It should be of no surprise to all you crazy kids that I am a child of music – I mean I sang a song for you guys! I was fortunate to be born from two families that are very inclined when it comes to music; my father is a multi-instrumentalist, all his brothers and sisters play instruments and/or sing. My grandma is killer with the maracas, and my mom is, well, my mom! So needless to say, since I was able to speak I’ve been singing and once I had the hand/eye coordination in my middle school years, I began to play any and every instrument I could get my hands on.
Music evokes emotion. In it’s truest form it is harnessed and expressed through moments of praise and inspiration – and I’m not necessarily talking about religion. Music moves people from the side of rooms into the middle and makes them act like idiots. Music apparently causes people to wear trench coats and shoot up their schools, because clearly it has nothing to do with parenting. There would be no film industry without music as I’m sure staring at moving images in silence wouldn’t have lasted – the entire horror genre would be non existent because it is the sound accompaniment which creates the sense of impending doom.
What does this have to do with making money online?
Well, let’s think about this for a second… You’re having a bad day and nothing is going as expected. No matter what you do you can’t concentrate on the task at hand – whether it be finishing an ebook that you’re writing, or doing some more link building for your latest affiliate driven review site. In an attempt to shake off the dissatisfaction you get up from the computer and start pacing around your home, with your thoughts moving a mile a minute – and this is obviously not helping.
When you’re in this state of mind there is no point working at all. It’s better to pack it up and call it a day, because without the right state of mind and focus on what your doing, the results will not be optimal.
The cure: listen to your favorite song!
Personally, I have music playing in the background all day while I work. I don’t have it blasting at 11 on the volume meter (spinal tap?) but I do have my speakers set to a nice listening level where it is not distracting, so I can still absorb the vibe and good feeling while increasing my productivity. I create a play list to typically last 1-2 hours and when it’s done I’ll create another depending on my current mood.
If you don’t typically listen to music while you work, this could be even more effective for you because once you feel yourself getting off track or loosing your groove – close whatever windows you have open and find that favorite song. Let that song play and allow yourself to feel the goosebumps forming. Take a deep breath and sing/hum along. Close your eyes and pay attention to the lyrics so you can subconsciously translate them into your current state of being. I can almost guarantee that after listening to a few of your favorite songs, you will go back to the task at hand with a clear mind and a better sense of what needs to be accomplished – and you WILL get it done!
Remember – music evokes emotion. Happy, sad, mad, etc… Use the power of music to change your mood and remind yourself that it can be used strategically to accomplish exactly that. One could even go as far as creating play lists for various situations i.e. a “tight deadline” play list which energizes you fills you with excitement at the challenge ahead. A “creative” play list which sparks your mental palate while working in Photoshop or Illustrator. A “brainstorming” play list when you feel an idea coming on and you need to map your thoughts.
Here’s a little taste of what I listen to depending on what I’m doing (keeping in mind that my music taste is extremely broad:
- Jazz (Charlie Parker, Miles Davis, Bob James) – Usually when I’m building sites for flipping. I find the varying tempo and chord progressions keep my momentum going, while the pleasing tone of piano, sax/trumpet and contra bass prevent me from getting ahead of myself.
- Hip Hop (De La Soul, Talib Kweli, Common) – I typically have consciously-driven hip hop playing during the mid-day afternoon. After I eat lunch I get a wave of tiredness, and this is easily combated by the grooving percussion and rhythmic lyricism of my favorite hip hop tracks. Sometime’s I listen to my own music as well.
- Heavy Metal (Metallica, Killswitch Engage, Tool) – I’ll sometimes have a few beers while I’m putting in hours on the weekend, and nothing blends better than alcohol and hard rock. I find I come up with the most genious ideas while getting drunk and listening to people scream. I’m dead serious.
- Funk/Soul/Big Band (Frank Sinatra, Lou Rawls, Willie Hutch) – The raw aspect of live instrumentation from the 60’s to the early 80’s accompanied by the unbelieveable vocal stylings of the greats always brighten my mood. Soul music can take me from thoughts of burning my computers and crushing my dreams to regrouping and appreciating what I have – rather than what I don’t have yet.
- Pop (Justin Timberlake, Stevie Wonder, Michael Jackson) – Pop music makes me feel good. I’ll usually put on some up tempo tracks when Veronica comes home from work, so neither of us have the time to engage the thoughts of dissatisfaction and stress.
- 80’s Retro (Hall and Oates, Journey, Madonna) – We absolutely love 80’s pop! I guess it’s because it was playing all the time when we were children, and we absorbed the nostalgic elements which satisfy us now as adults. We rock out to retro on weekends.
What kind of music moves you guys and gals? I’d love to know!
Cheers,
Elijah
