Here at FanLabel, we’re obviously music obsessed. We’re always jamming, no matter where we are—in the car, walking the dog, at the gym, and especially at work.
If you’re like us, you may have your chosen genres for particular tasks: perhaps hardcore metal like Black Sabbath and Megadeth pounds through your ears as you pump iron, balanced with the smoother stylings of Adele and Ed Sheeran that accompany the tip-tap of keys whilst you type away at your desk.
Have you ever thought of why you hit “play” on particular songs or artists as the soundtrack to certain tasks or moods? When it comes to what you listen to while you work, it turns out you may be helping or hurting yourself.
Recently, staffing firm Accountemps conducted a study to see whether workers are more or less productive when listening to music, and which genre(s) help boost productivity. Let’s take a closer look.
Music boosts productivity
Of those polled, 71 percent of respondents said that they are at least somewhat productive when music is playing in the office. Those who said that music makes them more productive also ranked the genres that help boost their productivity: pop, rock and country came in top three, with jazz, blues and heavy metal ranked last.
Millennials are music obsessed
By age group, 95 percent of millennials said they appreciate music while working (no surprise there?), along with 84 percent of those aged 35 to 54 and 66 percent of those 55 and up.
According to a separate study by Digital Music News, millennials listen to 75.1 percent more music on a daily basis than baby boomers (those born between 1946 and 1964), stating that the emotional connection millennials form with music helps lessen stress while improving mood, focus and productivity.
And they say millennials are lazy.
FanLabel’s take
We may be biased, but FanLabel gives two big thumbs up to music in the workplace. If your office has an overhead sound system installed, this not only gives you the opportunity to improve productivity, but to foster some team bonding. Share your playlists and introduce your co-workers to a new artist! You might just discover a new favorite yourself.
If you’re listening through the comfort of your own headphones, even better: you are your own DJ! If you find it difficult to concentrate while spinning the latest pop hits because you’re singing along, try classical music, nature sounds or even ambient noise. Figure out what works for you and gets you into the zone. Plus, this way you don’t have to fight over the controls of the office sound system.
