You need different ear buds for different tasks. If you're trying to isolate yourself, use in-ear buds. If you need to maintain awareness of your surroundings,

You need different ear buds for different tasks. If you're trying to isolate yourself, use in-ear buds. If you need to maintain awareness of your surroundings, use canal-adjacent buds like air pods or sony MDR-J10s. If you're in an especially noisy environment like a party, using a lawnmower or vacuum cleaner, use a pair of Plugfones with a real NRR value.