30 day challenge: record a second of video every day

For June 2013, my 30 day challenge was to record a second of video every day. I was inspired by Cesar Kuriyama’s wonderful TED talk about how he records a second of video every day. There’s a couple things Cesar said in his talk that really resonated with me:

– “[A]s the days and weeks and months go by, time just seems to start blurring and blending into each other and, you know, I hated that“. Totally agree. One of the reasons I started doing 30 day challenges was that I was alarmed at how quickly time was passing and I wanted to make my time more memorable.
– “This has really invigorated me day-to-day, when I wake up, to try and do something interesting with my day“. Recording a second of video a day has definitely made me keep my eyes peeled for noticeable sights. That also happened when I took a picture every day for a different 30 day challenge.

Okay, enough talk. Why don’t I show you my video montage for June 2013? (I missed three days, so I added three seconds from May to make it a full 30 days.) Here’s my video:

To make this video, I used Cesar’s 1 Second EveryDay app. The app is available for iPhone and iOS devices now, and Cesar let me beta test the Android app. The Android version of the app just went live, so you can give it a try.

I really enjoyed this challenge. I definitely did more interesting things, and the video is like a diary of travel and events from June 2013. Even on boring days, there’s probably at least one fun second you can save. The video makes my life look more exciting than it actually is, but maybe that’s not such a bad thing?

If you’re new to 30 day challenges, recording a second of video every day is a great way to start.

20 Responses to 30 day challenge: record a second of video every day (Leave a comment)

  1. Hey Matt

    You must really love that cat! πŸ™‚ I did see your 30 day challenge on TED talk, and i am still wondering what to do for 30 days πŸ™‚

  2. Oh, I love it. What a great idea. Love the cake, the cats, Seattle, etc. I am going to download the app and do this. Oh the pressure is on.

  3. Love it! I’ve been working on the same project thanks to to the same TED Talk. It’s amazing how is such an easier and rewarding alternative to writing a journal – especially if your main goal is to remember vs. reflect.

  4. Wow and how time flies! I thought you just made a typo with: “…for June 2012 was to record a second of video a day.” meaning, you wanted to record a second video. Thanks! This selection was special, like the feeling of 3 day weekends.

  5. A minute, maybe. A second is too short.

  6. This is such a great idea πŸ™‚

    I love your 30 day challenges Matt, I am also going to have to try this one out!

    I am planning a new health kick this month so my video will be 30 1 second videos of health and fitness….

    Wish me luck

    Kind Regards

    James

    AKA The Fitness Blogger

  7. Here Matt love the video. Your 30 day challenges kept sticking in my head so I decided to give one a shot. Since I always seem to be stuck on my butt in front of a screen and not getting out I decided to do something simple. I got myself a fitbit and set a goal for 10k steps a day for 30 days. I am on day 26 and I must admit it feels pretty good. Dropped 15 lbs in the process so it’s a winner in my book. I know it’s not as creative as some of the ones I have seen you do but it’s a start.

    I am going to steal this one and do the 1 second video a day.

    Thanks again for the inspiration!

    Steve

  8. I am in Matt. I have been reading your challenges. This one finally hooked me. Maybe my life will get more interesting? Although, you did have an awful lot of your cat…so maybe some days are just not that fascinating?

  9. You have an interesting life.

  10. What a great way to capture a month worth of memories. It often surprises me how quickly time goes by and often I would be hard pressed to remember anything memorable during some months! It’s a great way to realize that memorable and exciting things can and do happen every day. Thanks for sharing πŸ™‚

  11. Matt, I really salute for this types of wonderful life. I jealous from you. Keep it up and be more happy in your life.

  12. I’m was actually surprised by how much gets squeezed into a second of video.

    Like the most number of words you were able to say was 4, but 3 was the most common and yet you still get across some meaning in what you’re talking about.

    I wonder if taking a 2 second clip gives you more, less or the same amount of context/meaning?

    I also really like the observation that looking out for these moments either inspires you to do something or makes you really appreciate what’s happening around you.

    So I am going to start today and we’ll see how exciting I can make my life seem too πŸ˜‰

  13. Matt, what was happening on June 19th?

  14. What can you do in one second…………

    Does this include foreplay?

  15. One sec per day – what a wonderful idea! I started to read your blog to know more about search engines, but surprisingly I learn more and more personal things and I like that.

  16. It’s amazing how life can look more interesting in a second snapshot, how long did you spend editing this per second day video?

  17. Hey Matt..Wow really I like it wonderful idea.

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