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| Calming | 81% | 779 votes | Total: 965 votes | |
| Distracting | 19% | 186 votes |
Calming
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Add to FavoritesMusic at work can be a calming and/or uplifting emotional, social, and motivational lubricant as conducive to serene productivity and professional service delivery as a comfortable pair of shoes, a couple of timely and reliable daily breaks, and a properly controlled indoor climate.
On the other hand, it has the potential to be about as distracting and mood-souring an influence as ill-fitting footwear, the client/vendor telephone call that completely obliviated your eagerly anticipated mid-mornining deep breath and cup of Columbian nirvana, or the office air that either has goose-bumps running down your arms, or beads of sweat pouring down your face and right onto the sales report your boss wanted you to double-check and return to his desk.
A few simple factors come into play to determine which of the above applies to music's impact on your workplace environment, or your part of it, and your productivity and work generally. The first is autonomy. That is - who is in control of this seemingly inconsequential aesthetic? That, in and of itself can invite myriad "pandora's boxes". But, as this is the workplace and not the schoolyard, outdoor urban "turf", or even the bedroom, let's leave the hypothetical interpersonal difficulties to another discussion and another article!
So, barring all that interpersonal strife and even office politics that can come into play and make the workplace soundtrack a virtual battlefield for personnel meta-matters, what characteristics of your aural atmosphere are conducive to comradery, good mood, and good work?
That comes down to your own personal cognitive style and your particular response to music. The effect music and other aesthetic but not operationally demanding elements (in other words, they exist and/or operate without needing to be attended) can have on individuals varies greatly. One important factor is what exactly your job demands of your faculties. If you are a 911 operator or other dispatcher, chances are that not only would music be a distraction, but that it is already outright forbidden anyway.
Many other workplace environments have similarly rigid, or else sheerly compulsory requirements that preclude the playing of music , at least at some times and places. If you're a teacher, sure - you can choose to have music be a part of the milieu you have established. But, should one of your students be too distracted, or if you are of course direct-teaching the whole class, then again, at these times, clearly "background" or other music would fall into the realm of distracting.
When the choice truly *is* yours, then whether it is calming and comforting and motivating, or whether is it distracting and abrasive, is surely a personal matter and a personal choice. If it is distracting, obviously, do not have it on.
And if you find it calming and makes work more enjoyable, then let the music play!
Learn more about this author, Stanley W. Shura.
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Distracting
They say that music is food for the soul. I do not totally disagree with this but then do we eat food throughtout the day-do we now? When i am working all i need is an interrupted thought process. At that time, i need to use my entire body, soul and spirit to create my own world and i therefore need to put myself in that fresh 'zone' to suit my writing needs.
I tried listening to music while i was at the office trying to write my stories. It simply did not work. I would therefore say that it all depends on the kind of work you do.
Two of my collegues (in different departments though) listen to their ipods and still manage to get some work done and i always used to wonder how? I now know it all depends on ones' occupation.
I really don't appreciate someone interrupting my thought process, you know, like when someone all of a sudden increases the volume of that online radio station.
its like kicking a painters balls in the middle of his painting job and having him spoilhis entire artwork. Getting back that inspiration and starting all over again is a problem.
Other poeple have the gift of being able to multi task-no matter their occupation. I mean i can multi-task with other things like cooking and music and exercising and music but when thinking and writing, No! I simply can't.It is utter distraction.
I am a great fan of music, but i simply cannot live with it, not if i mean to hack my two or three stories a day. I even tried listening to simply soothing instrumentals,classi cs and oldies instead of hip-hop or neo-soul but i still prefer to work either in my own silence or a coffee shop kind of atmosphere where everyone is talking yet you still get those positive energy vibrations occupying our creative atmosphere.
Deciding on whether listening to music in the office is distracting or not depends on the kind of work you do and the kind of atmosphere you work in. People who work in the entertainment industry here have to work with music in their offices, even in editorial departments. I bet this works for them because they will even learn about a new song or some sort of fresh gossip they can use in their programs or columns.
If i were to find myself in such a situation, i would probably have to find a way of getting used to it or find my own defence mechanism.
Learn more about this author, Eudiah Kamonjo.
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