I love music! I enjoy listening to it, I enjoy playing it, and I even enjoy singing it. But what in the world does that have to do with my purpose – unless of course I make my living in the music industry? But music can feed you in ways that can make you feel better as well as be more productive. Allow me to share two of those benefits today.
First, a 2010 study reported that music can decrease the stress hormone cortisol just as much as massage therapy. Listening to music while in a dim room, after only three months led to the same anxiety reduction as regular massages.
Secondly, according to researchers from both the Netherlands as well as Australia, people who listened to happy music arrived at more creative solutions, when problem solving, than those who sat in silence. Researchers speculate that music improves the brain’s flexibility and may cause relaxation that stimulates the creative juices.
But in both cases, don’t play the music too loud. Researchers found that moderate volume creates that necessary sweet spot for benefits to take place.
So, as you turn on the car radio today, who knows – it just might help your Monday matter even more than normal.