There has been a growing trend of using music in in person team building exercises across organizations and companies around the world. After all, it is more than just a source of entertainment. It also offers psychological benefits that can greatly enhance the dynamics of your team. Let’s explore why you should use the power of music to bring your people together here.
It Reduces Anxiety and Stress
Music has been shown to lower cortisol levels in the human body, meaning it can also help reduce the fight-or-flight response. Listening to relaxing tunes can lower the heart rate. Lower stress in a team setting helps your members feel more relaxed and open to collaborating, especially in a high-pressure environment.
Additionally, it can synchronize the brain waves. The way this works is that sound around 60 beats per minute (bpm) causes the brain to synchronize with the beat and lead to alpha brain waves. When you listen to something upbeat, you will also notice that you feel more positive and optimistic. Slower tempos, on the other hand, can relax your muscles and quiet your mind.
It Enhances Motivation and Mood
Music can trigger the release of dopamine, a neurotransmitter that helps you feel motivation, pleasure, and reward. It also reduces your stress, improves your mood, and boosts your overall well-being. At the same time, certain tunes can be connected to remembering, so you might associate familiar songs with nice memories.
When you are working on a task, studying, or even exercising, you feel more energized when you’re listening to something. You also fall asleep faster and stay asleep longer with music, as it can lower your heart rate and slow down your breathing. A positive mood impacts the overall energy and morale of your team, leading to greater enthusiasm and performance in the face of deadlines and tasks.
It Boosts Focus and Cognitive Function
Depending on the genre, listener, and volume, listening to music can improve concentration and memory. Some tunes help you to retain things better and enhance your overall cognitive performance. Besides that, they can help you focus on your tasks for longer periods of time. They can also stimulate planning, problem-solving, and other thinking processes.
As mentioned previously, certain sounds can affect your dopamine. This is done by activating the dopaminergic system to improve your motivation and attention. Music can support brainstorming and related tasks, enabling your team to cooperate more effectively on challenging projects.
It Fosters Empathy and Emotional Connection
Music helps people connect with others and understand their own emotions, thereby developing emotional awareness and intelligence. Songs help you see from a different perspective or experience, leading to empathy for others. They also help you learn to collaborate and communicate with other people.
As you feel more connected to others, like when you sing something everyone else knows, you can improve group cohesion through the creation of a shared experience. It also boosts your interpersonal relationships, which is crucial for effective teamwork in a diverse work environment.
Again, music offers more than just a means to entertain yourself—it can also help your team work better together. If you want to integrate music into your team-building sessions in the future, get in touch with Song Division and see how they can provide the best activity for your specific team and organization.
