CheckMag | How I discovered my AirPods are killing my creative productivity

I try to make a living being creative. Whether it’s drafting a tech feature, coming up with funny tags for a joke, or a new melody/lyrics, creativity is more than a hobby for me - it’s how I see the world. And I started to notice something strange on the rare days I forgot my AirPods at home (or when they were out of juice).

When you reach into your pocket and your earbuds aren’t there (or they are dead), the first instinct is to experience a small panic attack about having to listen to your inner voice in the next few hours. No “carefully curated” playlist; no “self-improvement” podcast in the background; no way of blocking the “disgusting” sounds of the city.

But as it turns out, it didn’t take me long to realize going earbud-less was actually the switch (off) I needed.

When my AirPods aren’t on me, the world would get louder but my brain would too. Writing out a full 5-minute comedy set on the train because I overheard someone say something weird/funny - check. Waiting in line for coffee, I noticed the rhythm of the espresso machine, coming up with a beat for a very average pop song - check.

You get the point - if you like taking photos, your version of getting inspired might be the way the light is hitting a building. The point is that accidental inspiration only works if you’re available for accidents. And you’d be shocked how much of that has to do with using noise-cancelling headphones to block out sounds.

Listening to podcasts doesn't make you smarter - it fills up the silence that you need to be creative

Creativity aside, productivity also takes a hit when you try to distract yourself all the time - unless the actual goal is to block out sound so you can get something done, of course.

I feel like many of us assume listening to podcasts equals some sort of educational or spiritual enrichment, but we consume so many different mental meals and unhealthy snacks every day, that it’s very hard for something to stick. Switching from one podcast episode to another is a sign of boredom. And it’s totally OK to be bored. You think Steve Jobs would come up with the iPhone if he already had… an iPhone with TikTok on it? No - he’d be watching Punch, the baby macaque who has a toy monkey for a “mother” - look it up, it’s a sweet, heartbreaking story.

Or how about you call a friend instead of listening to another person talking to his friend? People say they “don’t have time to think”, but we’ve slowly replaced thinking time with listening time, and we confuse information intake with intellectual growth.

Don’t get me wrong, podcasts and music aren’t the enemy. But for creative people, they can become a dopamine filler - a way to get through boredom before boredom has a chance to do its job, which is to help you make a change, come up with an idea, etc.

If you don’t give your brain the random celebrity interview or a two-hour deep dive on the origin story of the umbrella (sounds pretty interesting actually), your brain starts generating its own material to fill the gap. And you might remember to take your umbrella.

Why did we make noise-cancelling earbuds the default? I love Transparency mode!

When we decided to make noise cancellation the default, silence and ambient reality became something to eliminate. Sure earbuds like my AirPods Pro are engineering marvels, and ANC is a game-changer on an airplane with a crying baby. Why am I supposed to listen to my wife’s crying baby?! They aren’t supposed to be sitting next to me anyway.

ANC-demanding situations aside, noise-cancelling is a strangely unnatural form of escapism I’m trying to learn to escape from. Although, sometimes, I’ll run back after realizing I left my AirPods at home.

I hope it’s not just me but if someone is wearing earbuds, you hesitate before approaching. On the other hand, if you’re wearing earbuds, people assume you’re listening to Joe Rogan while asking for directions to the library. But why are you going to the library if you’re already listening to Joe Rogan?

The irony is hard to ignore - for me, blocking out the sound of the world isn’t that different from wearing an AR or VR headset - it just looks more socially acceptable.

Now, I try not to immediately reach for my AirPods the moment I step outside. It doesn’t work every time, but when it does, I let the walk be a walk. And who would’ve thought - I feel more human!

I can’t wait to switch to a Nokia and find a comfortable cave.