We live in a world with tons of distractions. Trying to get into the “flow” is hard enough without your phone, IM, or email trying to get your attention… then suddenly the wail of a passing fire engine completely derails you. If you work in an “open office” (like I did until recently) possibly the single most common sight is that of people wearing headphones. What do/should you listen to though? Why don’t you give Rain.today a try?
Right now I’m working from home on personal projects, but I still have serious issues with audio distractions. My home is right near a freeway and while the standard noise of cars passing is “white noise” to me, the wail of an emergency vehicle or throaty roar of a Harley will pull me out of my focus. Sometimes I listen to music, but that often has distractions of its own; I’ve heard that song too many times, ooo this is a great song, who was this artist again, etc. I had taken to listening to “rain storms” on Spotify but didn’t like the disconnect between tracks.
Then along came Rain.Today, which I found linked on Hacker News last week. The site is described as being run by a “stochastic audio engine” which means very little to me. What it does, in English, is simple: It has 4 types of rain noise (Light, Heavy, Thunder & Water) that it randomly shuffles through. The transitions from one audio clip to another are totally seamless. In addition to that you can add white, pink or brown noise — for extra blocking power.
When I listen to rain, it reminds me of being in northern Minnesota which is a happy memory. I rarely hear anything around me and the rain sounds flow gently from one set to the next. Using rain.today combined with a set of quality studio monitors (headphones), like the Sennheiser HD 280 PRO,has made it very easy for me to get into the flow and stay there for much longer periods of time. I recommend the site to anyone who likes to use audio to help them focus. With any luck they’ll eventually come out with a mobile app too.