Tag Archives: personal growth

My Youtube Channel!

If you didn’t already know, I have a Youtube channel! Though that is more commonplace than ever, it’s exciting and challenging for me every single day. It’s actually incredible how many people are watching Youtube. Take a guess. How many people do you think are logged in and visit the site each month? 100 million? More. 350 million? More. 800 million? More! The answer: 2 BILLION logged-in users visit Youtube each month. Madness!

https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCVaO3-9dDkesDFAFrvqvcFg?view_as=subscriber?sub_confirmation=1

I’ve been making videos for just over a year now. A year already! It’s wild how fast the time has flown. While only about 30 videos are publicly viewable, about 2 dozen more are “Unlisted” which means they are only viewable if you have the link. These are mostly family videos. The old days of family holidays, birthdays, get-togethers, and milestones are going by the wayside since everyone just records 30-second clips on their phones. I plan to change that for our family.

The topics have largely been the same as what I’ve written about here on this blog. Exercise, home workouts, motivation, personal finance, investing basics, home buying tips, etc… But unlike the written word, a video is exponentially more difficult to produce. Not only do you need words to say, but you have to deliver them audibly in an engaging way, have a visible image worth looking at, AND edit it all together in some kind of cohesive and interesting fashion! Whew!

The challenge and the required learning has been SO FUN. Don’t get me wrong, my videos still are nearly unwatchable. Ha! My delivery is uncomfortable for me to watch at least. Plus my experimentation with different editing styles and cameras has meant the quality is questionable. BUT they are improving. I am improving. And it’s showing!

Youtube gives anyone who uploads a video access to incredible analytics. I LOVE them. Sometimes I wonder if the analytics are a large portion of my motivation to continue making videos. It’s just amazingly interesting to see how long people stay on a video, where they found you, how many people chose to watch (or not watch) that particular video, what topics people search for, and on and on.

So why make videos? Well it’s not for the acclaim and financial gain! I have 32 subscribers and have made exactly $0.00 from Youtube. In fact, I’m not on track to make money on Youtube ever. At this rate it would be decades before profits were possible. That’s a little painful to write actually. There are a lot of people making a lot of money on the platform. In fact, the number of creators making over $100k/year increased 40% year over year. It seems like a lot of topics are so simple and yet become wildly popular. Why couldn’t I tap into simple yet effective topics?

Well apparently (as most things in life) this is harder than it looks on the surface. Not only is a “decent” video actually INCREDIBLY difficult to make, but then getting the work done before and after the video itself rears it’s time consuming head! The research, set up, preparation, scripting, camera gear setup, and more all takes about 5x longer than I thought it would. I was wrong to assume it would take next to no time, but the reality was still a shock. Then the video is filmed and the real work begins.

After filming/recording, you have to edit. And video editing is literally it’s own craft. One of the unexpected and much appreciated side perks of making these videos has been a newfound appreciation for all things video. Learning about the sheer amount of work, intentionality, preparation, expertise, and effort that goes into major movie productions is absolutely amazing. There are people who are not only video editors for a living, they are even more specialized. Some people are experts in color. “Colorists” are some of the most important people in a production.

The amount of effort that is possible to work into even a 1 minute video is amazing. Or depressing? I don’t know. Because the headroom is almost endless I feel the pressure to spend as much time and energy as possible to attempt to accomplish something like acceptable levels of quality. The pursuit continues, because nothing has really been successful so far.

Why write about it? Well, frankly I want you to read this and know that a more engaging option exists and that you should check it out for yourself. Tell me what’s good or bad about the videos or better yet, save yourself the time and just tell me what you want to see in the future.

Plans for future videos include:

  • Net vs Gross
  • Roth IRA basics
  • Traditional IRA basics
  • Roth IRA vs Traditional IRA
  • 401k basics
  • 401k vs Roth IRA
  • 401k vs Traditional IRA
  • “Before you Invest” checklist
  • How I read 46 books in 2019 in my spare time. For free!
  • Digital minimalism
  • Credit card churning
  • Apple Card review
  • Goal Setting Masterclass
  • Basics of Google Sheets
  • How to build a budget in Google Sheets
  • $2k Passive Income experiment (ring any bells? Its what most of my blog posts have been about here!)
  • What to do with your 401k after changing jobs
  • My personal finance journey
  • Personal Capital review
  • M1 Finance Review
  • Robinhood Review
  • Ally Bank Review
  • 100 push-ups per day for 30 days
  • And many more

So, what’s the takeaway? Well, I feel like anyone can and possibly should make a Youtube channel for themselves. But approach it with the perspective of having fun and learning. If it catches on and grows, great! I plan to do just that. Also, trying anything new and outside your comfort zone is a great way to foster growth. Having to speak in front of a camera then show the results to the world has been like another public speaking class for me. It’s wonderful and terrible! I highly recommend it! At the same time I also feel like maybe Youtube is not great for someone to just “try” because it is so incredibly competitive. I heard from another Youtuber that last year 7 million new accounts were made. And that every second 887 videos are uploaded. That is an obscene amount of competition. You almost have to be interested in something incredibly obscure and interesting to stand a chance.

In any case, check out some videos here and leave me a comment to let me know you’re a blog reader!

https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCVaO3-9dDkesDFAFrvqvcFg?view_as=subscriber?sub_confirmation=1

You are not your exercise routine.

Crossfitter.

Gymnast.

Yogi.

Powerlifter.

Gym rat.

Cyclist.

Hiker.

Bodybuilder.

Kickboxer.

Dancer.

Rock climber.

Titles we inevitably work very hard to earn.  To legitimize. This is no easy badge to wear.  We likely have invested hundreds of hours in our activity of choice to become known as and feel worthy of a title like these.  We have achieved a level of mastery above many of our peers or coworkers. We have seen results in our bodies and minds and now trust that the activity is a worthwhile expenditure of our limited resources.

It’s probable you have begun to self-identify as one of the names above.  However, the best form of a fitnessy-label comes from the outside. Someone else calls you a Yogi, so you must be one.  It’s THAT evident. Or you spend 2 hours per day in a dark weight room, lifting as heavy as you can, wearing your hoodie and taking swigs of the latest fizzy pre-workout beverage.  Someone at work happens to notice your arms seem bigger than before and, “You must work out” is given as the justification for the change. Boom. Verified weightlifter/bodybuilder. Everyone can see the product of your labor right in front of them, bulging out from under those puny sleeves, helpless against the power of your blooming new triceps.

But the final confirmation is the sweetest.  This is when a member of the elite labels you as one of their own.  The woman with the most poise and grace in the whole class calls you a great dancer. The climber who flashes 5.13’s comments that your beta is infallible.  The coach says your improvement with thrusters is the best he’s seen all year from anyone and maybe you should help bring beginners up to speed. Someone with the power to induct you into the marbled halls of the elite has claimed you belong.

Like a variation of ancient coming-of-age traditions, you’ve made it. You killed the lion, drank the cow’s blood, wore the gloves full of bullet ants, and are given this identity.

Accept it with caution.

Yes, you have focused your efforts and resources.  Yes, you have realized results. Yes, you have been recognized by a community as a valid participant.  But are these positives? These are not objectively negative things. However, assuming an identity based on them is something to handle with great caution. The problem I have with weaving your identity into the activity you enjoy is that it’s a petty representation of who you are.  As a person, you are a citizen, a family member, an employee (possibly an employer), a friend, a human. Your depth and beauty and power are vast. Almost incomprehensible.

If your identity is decided by your actions, your worth is measured by your results.

Read that again, and slow down.  “If your identity is decided by your actions, your worth is measured by your results.”  This is not a system you want to be held to. We have the option of allowing these kinds of social structures to dominate us, or we can reject them.  Yes, this is actually an extremely common form of worth-measuring in Western cultures. Your results speak for themselves and justify whatever your actions are.  In a nutshell, winning dictates truth.

If you get great results from your fitness activity and that’s palpable to the people in your circle of influence, it must be right/worthwhile/good/true. But what happens when your results aren’t quite as good?  When you get an injury or have to take time off? Who are you? The indicators are gone. The old gym swag you wore is out of fashion and now makes you stand out in the wrong way. Your kipping pull-ups look more like a fish out of water than an athlete setting a new PR.  The people you used to do the activity with have moved away or now go to that new hip facility you don’t even know about. Where is your identity now?

Okay, okay, maybe this is blown out of proportion for many if not most people who exercise.  You may not feel like your identity is indeed dictated by your healthy activities and community associated with them. However, the above rule reigns in more than just the fitness kingdom.  It is alive and well in virtually every career setting. Let’s make a quick modification to apply to your career success: If your identity is decided by your actions as a professional, your worth is measured by your professional results.  “You’re only as good as your last project.” “The proof is in the numbers.” The career world is results-based and has plenty of phrases to summarize that. As it should be. However, your worth, your value, your intrinsic ability to be known and loved and accepted is not results-based.  Succumbing to the rule that you are only worth what you can produce is limiting who you are and what you are capable of. You are not a machine designed to meet output projections. At work or in a gym.

Know that whatever you choose to do, however, you leverage your limited resources, you are not the sum of the results you realize.  Your life is not one large return on investment calculation. Be the best yogi, crossfitter, dancer, climber, manager, accountant, nurse practitioner, or retail clerk you can be all the while knowing that any label is just representing something you do, it’s not even close to describing who you are.