Most of the time I listen to podcasts and not music. Occasionally, though, I do get into moods where I want to listen to music. It could be when I need to concentrate and not be distracted by talking on a podcast. It could also be due to my mood.

Music can enhance my emotional state or change it. I find that when I am feeling sad or wistful, there are certain artists and songs I listen to that reinforce that mood. In those instances I don’t try to change my mood to something more uplifting or positive because that doesn’t work. I just wallow in that mood for awhile until I get out of the funk.

If I’m going to work out, I find I can use music to set my mood to high energy and that tends to work.

I’ve been trying to analyze songs I’ve been listening to lately to see why I picked them. Perhaps they remind me of a different time or circumstance in my life. I think there is a deeper meaning there, but I don’t necessarily want to fall down the rabbit hole.

Then you have the silly scenario where you get a song stuck in your head all day. The only way I’ve found to get it unstuck is to actually listen to the song as a way to somehow “satisfy the loop” then it usually goes away.