Unlike lots of new jobs, you can’t really have a bad first day with this particular gig, because you are doing it in public. It takes a decent amount of time to find a groove and purpose in each programme I have previously presented, yet day one still has to be a blinder (or as good as you can muster).
But I also turned to the one thing which has always helped me bridge the transitions in my life: music. A Today playlist was born. Just like there had been a maternity leave playlist before it, a getting married one before that and many in between. You can follow my life via the music compilations I have painstakingly constructed. Music takes me out of myself, and the right soundtrack helps me access a different part of myself.
Researchers at Brunel University have found that songs with a faster tempo, above 120 beats per minute (bpm), can subconsciously encourage drivers to speed up and change lanes more often. By contrast, music which matches the average resting heart rate, of about 60 to 80bpm, is associated with more focused and calmer driving. More than 20 years ago, another study found music with exaggerated bass tones or aggressive lyrics can prompt risky driving, or even lead to road rage.
Now, while this has been posited negatively, the research speaks to how I have always used music, and many others too. It changes our brains and makes us feel differently. A year ago this week, Britney Spears’s “Gimme More”, Led Zeppelin’s “Whole Lotta Love” and Jimmy Somerville’s version of “You Make Me Feel (Mighty Real)” were some of the key ingredients in getting me ready for a big new job on a big new stage.
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So I was unsure how I would take to the 3.21am starts. (And yes, I do need that extra minute – it’s my mini-rebellion, and I have always love waking on odd numbers.) Previously, I was only ever up at that time with a hungry baby or to catch an early flight, and I would usually feel very sick and out of sorts.
For those tasks, I deployed my trusty Faithless, cranked up in my ears with that fast tempo I have come to rely upon to create speed, excitement and efficiency in my output. Maxi Jazz (RIP) and Sister Bliss have been helping me meet deadlines for years. They are playing right now as I write this column.
But I had been helped by my trusty playlist, because music is magic. Music takes us places we can’t imagine going, and helps us access the real person inside of us – the one that can handle pretty much anything, most of the time.
Sometimes all we need is a killer beat to remind us of this. So thank you for the music. Just lower the tempo when driving, OK?
This week I have been…
Watching
Sex and the City. Again. The gals, minus ageless Samantha, are 36. I am 40. How did that happen? I still feel the comfort and joy of watching four good pals, who somehow manage to co-ordinate their diaries and meet regularly, navigating the gorgeous, gritty city. Following Miranda as she navigates motherhood with knowing eyes – I now have a two year old and was recently in the same love trench – is particularly good.
Listening to
The High Performance podcast with Jake Humphrey and Damian Hughes. I am the co-founder of Colour Your Streets, the UK’s largest local and bespoke colouring book company, with my husband. This is a full-on stage of our lives, creating books and learning many new things. I appreciate the wisdom imparted in this pod.
Reading
The Fence – my first new magazine subscription in more than a decade. I like its buccaneering spirit. From wistful tales of youth through to deep dives on poor behaviours in our major institutions, and some decent sounding Soho lunches and pub crawls – I feel covered. When I get the time and energy to sit down and read, of course.
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