I have a little monster living inside my head. He talks to me from time to time. Mostly, I ignore him and go about my day. But sometimes, he just won’t shut up.
I’ll start writing, for example, and a few minutes later, there he is. He has something to say that has nothing to do with what I’m working on, but he wants me to listen. Or he tells me he’s bored and wants me to play with him.
I tell him not to bother me, but by then, I’ve lost my concentration. I go check email or get up and take a break. Sometimes it takes me 15 minutes before I’m able to get back to work.
I start working again, but ten minutes later it happens again. Stop, start, stop start. Before I know it, the day is over and I haven’t gotten much done.
Does this ever happen to you? Perhaps you have a little monster, too.
Good news. I’ve found a way to keep the little devil quiet. It sounds simple, but it works remarkably well.
All I do is put on my headphones and listen to music while I work. The music drowns out my monster’s monkey chatter so I can continue to work without interruption.
I listen to music without words: classical, new age, Celtic, and various forms of so-called ambient music.
I also listen to ambient sounds, like recordings made in a coffee shop, restaurant, or library. The sound of clinking glasses, whispered voices, pages turning, and the occasional cough take me to a different place.
I listen to recordings of people typing. The clickity clack sound and rhythm is a perfect background for writing.
I listen to birds chirping and rainstorms. I listen to the ambient rumble of Star Trek TNG ship’s engines idling in space.
I even tried something called ASMR. (It’s weird. Search for it on YouTube.)
They all work because I don’t consciously listen to the music or the sounds. They play in the background, a form of white noise, that allows my little monster to take a nap.
I’ve even set up a play list and have everything on autoplay. I’m able to put in an hour or more before I need a break.
How about you? What do you listen to when you work?
