In today’s busy world it may seem impossible to stick with some routine, or even redundant. In fact we needed it more than ever. Minute to minute decisions are exhausting for our brain and body. Routine creates a general scheme of every day, it should incorporate all the things we must do whether we like or not. It relieves us of trivial dilemmas and lets us focus on the important issues.
Every routine should address and take into account several key aspects of wellbeing: physical, intellectual, and emotional. All of those aspects are interconnected. For example, if you don’t have a nice and healthy breakfast your mood can deteriorate, or if you are in the bad mood you won’t enjoy your breakfast or even eat at all. So a carefully planned routine is key to a well balanced day.
The most common mistake that people make while creating a routine is to undermine moments out of the house. Usually one does not plan routing for commuting but that is a huge part of your day. Time spent commuting depends on where you live. The average for large cities is 50 min.
Actually, the morning commute is the most stressful part of the day for most people. There is a way to “escape” that dreadful part of the day, and even to make it very useful for the rest of the day. Yes, listening to music can protect you from the stressful environments. Music communicates with us in a non-verbal way, it affects us on a more rudimental emotional level. Going on daydreaming adventures while listening to right music can completely negate the stress caused by commuting. It is important to choose the right kind of music. Some music can make us feel happy, fulfilled, and even help release dopamine in our brain, while wrong kind can make us more anxious.
Embracing the habit of listening to music in commute will transform that experience. It will no longer be associated with a negative emotion. It will be a convenient and enjoyable time.
Meditation and music
One of the good morning habits is to meditate. That activity clears your mind and puts you in a right state of mind for most daily challenges. The most common way people like to meditate is to focus on their breathing. Just breath in and out. Don’t let your mind wonder, every thought that comes into your mind will just pass. Afterwards you will feel relaxed and clear minded. There are also guided meditations, where you are getting help with meditation. It is usually a recording of someone’s voice that guides you through different stages of meditation. The downside is that you need time and a quiet place for meditation. There are ways to have similar experiences like meditation but in a more active way. Music can be viewed as guided meditation. It is an active meditation in which you relax and allow yourself to be changed through music. You are witnessing a change of your mood, your perception of the current situation by just allowing music to do it’s thing.
So you can literally choose how to feel depending on which music we listen to. After waking up, especially if you are not a “morning person”, we often feel down. A great way to shake the morning dew out of our soul is to listen to high energy, rhythmic and happy music.
Luckily you don’t have to search and listen to dozens of songs every morning to find the right one. There are people whose job is to find and compile great playlists. Lease Fetcher has a great Spotify playlist for morning commuting.
The effect of music on our psyche can be dependent on your music taste. There is no sure objective way of grading music, it is subjective. We oftel like songs because of some emotional association and not solely on the quality of the composition. For example, you may associate some song with your very first kiss. Whether or not that song is aligned with your current musical taste it will produce butterflies in your stomach. Don’t be afraid to listen to any kind of music that makes you feel good. Metal music is stressful for the most, but it also relaxes a certain number of people. Go with your gut and find what kind of music has the best impact on you.
