I love a good creative project. And I love a good challenge. And by that I don’t mean a competition, pitting me against others, I prefer a challenge against myself. Because that’s basically what a project is, right? Getting an idea that you can do something, daring yourself to carry it out.. and actually doing it! The very idea excites me to find out if I can do better, because the only one you are competing against is yourself, yesterday. So when Dustin brought up the idea of the 100 Day Project, he already knew it would be right up my alley.
100 days of doing one thing. For me it is about pushing it to the next level, something that you are already passionate about. If I do it EVERY DAY and keep on doing it every day, I’m bound to get better at it, right? I’m sure to learn something, to grow in some way, basically no matter what subject I pick for the project, because it’s very simply just doing it. Put your pen to paper, your brush to canvas, your mind to searching, your camera to your eye, and just do it. Do it so often you get in the habit of doing it, and NOT doing it feels weird.
What I’m searching for, what I’m sure a lot of people are searching for, is something that adds meaning to my life. In a society chock full of banality, I’m on a mission to seek out personal growth because it just won’t just happen by accident. What interests ME, where my passions lie, where my questioning mind takes me when I lie in bed at night, or what visually pleases ME to look at. Is it something that enriches my mind or body? Does it spark creativity or excite me? Is it a path I purposefully chose or something that was laid out for me by others?
Of course that thing that is meaningful is going to be different for each individual, but it generally must fulfill 3 requirements: it was your own decision, it’s complex enough to get better at and learn from, and for all your effort there is a payoff - whether financial, spiritual, or other. A lot of times that payoff is just doing what you enjoy. A few hours spent not thinking about the harsh realities of adulthood can be really beneficial. Or often it’s about learning and growing, finding out about yourself, and becoming more YOU. The fact that the entire Communify team is doing this project says a lot to me about the characters of my co-workers, each on their own path to challenge themselves.
For me that thing that interests me most and drives me forward is making art. It’s the process, the doing, that is most exciting to me, and why I love making art so much. It’s that feeling, at 2am, when all your neurons are firing, when your hands are moving in conjunction with your thoughts. Beautiful things are happening, and the rest of the world can just be still. The better you get at it, the more you can actually get your ideas from inside to out in the physical world.
Looking back on a piece after I have finished creating some beauty is the reward of my hard work. But the real reward is getting better at communicating, at a technique, pushing out new ideas, reworking old ones, creating beauty, and generally just expressing myself. This is why I do what I do, because I can't NOT do it and still be pushing myself to the fullest.
Of course, beauty is in the eye of the beholder, but if others enjoy looking at my artwork as well, that is an additional and meaningful honor. To share your life's work is a great reward.
Doing a little bit of art everyday, it’s not always going to be pretty. It’s not always going to get “likes” or connect with people. But that’s ok, because it’s still growth and expressing a little bit of myself. Each idea brings me to the next idea, and I have no idea where that will lead me in 100 days, and that’s exciting! Perhaps the 100th day will be just about the same as today, but at least I’ll have 100 ideas, 100 little bits of me (me-ning), out there. On Instagram, for all to see.