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Results so far:
| Calming | 81% | 771 votes | Total: 956 votes | |
| Distracting | 19% | 185 votes |
Calming
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Add to FavoritesFor me music really does have a calming effect. When sitting at my desk for hours at a time I feel more at home and therefore less stressed when listening to my favorite music. It also makes me inspired and more free-thinking.
When I am listening to music and working I try to gauge it to what I am doing as well as the mood I am in that day or at that particular time. If I need to be active say and move around a lot like when house cleaning I will blare the stereo with some of my most funky, dance and sing along, type music and it is as if the house cleans itself. Old Beatles tunes, Green Day, and Good Charlotte are some of my more active favorites.
If I have a long day of computer work where I need to concentrate and get a lot done I will play my music at a very low, background noise, volume level. I find soft rock, classical, pop tunes really work well for this Michael Buble is definitely one of my favorites for this along with Rod Stewart and Celine Dion.
If the mood I am in that day is a sad one as weird as it sounds I like to listen to sad music. It affirms to me that it is okay to be sad and to reflect on things and wraps me in my own little cocoon to hold me up and keep me going.
I know a lot of people really don't like to listen to music which I find hard to believe but some do find it distracting. I guess because I grew up listening to music (my dad is a huge oldies fan) and playing music (as I was a band dork) I find it soothing and as necessary as food and oxygen.
Maybe the next time you are feeling down or excited or unmotivated or even highly motivated you should try putting on some of your favorite tunes to go with or enhance your mood. You may just be surprised how fast you get the dishes or laundry done at home blaring your favorite tunes. Or how efficiently and error free you finish that dreaded end of the month report at 8:45pm when you should have left at 6. This is also good advise for bosses who see productivity taking a dip. Maybe let your workers wear headphones or play their music low enough (as long as there are no safety issues). The problem may very well take care of itself.
Learn more about this author, Jennifer Goodwin Haigler.
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Distracting
Just like cigarette smoke can irritate other people in an enclosed area, sound, even the wonderful sounds of great music can be a distraction, an irritant to someone that just doesn't want to hear it.
Therefore, in a group situation at work, I would have to say that it's a distraction, or could be a distraction for at least some of the workers having to listen to it.
In an office workplace, non-verbal music is best. Because people tend to be distracted by lyrics rather than melody.
Deciding whether music is calming or distracting at work really depends on the type of tasks you're working on at any given moment and your frame of mind as you're trying to complete your assigned tasks.
There's also the issue of personal taste. If you love Country music, and your supervisor has old-school rock and roll, giving you a 'blast from the past' then it's possible that you won't enjoy the experience.
Also, some of us suffer from horrible headaches and migraines. When an intense headache strikes, the last thing you want to do is listen to someone's idea of 'calming' music - silence would be golden.
If music is played at work for everyone to listen to, but you're struggling with a complex problem or you're trying to deal with an difficult client, then the songs blaring in the background as you're trying to concentrate could be an irritating distraction.
A busy restaurant or store will usually have music playing in order to maintain a continuous 'buzz' of energy and noise in the room, however, an accountant's office may have the tinkling of a miniature water-fall and Debussy or Chopin gently playing in the background.
As the accounting office example shows, sometimes music can be calming, but it's unfair to assume that it's calming to a group of people, all day, everyday.
Learn more about this author, R Marie Taylor.
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