Music to motivate and inspire.

I recently went for a job interview and had to drive over 3 hours to the Midlands to meet the people conducting it.  The music choice on any road trip is paramount, as mentioned before in a previous article (Road Trip!!!), but I also had to consider the inspirational and motivational qualities of the music I chose this time.

I started off by selecting one of my all time favourite artists, Peter Gabriel, as he never fails to move me and his music settles me as I’ve played it so many times and it is ingrained in my psyche.  I selected his best of collection ‘Hit’ to get a wide mix and played both discs to start my journey off.  It was great to wend my way through the hellish commuter traffic and have Peter vocals and sublime music to soothe me and stop me getting over anxious about the coming interview.

I realised that I would want to be a little geed up and focused for when the interview started and short of playing ‘Eye of the Tiger’ on a loop I knew I’d need some rock music to get the blood (and my fist) pumping.  I selected some Foo Fighters and chose their ‘The Colour and the Shape’ album as it has one of my all time favourite tracks on it, ‘Everlong’.  The album is one of their best and as I approached my destination I was feeling both inspired and motivated.  Peter Gabriel managed to give me the first feeling and Foo Fighters managed to provide me with the second.

The Colour and the Shape

The interview went very well (they offered me the job this week) and I came out feeling relieved and also a little tired from the concentration.  Now I had the journey home before me and I wanted something buoyant to accompany that.  Something to help me celebrate and also keep me alert.

I chose Mumford and Sons ‘Sigh No More’ which has to be one of the best albums I have bought in recent years.  It is one of those rare albums that doesn’t have a bad track on it and that I can listen to at any time.  Pretty soon I was heading back down the motorway with my feet jiggling and body swaying and singing along with full gusto.  The relief that the interview went well and the up-beat music playing out loud made me almost giddy.

I put on some radio later in the journey so I could hear some new music to further explore and find out what’s happening in the world and I arrived home feeling shattered, but satisfied.

Music is such an integral part of my life that I love being able to select it for particular purposes or moods.  To bring me up if I’m feeling down, to create a smouldering mood if I am feeling romantic with my wife, to pound our some aggression if work is particularly difficult or simply just to inspire me and get me buoyed up for an impending interview.  Music is so powerful if you think about it and I am fortunate to have it in my life.

You never know, it may have even been the difference between success and failure in the interview.  If I’d played something else maybe I’d be telling a different story here.  I kind of doubt it to be honest, but it’s worth stopping to briefly consider never-the-less.