Ting Ting Goes the Pony Bead

The Pony Bead Game                                                 

TING!  Ting ting ting..ting…ting….ting….ting……..ting.  That’s the sound of accomplishment. It’s the sound of “I did the thing.” It’s the sound of a hard plastic pony bead (jewelry making bead that I associate with bright colors strung along elastic thread, wound around the wrist of gleeful child) bouncing around in a previously empty glass container.

What in the world am I talking about?  I’m talking about reward.  Visual representation of progress.  Play.  Drive.  Enthusiasm. Sense of accomplishment.  Encouragement.  All the goodies.  The things that allow you to nod and say “Yes, I did the thing.” 

The Pony Bead Game is simple.  Begin with making a list of actions that will help you achieve a certain goal.  Since most goals have more than one aspect for their successful completion, we create the list of different aspects.  I boiled my music goals down to:

              Technical Exercises

              Classical

              Jazz

              Piano

              Transcriptions

While the single words may seem broad, I have my private expanded list for each of those words.  For The Pony Bead Game, the single words suffice.  I have assigned a different colored bead to each activity.

              Technical exercises:  Clear pony bead, because technique is the foundation I desire to be flawless and imperceptible.  This is where I work on consistent execution of skills.  This is where I spend my time on vocal fitness, prowess – in short – building my voice in such a way I may sing any style I desire, at any time, and be a bad-a$$ at it.  When you hear me sing, I want you to FEEL the expression and musicality, and not, “wow, she can really execute skillful spin and resonance on that C6.”  If that’s all you heard, I missed the point.

              Classical:  Pearl, because, man, some of those works are elegant and shimmery.  Yep, that was my entire reasoning.  I think Debussy, Donizetti = Pearl.  You do you, but it’s pearl for me.

              Jazz:  The Rose Gold I ordered came in looking like matte gold and REEKED of spray paint, so I’m revisiting different options for this.

              Transcriptions: Silver, because the more work I do here will make my own improvisation more valuable, like a precious metal.

              Piano:  This will sound ugly, but I swear they are shockingly pretty.  Translucent, high gloss, brown pony beads.  I know, but they are lovely.  And piano is a foundational object, grounding…like the earth…dirt…brown.

As you can see, you could put thought into the colors you choose, or just choose ones you like and bring you joy.  I’m excited about the ones I chose.  There are an impressive amount of options out there.

The Instructions for Play

              Materials needed:

              Various colored pony beads or similar.  Pony beads are usually 6mm x 9mm.

              Clear receptacle with a lid.  The narrower the base of the vessel, the better. 

When you complete a certain activity, simply add a pony bead to your clear container.  It could be a vase, a mason jar, a cylinder.  Ideally it would be something that has a lid.

Two approaches

1. Use a separate container for each activity.  Ideally the containers would be roughly the same size, so you may easily visually compare how you are faring in each category.
2. Use one container, but different color beads for each activity.  This is the method I am utilizing.  This will still allow me to monitor the level of activity in each category/activity, and then as I see a need to make adjustments, the passage of time is tracked by the change of the color mix.

Lids:  The ideal situation would be to use a container that has a lid, so as you fill up the container, it’s safe from being knocked over by well-meaning pets, people, an excited you, or slowly filling with dust. More importantly, the goal is to not empty each container when it is full, but simply begin a new one.  Over time, you have that visual “proof” that you CAN make progress towards a goal.  For those times when your brain starts lying to you and saying you can’t do things – you have visible and tangible proof that you are capable of making progress towards your goals.  You collect beautiful proof of your dedication to your goal, and more importantly, to yourself.  Then maybe, when that dark day passes through your life, you can look at your jars of beads, and know that you CAN do what you set out to do.  Especially for those things where when we put in effort, it sometimes takes a while before the BIG changes are tangible.  In singing, some tangible changes happen fast, and others take longer to be perceived. Pony beads are tangible.  You may certainly use something other than pony beads, but glass beads are so small, maybe WAY DOWN THE ROAD you could switch over to them, but in the beginning, for me, it would open the door to discouragement to not being able to see the level of beads rise in the container.

There is also an app called “1 second everyday” where you could take a picture/video of the bead jar – and have a fun video where you watch (and/or share) your progress!

If you choose to play, please tag me on Instagram @suzannemorrisonvoice with pictures of your Pony Bead Game! 

The Extra

Transparency: 

Would I prefer that I didn’t NEED the reward of dropping a bead in a container?  Yes. 

Was there a time when I practiced 7 and 8 hours a day, and didn’t need a bead reward?  Yes.

Am I going to judge myself for finding the Pony Bead Game to be fun and playful, and changing how I approach my daily practice?  Absolutely not. 

Am I going to continue to find delight in “dropping beads?”  Absolutely.  I want that reward. 

Will I need to play the Pony Bead Game forever?  Probably not, but even if I do, that is ok too.

We do what we need to do at the time.  Currently I’m having a REALLY good time watching the beads add up, and already seeing a color imbalance I want to adjust. So, for now, that’s what it takes for me to do more than I was doing.  Who cares if it’s because of a game with small plastic bits?  Who would even know if I hadn’t told you!?

Someone I respect immensely shared a story about when he wanted to start getting up earlier in the morning, he placed chocolate chips on his bedside table.  Obviously he doesn’t live with a dog!  When he woke up with the earlier alarm, he gave himself a chocolate chip as a reward.  He did this for a period of time, and eventually no longer needed the chocolate reward.  So, here is the Pony Bead Game, in lieu of additional calories.  😊