It seems only fitting that I am starting my new personal blog with a blog hop. Some friends of mine (the list is at the end of this post) were starting an Instagram challenge back in April 2015 called #The100DayProject and a few days in, I jumped aboard. I joined in because I saw an opportunity to share and connect my love of music with my friends and anyone else on Instagram who cared. I committed to recording a 15 second video clip of whatever music I was composing or playing that particular day and posting it on Instagram.
Most Challenging & Most Rewarding
I had a pretty good idea what I was signing up for because in 2012 I tried to do a #365 on Flickr but only made it to 27 days. I asked some of my friends to join in with me but I think everyone was pretty busy and no one did. That might be why I never finished that and why I DID finish this one!
The most challenging thing for me was making the time to do the 15 second recording each day. That was hard with a busy family and work but I managed to do it. A few of the days I did have to rely on a “backup” recording when I realized just before going to sleep that I made no post that day!
The most rewarding thing was the fact that because I made time every day, I found that some days I had quite a bit of time and I started to write music again. In fact, I wrote a piece over several weeks which came to be called “100 Days” after a suggestion from @natsschneider57 — one of my friends also doing the challenge.
Here is the whole piece in case you are interested (I need to make a higher quality recording of this before the end of the summer! The audio is not great!)
New Connections
Equally rewarding as writing new music was making stronger connections with my friends who were also making the “100 Day” posts. I learned about what was important to them they learned a bit about me, too. I also enjoyed the connections I made on Instagram with other “100 Dayers” and other piano playing users who posted 15 second clips. I wasn’t alone!
Biggest Takeaway
The thing I remember best about the #The100DayProject was this: I learned new pieces and revisited old pieces at a rate and intensity that I do not believe would have happened were it not for the habit / discipline / consistency of having to make a 15 second recording every day and posting it. And, as I noted above, I also found time to write new music which is something I love to do but don’t do as much as I did when I was in my teens and in my 20s. So, it was wonderful and exciting to compose again and also to share it with my friends and other users on Instagram.
Blog Hop
Take a look at some other fascinating reflections of the #The100DayProject:
Jim's Music Blog 
Jim,
I just listened to 100 days and I don’t know what to say. I am so moved. When you were posting bits and pieces along the way, there were times when I would listen and wonder how this was all going to come together. But come together it did. I think it’s your best piece Jim. Absolutely magnificent!
So delighted that we have reconnected through this project and that I have been lucky enough to see this incredibly creative side.
Advice: Not that you asked – keep writing and playing – you have a gift.
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Thanks very much for your comment and your kind words, Natalie! I agree that it was wonderful to reconnect with you via our 100 Day projects. I am looking forward to reading everyone’s blog posts later on tonight!
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