Can music help you buckle down and concentrate? According to an article in the New York Times, listening to music while working can help you perform tasks more quickly and also help you come up with better ideas. Why is that? Some say stress can make you rush towards rash decisions. Music soothes your stress, which results in better reflection and wiser choices. Your personal choice in music is important, and generally music without lyrics is best.
My music of choice for working is classical music. Yo-Yo Ma playing Bach or anyone playing "Rêverie" by Debussy soothes me when I’m overwhelmed by everything I need to accomplish in the next hour. Dvořák's New World Symphony inspires me when I have to do something I dread. And when I’m really feeling sluggish, Finlandia, op. 26, by Sibelius is just the ticket. Kettle drums lift me, I guess.
Some caution that continuously listening to music can make you less productive and interfere with thinking, reading, and writing. Unless what you are doing is repetitive or monotonous, they suggest you listen to music for
10 or 15 minutes. This will put you in a better mood and relax you before you start working. But really, who has 10 to 15 minutes to waste? And once I turn off the music, the printer down the hall, the colleagues collaborating next door, and the construction on the street are negatively affecting my productivity. How about a little Mahler?