occupation, location, and personal tastes. Though there are many other benefits besides getting stuff done.

In terms of your brainpower, music can help boost your memory. Listening to music reactivates the areas of the brain responsible for memory and reasoning, helping retrieve old memories and create new ones.

If you’re prone to workplace burnout, music may help soothe your stresses by reducing blood flow to the amygdala and lowering the production of the stress hormone, cortisol. Alternatively, if you catch yourself nodding off, another study on surgeons performing repetitive lab tasks showed music makes doing dull, monotonous more bearable.

Check your company’s policy on music in the workplace

Before you crank up those speakers on the job, check your company’s policy on playing music. Is playing a radio permitted? Are you allowed to use your phone while you work? Is it safe for you to have headphones on? Furthermore, are your co-workers happy to listen along as well?

Creating a unifying music experience at work that doesn’t cause a distraction or annoyance is the way to go.

Choose the right type of music that won’t be distracting

Picking a style of music that complements your role is key. After all, the goal is to boost productivity, not hinder it. If you work in a physical job, uplifting, energising music will be motivating. If your role requires deep focus, classical (rather than heavy rock or rap) may be your jam.

If there’s a communal radio in your workplace, it may be tricky to suit everyone’s taste, so go for genres that are universal and crowd-pleasing rather than too niche or leftfield. You could even take it in turns so that each week a different team member gets to pick their station of choice.

Consider time, place and volume

Depending on your job, it may be that listening to music is better suited to breaks rather than during working hours. Think about the volume level too – few people will want it at deafening levels.

Silence isn’t always golden, and a quiet volume of music that eliminates background noise has been shown to help focus, while a moderate level elevates creativity.

If you’re listening solo, it’s about knowing what aligns and supports your work needs best. Try experimenting with working in silence and then introducing different music genres you enjoy to see what gives you the best output.

There are no right or wrong answers about listening to music at work, it’s about finding that sonic sweet spot that makes you feel energised, motivated and inspired.

If you are open to new opportunities, contact a recruitment agency like Trojan Recruitment Group and receive advice from the experts in labour-hire, permanent and contract staff.

Sources

https://pplprs.co.uk/benefits-music/

https://www.pnas.org/doi/10.1073/pnas.1811878116

https://www.totaljobs.com/advice/wp-content/uploads/sound-of-productivity-music-at-work-report.pdf

https://jamanetwork.com/journals/jama/article-abstract/379309

https://www.health.harvard.edu/mind-and-mood/music-can-boost-memory-and-mood

https://www.murdoch.edu.au/news/articles/music-and-the-mind-how-music-can-help-you-de-stress

https://www.fastcompany.com/3051835/how-background-noise-affects-the-way-you-work