Music is Good for Your Mind

Music is the background to our lives – it soothes us, it pumps us up and it can make us happy.

Music is often associated with memories and sometimes we like to save those songs so we can access them at any time.

The best way to listen to these carefully self-curated songs is by making a playlist - a personal collection of songs that gives you energy and focus. It’s a powerful tool that will help to put you in the right mental state. Your playlist will help you visualize the outcomes of what you are about to do.

Evolution of the playlist

Making a playlist isn’t a new concept. In the nineties, you may have recorded your favorite songs from the radio on to a cassette to create the ultimate mixtape. Eventually, you progressed to making CDs full of your favorite songs that were downloaded from the world wide web. You would listen to these cassettes or CDs when you were getting ready for a date or night out, if you were happy or feeling blue and while hanging out with friends or while driving around in your car.

As the technology evolved so did the simplicity of creating playlists. Some of the easiest ways to create playlists are on applications like Apple Music or Spotify.

Music Can Make You Smarter

Music can enhance cognitive performance. According to Harvard Health Publishing, “researchers speculated that listening to music helps organize the firing of nerve cells in the right half of the cerebral cortex, the part of the brain responsible for higher functions. According to this construct, music — or at least some forms of music — acts as an "exercise" that warms up selected brain cells, allowing them to process information more efficiently.”

What is the song that you play when you start your day, before you deliver a presentation, during your workout or on your drive? We are wired to respond to music. It can trigger emotions, support us with our learning, help our moods, and other health benefits.

As Billy Joel once said, “I think music in itself is healing.  It’s an explosive expression of humanity.  It’s something we are all touched by.  No matter what culture we’re from, everyone loves music.” Create your own playlist and start that positive flow of energy.