Coming to Our Senses | What’s Your Soundscape?
© Martha Wooding-Young, The Resilient Executive, LLC. Indigo bunting at Heartwood
If you live in a city, the anthrophone – or man-made urban soundscape – is not good for overall well-being. It has been shown to negatively impact cognitive skills, creativity, and mental health, among other adverse effects. One quick fix is to introduce nature sounds into your office. When I worked in mid-town Manhattan, I would often shut my office door and use my phone to play a YouTube video of a burbling stream with birds singing when I had a cognitively taxing task to complete. This 2022 study published in Nature explains why it helped. A variety of birdsong is particularly helpful, as it seems to signal to our ancient safety detection physiology that the ecosystem is healthy and all is well. Keep an eye out for my longer article on this topic, coming soon.
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