Listen to music

Listening to music while working or studying may help increase concentration, but this will depend on the individual. Even if you don't like music, using white noise or natural sounds to block out background noise as you work may help you focus and do other cognitive tasks better, according to a study.

Music has also a positive effect on your ability to memorize. One experiment required individuals to read short lists of words and then recall them. Those who worked with white noise or in silence did worse than those who listened to classical music. A similar effect was shown when the same research tracked how fast people could perform simple processing tasks — matching numbers to geometrical shapes. People were able to finish the activity more quickly and precisely because of Mozart.