The highs and lows that accompany us

Last week, I had some time to reflect on the role music has played in my work life. The first time I brought it up was a more positive discussion. We were discussing ways that you might dial up your energy level. There were a lot of great suggestions that involved activity and movement, making sure you’d taken care of the basics (i.e., eating, sleeping, etc.) and that’s when I suggested listening to music as one of my “go to” methods for changing my energy level and helping to reset my mood. I’m not alone in my thinking about the benefits of music to improve creativity, innovation, and performance. I had just listened to this podcast from HBR IdeaCast interviews the authors of Two Beats Ahead: What Musical Minds Teach Us About Innovation.

The second time that I shared a song with my work colleagues it was under less happy circumstances. I’d just been given some disappointing news about a project that our team was pursuing. We’d lost and when asked how I was doing I responded with, “Gloom…Despair, and Agony on Me.” After a bit of inquiry, I found out that there are a great number of people that did not grow up with Hee Haw or having ever heard of this song. I’m sure that’s all right in a lot of people’s minds. Don’t judge. It was a low point in my day for sure.

I know we could all use more music in our lives. I would like to add to the diversity in my music collection to help support the myriad of moments that my work life brings. What songs or melodies have been accompanying you lately?