Playlists for Productivity
Scientists have been investigating the effects of music on the brain for years and have done countless studies on how music can help aid in productivity and we could not agree more! From experience, creating playlists for different types of tasks, whether it is working, exercising, doing chores or lounging, we have noticed that music has the power to influence our productivity and wanted to pass along the good news to our Shine Tribe.
Creating playlists is this month’s recommended “life hack” and everyone loves a good life hack, right? A life hack is a simple way to “hack the system” and have an upper hand to getting things done and going through life without a lingering sense of overwhelm, anxiety or stress. We can all agree that life moves pretty fast and over the years, we all have grown to learn what works best for our personal work styles. Here’s the idea: Create a happy playlist, a sad playlist, a working playlist and an exercise playlist and play them when completing each work-related task.
We recommend using Spotify, however we have no affiliation with promoting their platform, we just think it is easy to use and a great place to get started because they also have a free version and you can share with friends. First start by creating each playlist and name them however you feel is appropriate! For example, one playlist we’ve curated is called “Summertime Shine” and it’s composed of songs that are happy, uplifting and gives us the warm and fuzzy feeling of summertime and sunshine on our skin. Throw on this playlist on sunny days and when you are feeling great and motivated to attack the day.
Another playlist idea is to create one that is for the rainy days. Sometimes it is just nice to hear our favorite slow songs or ones with beautiful lyrics to help us ease into the day rather than try to fake a happy and carefree day on the ones that feel gloomy. One of the biggest parts of this exercise is to embrace how you’re feeling and experience every emotion rather than bury or ignore what’s going on around you and inside you.
How about a workout and exercise playlist? One that is full of songs with high energy and fun, motivating lyrics to keep you going strong! Some members of our team absolutely love having a workout playlist and only play it when they are ready to put in the reps so that they associate these songs with not giving up.
Mind you, these are just our recommendations for ways to build out your playlists but do not feel like you need to follow along exactly how we’ve done it.
Music does a great job of centering our focus, if used properly and science agrees. Listening to your favorite music can also improve your mood which is also great for motivation and productivity! We would love to hear your experience creating your own playlists to Shine Brighter on a daily basis and invite you to check out one of our playlists like this one.