Turn Off the Podcast and Power Up the Mix Tape

All I needed was the second beat.

As it rang out of my speakers, I knew instantly what came next. I rolled the windows down, turned the volume up, and sang along. Loudly. So loudly that the guy next to me at the traffic stop did a double take. Apparently, I don’t look like the kind of person who knows every single word to <em>that</em> song.

If you’d asked me earlier in the day to write the lyrics down on paper, I might not have remembered every word. I might not have remembered even half; the days when I played that song on repeat are nearly 20 years behind me.

But the single beat, followed after a pregnant pause by the second, triggered my memory in a way someone asking me couldn’t.

My clients spend their days answering questions, listening to arguments, making decisions. They negotiate deals, navigate tricky legal territory, and work to lead and inspire teams. None work a 40-hour work week; they check their phones upon waking, spend 10-12 hours in front of a computer screen, and send one final email before turning out the light. Their work is complex and nuanced and incredibly draining.

I’m often asked how leaders might quickly refocus and re-energize, and my answer is always the same. Pause and do something different. I don’t mean switch from proofing the pitch deck to drafting the strategic plan. I don’t mean switch tasks or think differently. I don’t mean relax by listening to a leadership podcast or reading an HBR article. We use our brains in the same way in each of those activities.

To quickly refocus and refresh we must engage something other than the cognitive, literal processes we use all day every day in business.

I encourage my clients to step outside and concentrate on the feeling of sun hitting their face. Look out a window and watch the wind rustle the leaves of the trees. Walk by a bakery and smell what’s baking. Breathe deeply and feel your lungs stretch to capacity. Turn up the music in your car and sing along. Camp out in a conference room and call an old friend to share a laugh. Each of these activities allows our brain to process information in a way that isn’t linear and is different from our usual cognitive processing. Each pause presses an invisible reset button.

Singing along to the music in my car, I forget for a moment what’s on the top of my to do list. Capturing that moment of joy is energizing and inspires my creativity. It activates different neurological pathways and allows me to see possibilities I couldn’t see before. That bump in energy and creativity from the song, the feeling of connection and belonging spilling over from talking to a friend carry over to our work, making us more open to opportunity and connection at work.

So next time you’re in the car, turn off the podcast. Pop in an ancient mix tape. No cassette player? Find a song on your playlist that your neighbor’s teenager doesn’t know exists, roll the windows down and sing along. Your work and your team will thank you (but maybe not for the singing, exactly).