Making Your Home Office Sing

Working from home comes with many awesome perks. One of them is the freedom to unplug your headphones from your computer and turn up the volume on your speakers. Listening to music at work doesn’t have to be distracting.

“Depending on what type of work you’re doing, different types of music can relax you, inspire you, or help you bear down and knock out some hard reading.”

There are numerous articles outlining the benefits and drawbacks of listening to music while you work, but one recent study by Simone Ritter and Sam Ferguson finds that listening to uplifting music while you work can help with creative thinking, or ‘divergent thinking.’ However, the study also found that music was not helpful for problem solving, or ‘convergent thinking.’

If you searched the internet for music to listen to while working or studying, the results would be nearly endless. Over various streaming platforms such as Apple Music, Spotify, Soundcloud, Bandcamp, and even Youtube, there are plenty of playlists arranged specifically for working along to.

Although prolific and highly generative, Youtube can be distracting during work. Bandcamp is great for exploring and finding new artists with the use of its tags, which allow you to search by genre, style, and location. However, the platform does not use playlists, and after a certain number of plays users are asked to “open thy heart/wallet.”

“Spotify is popular for its extensive selection of playlists curated by users, Spotify employees, and radio stations or record labels.”

Some people find themselves more distracted from their work when listening to lyrical music. Verified Spotify user Peaceful Classics has a few classical music playlists curated for work and study. For anyone looking for something more modern, Chillhop Records’ playlist ‘Chillhop Radio’ is full of jazzy, lofi, sample-based music.

Be sure to treat yourself to some sonically sound speakers as well. Listening through a tinny laptop speaker creates an annoying fuzz that can be distracting.

“Having high quality speakers makes listening to music easy and enjoyable.”

Even a subwoofer or bass booster could make all the difference. Take advantage of your home workspace – get inspired and let yourself enjoy music while you work!