Music Remedies Menial Tasks
Tagged as: Dec 19Everyone has to perform menial tasks. Well I guess not everyone, but those of us who actually have to clean our own house, iron our own clothes, and wash our own dishes do. They’re not fun. That’s why they’re deemed menial tasks! But for myself, I’ve found that music is making them much more tolerable.
I think that I was finding that having these tasks to do (not necessarily everyday, but very often) was causing me to start doing them rather begrudgingly. It’s not that I hate the idea of doing work, but I just don’t like having multiple completely lacking in fun tasks queued up for me to do. They’re often monotonous and sometimes even physically tiring! Nobody considers them fun. But there’s hope!
Music washes away from the soul the dust of everyday life.
-Berthold Auerbach
People have known for so long that music speaks to us in ways that are indescribable. And I’ve found that simply listening to music while performing tasks that I would not otherwise prefer to do makes them all the more bearable. Now whether that’s because I can dance around, hum, or bob my head, who’s to say? All I know is that it’s there, and it’s good.
From John Mayer to DJ Maj to Al Green to Frank Sinatra to Deitrick Haddon & Unity Praise to Norah Jones to Bleach, and so on and so forth, I like me some music. No point in letting those 100s of CDs worth of music stay silenced.
Yes, music can be soothing or motivational and will take the drudgery out of performing tasks. If you have some upbeat music of the rock and roll variety, you can find that you’re working faster. Conversely, if you’re listening to music that is slow and mellow, you just might find yourself slowing down.
I AGREE!
Probably because our minds aren’t so much on the “menial” anymore :]
You’re probably right that it must just take our minds somewhere else. A happier place. A place where we’re relaxed and feel content. I like that place.
What music do you listen to in these situations?
Music definitely can change your mood! I don’t listen to music when I do menial tasks, though. I zone out a bit when I have to clean so it’s meditative I guess.
Actually, these days (despite my uh, “singing”) I don’t listen to music much at all. I played a lot of uplifting and inspirational music during a difficult time of my life but these days all I want is silence. I’m probably the wrong person to discuss music and media these days!
I stopped listening to music maybe 2 months ago. Maybe even 3. I used to turn on the smooth jazz channel when driving (or R&B, if I wanted something livelier) and now no music. Driving can be considered menial, especially on the freeway!
But…I was wondering at my lack on interest in listening to music. I went from uplifting vocals to nature sounds (waves) and now..nothing. I then read a book about ways to increase your intuition and it mentioned how many people who are consciously working on increasing their intuition end up craving silence. I have been working on being able to connect to my higher self as well as to be more intuitive but I had no idea that a side-effect was wanting silence!
You may refer to your “Higher Self” as your conscious - it’s that inner voice that tells you to avoid a situation or a person and usually your higher self will give you a sign like feeling very uncomfortable and unsettled.
Totally off your topic but yes, I agree that music can take the drudgery out of menial tasks!
Oh that’s interesting that you’re not inclined to listen to much music now. For some reason I could have seen you being someone who really enjoys music. So do you think that you just enjoy thinking in the quiet now instead of the music? Or what prompted you to stop listening to music?
I wonder why increasing intuition would have anything to do with wanting silence. If you ever figure it out, be sure to tell me!
In my case, I don’t want to be influenced by anything. Music does have the power to influence me by changing my mood. Music is also distracting. I think that increasing your intuition has a lot to do with being totally present. It is when you are totally present that you can see and hear more clearly.
I feel so much more relaxed with silence these days. So many people seem to use music to “tune out.”
I believe I was already pretty intuitive although maybe hyper-observant was more true in the past. This trait is usually found in people who were raised in a chaotic household - you become hyper aware of all the emotional nuances as well as environmental cues. It’s a form of protection. You know when to zig when all sorts of stuff are zagging your way!
Now I feel that I can sense people’s mood and read between the lines more. I have been told by others that this is true - that I will notice what is going on with them when no one else does or even they may not be aware of.
My ex-MIL told me once that she actually *couldn’t* clean with music on! I was like, “Huh? How can anyone clean without music?” They told us at an inservice one time that there’s a 22% decrease in chronic pain from listening to an hour of music a day…plus, if your place isn’t that big & you clean it for an entire hour a day, it would be sparkling clean!
Yeah I don’t really understand that about some people, but I guess that’s what I like music and they don’t. I’ve met other people who don’t particularly care for things that I find absolutely enjoyable. One of the more interesting examples is my friend who often says that he doesn’t really enjoy eating. Eating?! I love eating! I can see some people not enjoying eating particular things, but he categorically does not enjoy eating. That is a sad sad life.
That’s a cool little note about decreasing chronic pain because of music. (Of course, it’s not exactly easy to quantify that but I digress.) How much music do you listen to a day? I know that I sure listen to more than an hour, but I’m listening to my music player at work while I’m programming. What kind of music do you like while cleaning?
Sri Lankan refugee rap is good for cleaning! NOT kidding! Actually anything upbeat. But really, I try to just avoid cleaning!
Sorry took me so long to get back to this one - I was out of town and then life plowed over me…
I looooooooooooooooooooove eating too, but there ARE times when it’s just too much hassle, usually if I’m in the middle of something creative.
I can usually listen for a lot of the day, because I teach. So I listen in the car and then again at school and then again in the car and then for awhile when we get home until the news comes on.
Sri Lankan refugee rap huh? I have never even heard of that genre! I will look into that for sure now, though.
Hm I suppose that eating can be a burden sometimes. Especially if there seems like there’s something else that’s more important. But it gives me an opportunity to stop and enjoy the life that I have.
Wow it sounds like you listen to a lot of music! What kind of music are you listening to doing those different things? (driving, in class, etc besides the Sri Lankan refugee rap for cleaning)
iron your clothes. haha.
When I’m not talking on the phone while ironing my clothes, I will put on a few tunes. Haha
Derek, music has been found to be beneficial in many other areas, too. Studies show that stroke victims who listen to music are less likely to feel anxiety and regain their language skills faster. Other studies show that women who listen to music while exercising tend to work out for longer periods. Definitely getting lost in the music helps make housework less painful. I like the quote you added to this article!
Oh good info on extra benefits of music! Music certainly seems like it’s able to speak to us in ways that words cannot, doesn’t it?
I’m glad that you liked the quote.
I guess that we should all be thankful to Berthold for saying it!