Smarter track · 100 day challenge

Instrument 100: A 100 day music practice challenge

$9.99 to unlock Your first pack is on us.

Pick one instrument and give it 15 minutes a day for a hundred days. That's Instrument 100. Fifteen minutes a day beats an hour on a Sunday, so every day is short and specific: your practice, plus one or two small steps. You start by setting up your spot, learning your notes, choosing your Day 100 song and playing your first little tune.

Daily workload: 3 daily goalsDaily core: Play a familiar passage and improve it
Difficulty: Steady

Example: a sample day

Day 1: what a day looks like

Daily core Play a familiar passage and improve it Same every day
Task 2 Set up your spot and play your first notes
Task 3 Record a one minute Day 1 clip

Need a lighter day? Can't fit it in today? Use a Rest Day: your streak is kept and the day waits for you.

Free preview

Preview the first 7 days

Every day has 3 goals: your daily core (the same every day), Task 2 and Task 3, each with a short why. Open a day to read all three.

- Daily core Same every day
  Play a familiar passage and improve it
  Why: Listening for one specific thing turns repetition into real improvement, and short sessions are easier to keep up.
- Task 2
  Set up your spot and play your first notes
  Pick a practice spot where your instrument stays out and ready. Learn how to sit or stand with it, relaxed and upright, and play single notes or sounds slowly, listening to each one. No instrument yet? Your voice counts.
  Why: An instrument you can see is an instrument you play, and good posture from Day 1 saves you from bad habits later.
- Task 3
  Record a one minute Day 1 clip
  Record yourself playing anything at all for about a minute, on a phone or any recorder, and save it as Day 1.
  Why: A Day 1 clip gives you a starting point to compare against later.
- Daily core Same every day
  Play a familiar passage and improve it
  Why: Listening for one specific thing turns repetition into real improvement, and short sessions are easier to keep up.
- Task 2
  Learn the names of your notes
  Learn the musical alphabet, A to G, and find where those notes live on your instrument. On drums, learn the name of each drum and cymbal instead. Tune up first if your instrument needs it, with any free tuner.
  Why: Knowing the names of what you play turns random sounds into a map you can find your way around.
- Task 3
  Say each note's name as you play it
  Why: Naming notes out loud while you play links your ears, your hands and the names, so they stick.
- Daily core Same every day
  Play a familiar passage and improve it
  Why: Listening for one specific thing turns repetition into real improvement, and short sessions are easier to keep up.
- Task 2
  Pick your Day 100 song and clap along to its beat
  Pick one song you love that you want to play by Day 100. Choose something simple: a slow tune, a song with few chords or a steady beat. Listen to it three times and tap or clap along to its beat.
  Why: A real song to aim for gives every practice session a reason, and Day 100 a finish line.
- Task 3
  Write why you want to play music
  Why: A few honest lines about why this matters is fuel for the days practice feels slow.
- Daily core Same every day
  Play a familiar passage and improve it
  Why: Listening for one specific thing turns repetition into real improvement, and short sessions are easier to keep up.
- Task 2
  Find the beat and keep it
  Put on three songs you like and clap or tap along to the beat for a whole song each. Then use a free metronome, or count one, two, three, four out loud, and play one note on every beat for two minutes.
  Why: Steady time helps everything else you play hold together, so it is worth practicing from the start.
- Task 3
  Walk to a beat and count out loud
  Why: Counting your steps in fours on a short walk trains your inner clock away from the instrument.
- Daily core Same every day
  Play a familiar passage and improve it
  Why: Listening for one specific thing turns repetition into real improvement, and short sessions are easier to keep up.
- Task 2
  Play your first little tune
  Learn a tiny tune you already know by ear, like a nursery rhyme or a birthday song, using just three to five notes. On drums, learn a basic beat with kick, snare and hi hat. Play it until it flows.
  Why: Playing something recognizable in your first week is a huge boost. You are making music already.
- Task 3
  Play it for someone in your home
  Play your tune for anyone at home, even for 30 seconds. No one around? Record it and play it back as your own audience.
  Why: Playing for another person, even for 30 seconds, is your first tiny performance.
- Daily core Same every day
  Play a familiar passage and improve it
  Why: Listening for one specific thing turns repetition into real improvement, and short sessions are easier to keep up.
- Task 2
  Learn to read and clap rhythms
  Learn what whole, half and quarter notes look like and how many beats each lasts. Write out four short rhythms, then clap and count each one out loud until you can do it without stopping.
  Why: Rhythm is half of music. Clapping it first means your hands only have to learn the notes later.
- Task 3
  Clap the rhythm of your Day 100 song's first line
  Why: Clapping a real song's rhythm connects today's lesson to the song you are working toward.
- Daily core Same every day
  Play a familiar passage and improve it
  Why: Listening for one specific thing turns repetition into real improvement, and short sessions are easier to keep up.
- Task 2
  Play everything you know for fun
  Easy day. Play every note, tune and beat you have learned this week, just for fun. No goals.
  Why: Play is why you started. Remembering that keeps practice joyful.
- Task 3
  Start a list of songs you'd love to play someday
  Why: A wish list of songs gives you exciting goals to reach for long after this first week.

The other 93 days unlock when Instrument 100 is yours.

Join the waitlist now

The app launches December 15, 2026. Join the waitlist before then and the Early Adopter badge is yours. The group starts Day 1 on January 1, 2027, and you can start earlier if you like. Sign up after launch and Instrument 100 is ready when you are. Your first pack is on us.

How Instrument 100 works

What you do each day
3 goals a day. Your daily core, Play a familiar passage and improve it, is the same every day. The other two are new each day: Task 2 builds the habit and Task 3 adds a different angle. Each one comes with a short why.
Time and effort
Most days fit around a normal day, all 3 goals together. Some days are lighter, and nothing needs to happen at a set time.
Difficulty and pace
Steady. Small daily steps that grow a little each week. Some days ask a bit more. Milestone badges at 10, 25, 50 and all 100 fully completed days mark how far you came.
Easier alternatives and rest days
Most goals have an easier alternative. “Choose an easier alternative” puts it in its place, and it counts the same as the original goal: the same square, streak and rewards. A rest day protects the streak on days life happens.
Pausing or switching
With another challenge going, you can pause this one any time. Resume later and you pick up on the same day you left. Remove it instead and your history stays: ticks, notes and photos. You always keep at least one challenge going. Up to 3 packs can be active at once, your main challenge included. Active and scheduled packs count; paused, finished and not started ones don't. You can own as many packs as you like and start them later.
What you own
Unlock Instrument 100 on its own ($9.99 or a free credit) and it's yours forever, to replay any time. All Access opens every pack while you're subscribed. Credits never expire, so use them when you're ready.

Pack guide

How to use task details

The task title names the action. Open its details for the method, examples and any relevant precautions; Why explains the purpose. Save the stated output or record the action you actually took. Paper and other suitable tools are valid alternatives. Do not mark a real-world result complete merely because a planning note was written. Writing tasks can be done in Journal, on paper or anywhere you like. Linking them to Journal is optional.

Focus blocks

For any study or practice task: put your phone in another room or face down, write the one thing you will do, and set a timer for 10 to 25 minutes. When your mind wanders, notice it and come back. Stop when the timer rings and note where you got to.

Baseline and show and tell

Record or save a short first attempt early on as your baseline. Every few weeks, make a fresh attempt at the same thing, put the two side by side and note one improvement. On checkpoint days, show one piece to someone you trust or save a private recording.

Earn 4 milestone badges

10, 25, 50 and all 100 fully completed days of Instrument 100: your first achievement, then bronze, silver and gold. Days finished late count too.

Instrument 100 0 of 4

Who it's for

Is Instrument 100 for you?

For beginners picking up an instrument for the first time, and anyone coming back to one that has been gathering dust. You choose the instrument.

Short, focused practice with a clear next step.

What the 100 days cover

Setting up your practice spot
Learning your notes
Choosing a Day 100 song
Finding and keeping the beat
Playing your first tune

Price and credits

What it costs

This pack: $9.99 once. All 100 days. That pack, owned forever.
Free credit: Your first pack is on us: every new account gets one free specialty credit for any pack, and it never expires. Use it here and it costs nothing.
Smarter bundle: $29.99 once. Own every pack currently available in this track, plus any new packs released in this track during the 12 months after purchase. All packs unlocked during that period remain yours forever. Packs released afterward are sold separately.
All Access: $39.99 a year (7 days free, then $39.99/year unless canceled), or $4.99 a month with no free trial. Every current and newly released standard pack while you're subscribed. Access ends when your subscription ends. Packs you own stay yours.

Questions

Good to know

Which instrument should I pick?

The one you want to play. You pick one instrument and stay with it for the hundred days of short, specific practice.

Do I need to know how to read music?

No. Day 2 is learning the names of your notes, so the basics are part of the plan.

How long does each day take?

The daily core is 15 minutes of practice, plus one or two small steps that build the habit.

What if I miss a day?

The app has Rest Days, so a missed day is not the end of your run. Your level never goes down.

How much does Instrument 100 cost?

Instrument 100 is $9.99 once: that pack, owned forever. Every new account also gets one free specialty credit, so you can unlock one pack like this one at no cost. The Smarter bundle is $29.99 once: own every pack currently available in this track, plus any new packs released in this track during the 12 months after purchase. All packs unlocked during that period remain yours forever. Packs released afterward are sold separately. All Access Yearly is $39.99 a year (7 days free, then $39.99/year unless canceled), or All Access Monthly is $4.99 a month: every current and newly released standard pack while you're subscribed. Access ends when your subscription ends. Packs you own stay yours.

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