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Ubiquitous music bothers me, too. I tend to work in coffeeshops just to get out of the house, and I'm not aware of a single one without music. I never enjoy the
by b6 9y ago
Ubiquitous music bothers me, too. I tend to work in coffeeshops just to get out of the house, and I'm not aware of a single one without music. I never enjoy the music. I just endure it, or I defend myself with louder music of my own choosing in my earbuds. It's definitely stealing some fraction of my mental power. I worry that it's an indication that many people find silence uncomfortable, that they get anxious without some kind of distraction. Sometimes I wonder if it's like the smoke beekeepers use with bees.
- smelendez 9y agoI think the employees often like it, too. It also helps make conversations a bit more discreet, I think?
- Atheros 9y agoIndeed. In a coffee shop, one has two priorities when talking to another person: - Being heard by the other person easily enough - Not being heard by anyone else. The second one is important so that you don't need to put as much effort into self censoring or rapidly adjusting volume when saying something especially private. In a silent coffee shop, there is no volume low enough such that other people can't hear you. Lack of privacy is obviously not a deal breaker but obviously neither is piped music for a lot of people. The best coffee shop I've been to was a series of small rooms without doors with about four tables in each room. Often you would be the only group in the room especially if you were a big group. Even if you weren't, the walls absorbed a lot of noise. It was nice.
- dbatten 9y agoI'd personally suggest some low white noise for this purpose. Used all the time in offices already.
- nerdponx 9y agoEmployees like it if and only if they can control it. Having music forced on you for a 10 hour shift is hellish.