394 | What Music Helps YOU Focus at Will? with Will Henshall

About Will:

Will is a Los Angeles-based tech entrepreneur, inventor, and music producer, who is the CEO and founder of Focus@Will. He is the founding member of the 90’s hit UK pop-soul band LONDONBEAT, founded a tech company called Rocket Network based in San Francisco, and sold the company in 2003. Will also founded the company called “DigiDelivery”, which morphed into Avid Cloud Collaboration (part of ProTools) and is used everyday in pro audio production all over the world. 

Sources: Linkedin

Check it out: Focus@Will: Music to help you focus. Optimized by science.

[00:03:47] - Will talks about being diagnosed and shares some of his thoughts about ADHD.

[00:07:27] - Eric and Will talk about using music as a tool, what’s helpful for them, and the science of music on the brain.

[00:11:17] - Hear a sample from Focus@Will, “The Deep”, and more. 

[00:12:36] - Will explains a musician’s brain. 

[00:15:37] - Will shares a story from a friend about music and Alzheimers. 

[00:22:09] - Eric asks Will about the creation process, the data, and what the data says. 

[00:24:28] - Will tells us who gave him his ADHD diagnosis, and the types of jobs where ADHD brains need a lot of stimulation to focus. 

[00:26:22] - Hear more samples from Focus@Will, as Will walks us through the purpose of each sample. 

[00:29:04] - Will explains how Focus@Will started and what was involved with starting up.

[00:32:08] - Hear more about the science, the cognitive testing, and the distinct link between brain types and the kinds of music that helps that type of brain. 

Did you know: Statistically, one in three people cannot listen to any sound at all while they’re working!

[00:33:43] - Will talks about the bell curve of the studies, the correlation of ADHD, a link to autism, and how the data came out with how having music on while working helps two thirds of people. 

[00:36:36] - Hear about a statistic of Focus@Will in a work environment, and how the people using it compare to the organization.

 

[00:42:51] - Eric wants to know about the musical and creative side of Focus@Will - and then we get serenaded! Will explains making music for the non-conscious mind. 

[00:44:35] - Will talks about “Nature Beat”, a channel that is also his own personal artistic endeavor.

Then, hear a sample of Nature Beat itself, as Will walks us through how it works and the intentionality behind its creation. (All Nature Beat tracks are 25 minutes long - the same as a Pomodoro!) 

[00:48:43] - Will explains what “entrainment” is with a demonstration using his guitar. 

Did you know: Strings sympathetically resonate with sounds that make the strings happen. You can do this with a piano by singing into a piano and holding the sustain pedal! 

[00:50:07] - Hear “the skinny” about binaural beats, and the brainwaves we need to focus and concentrate. (It’s alpha waves.) 

[00:52:56] - Go to focusatwill.com, take the quiz on the website, and discover what kind of music might best help you get focused! Hint: It often recommends music you don’t like. Will explains why. 

[00:55:36] - Will shares three tips he’s received: 

• “Every time I do an email during the day, I ‘click’ a [pitch] counter.” (It just might have been our own Brendan Mahan!) 
• A tip from a Podiatrist (foot doctor): Make sure your feet are grounded at 90 degrees to your ankles when you’re working. It has a profound impact on your typing accuracy!
• An eye-doctor talked about eye-strain and working in front of a computer. The tip: Close one eye, look at your screen, and then look away (or outside) at the brightest source (but not the sun!), and then look back at your computer screen. If it is exactly the same [brightness], you’re good to go. But if it’s not, then adjust the brightness of your screen so it matches the ambient light. 

Get in touch with Will Henshall & follow Focus@Will: 

• On Twitter @WillHenshall

• Like Focus@Will on Facebook

• Focus@Will on Instagram

Other honorable mentions:

• Musicophilia: Tales of Music and the Brain by Oliver Sacks
• Learn more about Entrainment here (Wikipedia link) 

Check out the Other Podcasts on the ADHD reWired Podcast Network:

• adhdessentials.com with Brendan Mehan
• hackingyouradhd.com with Will Curb
• adhddiversified.ca with MJ Siemens
• adhdfriendlylifestyle.com with Moira Maybin
• coming soon - Wait, What Was the Question? with Will Curb and Coach Roxie Martin. Reach out to Will and Roxie at [e-mail] 

Don't Forget These, Too:

• adhdrewired.com/patreon — Support the show by becoming a Patron!
• coachingrewired.com — Get your name on the waitlist to join the fall season of ADHD reWired's Coaching and Accountability Groups
• adultstudyhall.com — Join your ADHD-friendly co-working space!
• adhdrewired.com/events — Join Eric, Brendan, Will, MJ, Moira, Roxie, and Barb for an hour of Live Q&A on Zoom, every 2nd Tuesday of the month at 12:30pm Central (10:30am Pacific / 1:30pm Eastern)