Losing Yourself In Music Essay

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Ever loose yourself in a song? When was the last time you listened deeply without distractions? Losing yourself in your music can benefit your mental health. Pair this with deep breathing and other mindfulness techniques and research indicates that you may be able to change your mood, emotion, and even how you work and handle stress. There is a new way to tune into your music and we’re here to give you the important facts and information you need to know about the newest technology for improving your health.
Music Functions Listening to music can be separated into 3 important functions: regulation of emotions, achieving self-awareness, and as an expression of social relatedness. These first two functions mean we most often plug into tunes to regulate, change, or get in touch with their emotions. Social relatedness means we often use music to feel connected to one another or a group. Why are these functions important? You can change how you feel with music. Two recent studies asked participants to boost their happiness, those listening to positive music reported higher increases in their mood than those not listening to music. The participants reported changing their mood required close attention and intention.
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When you listen to music, try paying close attention to the song and purposefully intend to change your mood. It may sound ridiculous, but it works. This understandably can be very difficult to achieve when our attention is constantly pulled in other directions. Practicing mindfulness techniques helps hone our attention and focus skills, while letting distractions go.
Mindfulness
Mindfulness generally involves deep breathing and paying close attention to thoughts and feelings. The goal is to observe the present moment and accept it without judgment. These practices are seen in yoga and meditation, but why limit these techniques to a studio? Psychologists are researching how these techniques can be applied to other areas of our lives and what effects they have on mental health.
Mindfulness & Work The struggle to pay attention and lower stress is real when we are working. Modern workforce assessments report an increase in work dissatisfaction, stress, and job-related illness. Many employers are asking their employees to work faster and longer hours to keep up with the demanding market. Companies are draining their resources and funds are employees are left burnt-out with little relief. Businesses are looking into mindfulness training in an effort to help employees. The basic concept of slowing down sounds contradictory to the fast-paced work environment, but it has proven to help employees become quicker, focused, and attentive. Employees are able to reach their goals easier, faster, and with less stress than before. Mindfulness boosts job satisfaction and creates an environment open to change, learning and growth. Music & Work Music is used as a tool to improve stress and employee work environments across the globe. A UK study discovered workers felt music improved their well-being at work and a musically induced positive mood improved their work performance. Software Developers who listened to music felt an improved mood, produced better work quality, and reduced time spent on tasks. The developers felt more energized and alert when listening to music and found it increased their ability to create and complete their goals. Music and mindfulness are the beginning of a changing workforce.

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