Usually, a muse is a person or personified force that is the source of creativity for artists. I like to consider my love for music, my muse. Music connects us in a way that a lot of other things can't. With a world so divided, I believe that music will always be something that will constantly connect people; all over the world. I listen to relax and I listen while I work. There are a lot of different types of music that I listen to while I work, but it all depends on how I want my work to be done; right and efficiently or wrong and carelessly?

You best believe I am listening to music while writing this article! So here are some artists and ideas to help with focus, determination, and creating a peaceful environment for yourself.

The first artist I recommend is Tash Sultana. She creates these tracks that resonate with you and almost force you to move with the rhythms of the strings. Being able to play over 15 different instruments, she became incredible and undoubtedly noticed in her favor to create some of the most melodic music; not to mention vocals that fill the echoes of rhythm with such a reposeful yet raspy voice. From recording videos in her bedroom to performing worldwide, Sultana has grown exponentially as an artist and her music is so wonderful to listen to while trying to focus. Even by the name of one of her albums, "Flow State", it gives you this sense of peace and steady pace. Each time I listen, I fall back for a second, bob my head to the good vibes I am listening to then sit up, get back in the groove, and keep going.

Next, the mindful, delicate, and somewhat underrated; classical music. The composer; Yo-Yo Ma. I know some have never heard of him but yet he is one of the most talented, intelligent, and creative cellists. A child prodigy by age five, performing publicly by age nine, his music feeds the soul with such originality and lust that leaves my fingers dancing with each change in pace. There are no lyrics, which makes this music more restful to listen to; just the melody gliding through your mind, hopefully, to calm unwanted nerves. Many songs inspired by Bach, Yo-Yo Ma successfully creates a generous, ambient environment through all of his compositions.

Create a nirvana in your mind where you need it the most. When you become worried or anxious, try using music to clear those frustrations. I have noticed it takes people a long time to figure out what suits them best when learning how to calm their emotions and their thoughts. When looking for what to play around others, I think of the type of music the other person would want to hear and it excites them or puts them in an untroubled state of mind. Each genre you listen to is going to set a certain mood, no doubt. Play classical music, it's quiet and conservative. Play rock music, the whole gang will be headbanging and jamming out. I have found that music changes me. Within my art, music helps me become more creative. Art inspires my art, how funny. When I put my headphones in and turn my music on, my emotions go to a whole other world. I am able to consciously bring my thoughts/concerns to the center of my attention and understand them through music that I feel I can relate with or vibe to.

An all-time favorite artist of mine; Sleeping At Last. The name of the group says it all, you will fall asleep if you listen to them long enough; I have fallen asleep to them a countless amount of times. Ryan O'Neal's voice will be enough for you to want to cry your eyes out so maybe when you need a good cry, listen to them! This music has such a beautiful symphony and when I listen to it, I feel calm and have a sense of rationality. The piano melody along with the strings that play between each chorus is so canorous and motionless; if you close your eyes you may even feel as though you are just floating in space or on a cloud. Each of their songs/albums is situated around a different theme. For example, their new album with continuing releases explores themes of human development; senses, emotions and a song for each of the nine unique Enneagram types.

I want to go into further detail about this album because I think it really connects to this article as a whole. The Enneagram System is based on personality types. We are all born with a dominant type of personality, but we may find that some attributes from others resonate with us as well. From the website The Enneagram Institute, they give an entire explanation into the system that I HIGHLY recommend you go read.

The website states, "[...] this inborn orientation largely determines the ways in which we learn to adapt to our early childhood environment. It also seems to lead to certain unconscious orientations toward our parental figures, but why this is so, we still do not know. In any case, by the time children are four or five years old, their consciousness has developed sufficiently to have a separate sense of self. Although their identity is still very fluid, at this age children begin to establish themselves and find ways of fitting into the world on their own." Looking into this website, going through the process of creating the diagram and reading about the different personalities I have learned a lot more about myself that I didn't realize was out there to understand. I guess we are learning new things about ourselves each day. There are so many different types of people in the world, but we find that when people match us in certain ways that is why we get along with them better, or maybe even worse if we are too alike.

Knowing more about ourselves (and maybe even those around us) we can better illustrate our strengths and weaknesses. It can help us to become better learners, leaders, followers or even just better people. It is crazy to know that music could help us branch out to understand the world in such extraordinary and interchangeable ways, but it can and it does; so tune in and focus every once in a while!