Soundtrack Your Success: Using Music to Achieve Your Goals in 2025

The start of a new year often brings a sense of renewed purpose, and one underrated yet powerful tool can help you stay on track: music.

by Sophia Omarji

Before the start of a new year, many of us set goals for career advancement, fitness, personal growth, or to stay consistent with healthy habits. But there’s one thing that you may be passively engaging with every day, and missing its potential for helping you climb the mountain to success: music.

In 2025, as we navigate an increasingly fast-paced world filled with technological advancements and the expectation of us to be productivity machines, music remains a constant force capable of inspiring, motivating, and grounding us. An active, more intentional use of music can help you both set and smash your goals this year.

The psychology of music and motivation

Research has found that listening to music has strong positive effects on mood, motivation, and concentration, as well as moderate effects on learning¹. Music has an incredible ability to influence our brain chemistry, where listening to your favourite songs can be a source of reward to motivate your brain to persevere with certain tasks². Let’s be real — finding motivation is difficult when you’re stuck in a rut. But the act of pressing play on your favourite songs activates the pleasure centre of your brain, improving your mood and consequently your motivation levels. And suddenly, getting that task done might not be so difficult³. This can serve as a powerful tool for forming healthy habits, giving us that extra push to keep moving forward.

Concentrating with music

In a world where distraction is around every corner, our ability to concentrate is dwindling. Research has found that over the past 20 years, the average time that a person can focus on one thing has dropped from around 2½ minutes to around 45 seconds⁴. However, concentration is one of the most important factors in determining a person’s efficiency, and is important to maintain if working towards checking off those goals. For some, music allows them to concentrate on focused tasks such as reading, writing, memorising, and critical thinking better than silence does. For example, one study shows that preferred background music enhanced attentional states for a relatively low attention task, such as reducing mind-wandering⁵. However, it is important to note that several factors are at play when determining the effectiveness of music: the music genre, tempo, the presence of lyrics; as well as complexity of the task, one’s age, personal preference, and personality⁶. People tend to use less background music when engaged in more difficult tasks and become less critical about the type of background music when completing easier tasks⁷. Additionally, research indicates that younger generations use more background music than older adults⁷.

Music and physical activity

Do you find yourself pressing play on sing-along tunes before cleaning the house? Do you have a running playlist? It’s almost second nature to us, as listening to music during physical activities such as exercise and chores can make the experience more enjoyable, boost performance and endurance, distract from pain and fatigue, reduce perceived effort, and help your body work more efficiently⁸.

I don’t know about you, but the music played in gyms has to be some of the most irritating music ever. It never fits with the pace of your workout and tends to be generic radio songs that just don’t fit the vibe. And at that moment, putting on your headphones and playing your own music to get you through your workout feels so good. Fitness company Les Mills found that bad music choices can cost members, with 7% attending their club less because they don’t like the music⁹. This makes sense, as research shows that those who choose their own music whilst working out are much more motivated in their fitness activities when compared to those who work out with facility-selected music¹⁰. In addition, enjoying the music whilst working out leads to a heightened emotional response, positively associating those “feel-good” chemicals released from the music, with the workout itself¹⁰.

The importance of self-selected music

But, there is one common denominator between music psychology research on music and motivation: self-selected music is almost always more successful in improving outcomes than pre-selected music. This ties into an article I previously wrote on the benefits of creating a personalised music playlist, which taps into the psychological and overall wellbeing benefits of self-selected tracks. So, what does this all mean? That you should choose your favourite songs to get you pumped up, to reach your goals, curating the soundtrack to your success.

Creating your goal-oriented playlists

When it comes to achieving specific goals, not all music is created equal. Here’s how you can curate playlists tailored to your ambitions:

Fitness goals

Studies show that faster-paced music tends to help improve athletic performance in low-to-moderate level exercise, either by increasing distance travelled, pace, or repetitions completed¹¹.

Examples of fitness goals you want to achieve might be:

Hit my 10,000 daily step goal
Go to the gym X times a week
Do X cardio workouts a week

The tempo of music, measured in beats per minute (BPM), can significantly impact exercise performance — depending on the type of exercise you are doing. For example, studies show that the tempo of music plays a key role in how it influences exercise performance. For instance, the ideal tempo for cycling falls between 125–140 BPM, as it helps maximise exercise intensity by syncing pedalling with the beat¹². For treadmill workouts, the optimal tempo is slightly lower, ranging between 123–131 BPM, aligning strides with the rhythm of the music¹³. This synchronisation not only enhances performance but makes physical activity more enjoyable and efficient. Other workout suggestions include 60 to 90 BPM for yoga, pilates and low-intensity activities; 140 to 180+ BPM for Crossfit and HIIT; 130 to 170 BPM for Zumba and dance; and 130 to 150 BPM for weightlifting¹⁴. So, adjusting the music’s tempo to match your workout type can be a game-changer for reaching your fitness goals.

Some song suggestions for your fitness playlist:

What Is Love by Haddaway (124 BPM)
Don’t Stop Me Now by Queen (128 BPM)
Power by Kanye West (154 BPM)
Blinding Lights by The Weeknd (171 BPM)

Focus, productivity and learning goals

Although there are mixed findings on the ability of music to improve cognitive performance, there is general agreement on the type of music that is most effective for those who can work with it — broken down into the genre, tempo and presence of lyrics.

Examples of focus, productivity and learning goals you aspire towards might be:

Complete my work project ahead of schedule
Write X Medium articles a month
Clear out my email inbox
Learn a new language
Complete an online course

Dubbed “The Mozart Effect”, researchers have long claimed that listening to classical music can help people perform tasks more efficiently through enhancing brain activity. However, there are mixed findings, with some labelling it as a result of simple enjoyment of the music; but you cannot fight some results, which show a clear improvement in spatial reasoning tests in the presence of classical music such as Mozart¹⁵. In an analysis of over 100,000 songs in playlists targeted for studying, working, focusing and productivity, tracks fell at an average of 112 BPM¹⁶. It’s a reasonably slow pace for music that falls between andante (at a walking pace) and moderato (at a moderate pace). It isn’t quite slow enough to lack energy, which makes sense as the music chosen for such tasks is meant to relax whilst inspiring concentration — not send listeners to sleep¹⁶.

In contrast, a study conducted in collaboration with Spotify by cognitive behavioural therapist Dr Emma Gray concluded that music between 50 to 80 BPM is best for focus and studying, as it puts the brain into an “alpha state”¹⁷. Your mind becomes calm yet alert, with concentration heightened. You find yourself tuned out of the music, yet tuned into your task. This is where those popular Lo-fi beats come in, and explains their popularity in focus and study playlists. Alpha waves have also been associated with the ‘eureka moment’, which we all need when trying to hit those productivity goals¹⁸.

We think, write, and read with words, so research says that music without lyrics may be best for enhancing focus and cognitive performance, as minimising the verbal information we are exposed to reduces interference¹⁹. But being the most complex category for music and motivation, you have to try to find that balance between pace and music that hits the spot for you. There is no “one size fits all” for music and brain function, so experiment with these factors as a guideline and see if they fit your ways of working.

Personal and emotional development goals

When it comes to lifting yourself to reach your personal and emotional development goals, lyrics may be the most important factor. Research has shown that when people relate to the lyrics, they may feel as though they are receiving personal advice or validation, much like they would from a friend²⁰. This emotional connection is strongest when the lyrics resonate with the listener’s experiences, thoughts, or struggles.

Examples of personal and emotional development goals to work towards might be:

Keep a daily reflection or gratitude journal
Build my self-confidence
Overcome imposter syndrome

Music has also been shown to address emotional needs, offering comfort, empathy, and a sense of companionship during times of loneliness. This is largely due to the role of mirror neurons in the brain, which allow individuals to feel others’ emotions as if they were their own²¹. In this way, music can serve as a form of emotional support, helping you to process and navigate complex feelings. Mirror neurons facilitate our emotional connection to music, allowing us to resonate with both the lyrics and the patterns in sound, such as melody²².

By aligning your playlist with your emotional and personal growth goals, you can enhance your journey of self-discovery, confidence-building, and emotional well-being.

Some song suggestions to add to your personal and emotional development playlist:

Let It Be by The Beatles
Rise Up by Andra Day
Survivor by Destiny’s Child
Hall of Fame by The Script

Relaxation and mindfulness goals

Enter, the world’s most relaxing song. Well, at least according to science. UK band Marconi Union worked with sound therapists to compose the track Weightless, specifically to reduce anxiety, blood pressure and heart rate²³. The song is so relaxing that it is considered dangerous to play while driving. The song was found to be just as effective as a sedative when given to patients before surgery, although patients said they would have preferred to choose their own music²³. How does the music feel for you?

Examples of relaxation and mindfulness goals to target might be:

Practice daily meditation
Improve my sleep quality
Practice breathwork every morning

Once again, choosing your own music may be the most important factor here. What may be relaxing for one person, may be irritating for another. The aim is to use music to reduce cortisol levels, the hormone associated with stress. Arguably, all self-selected music listening activity results in lowered cortisol levels and increased pleasure. So, whether it’s spa music or your favourite songs, tune into what makes you feel relaxed.

When using music for sleep, though, we must be more mindful of our choices. The brain needs to wind down, decrease stimulation and turn off for the night. Music is a great non-pharmacological intervention for improving sleep quality, and popular genres include ambient music such as white noise and natural ambient sounds²⁴.

Many apps are designed to help you on your music and sleep journey, as well as general mindfulness goals:

Calm
Headspace
BetterSleep
Slumber
Pzizz

Spotify also offers a timer feature, allowing you to select your preferred music and set it to automatically turn off after a specified duration while you sleep.

The takeaways

Ultimately, music is a deeply personal tool that can be harnessed to help achieve your 2025 goals. What works for one person may not work for another, so it’s important to experiment with this guidance and discover how different genres, tempos, and styles affect your motivation, concentration, and overall productivity. Start by tailoring your playlists to specific objectives, whether it’s boosting your fitness routine, increasing focus for work, or supporting your personal growth.

Pay attention to how different types of music make you feel and how they impact your task completion. You may find that certain songs or genres trigger motivation, help you focus, or provide emotional comfort. Don’t be afraid to adjust your playlists as you evolve, and embrace music as a powerful companion on your journey to success.

Sources:

¹ Melody for the Mind: Enhancing Mood, Motivation, Concentration, and Learning through Music Listening in the Classroom

² Musical reward prediction errors engage the nucleus accumbens and motivate learning

³ Dopamine modulates the reward experiences elicited by music

⁴ How to Restore Our Dwindling Attention Spans

⁵ The effect of preferred background music on task-focus in sustained attention

⁶ The Influence of Background Music on Learning in the Light of Different Theoretical Perspectives and the Role of Working Memory Capacity

⁷ Do you listen to music while studying? A portrait of how people use music to optimize their cognitive performance

⁸ Effects of music in exercise and sport: A meta-analytic review

⁹ Research reveals why the right music is essential to a great group workout

¹⁰ The influence of music on self-paced fitness consumers’ perceived motivational qualities and optimal level of emotional state and satisfaction with exercise experience

¹¹ Music in the exercise domain: a review and synthesis (Part II)