The Soundtrack to Success: Music and Productivity
More often than not, students will likely find themselves listening to music while studying. It can be seen all over campus
and has become a cornerstone of student life. It seems to help with distracting thoughts, but why does it work? And how can music be harnessed effectively to increase productivity?
To understand why music positively impacts us, we need to explore how the brain interacts with it. I can safely say that we have all heard from our parents that the brain is like a muscle and that it needs to be trained. Well, it turns out that they were right all along. A 2014 study found that listening to classical music helped people perform better on tasks like memorization. In fact, certain genres of music stimulate the brain similarly to physical workouts, leading to enhanced cognitive performance (Healthline).
Motivation is another impact of music while studying, and most students have probably experienced it firsthand. When listening to music we enjoy, our brains release dopamine, which you probably know as the happiness hormone. The BBC reports that levels of dopamine rise to up to 9 percent higher when listening to music, providing motivation that can be harnessed to learn new information. Considering the positive mood that it puts students in, it could help improve the quality of work that is produced and help students push through their 3 a.m. cram sessions.
I know that it can be hard to focus at times, especially with our phones at arm’s length. This is where music can come in handy, as it increases focus by blocking out distractions (Healthline). When we study, it can be frustrating when our thoughts wander or when we get distracted by our surroundings instead of actually working. Music can limit this by engaging our brains, allowing us to zero in on the doc right before us.
Of course, there can still be some downsides to music. It has been found that loud music can have negative effects on productivity, so choose your playlists wisely (Study.com). I listen to more soft and calming music as it helps me focus best, so experiment and see what types of music fit you! Remember to plug in whenever you need that extra boost of productivity, whether it’s for a vocab test or when you finally decide to start working on that assignment you’ve been procrastinating for weeks.
To finish off, here are some of my top picks for calm study sessions.
Hope this helped!
dreams, books, power and walls- Jannabi
nothing- Bruno Major
skeletons- Keshi
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