This past summer vacation, just graduated from high school, I was on the hunt for a new hobby to pick up that would follow me through the new journey of college I was just about to embark on. I had always been interested in film, media studies, acting, and writing, those type of creative activities and I wanted to see how I could develop that into a hobby. From there, came the idea of creating my own YouTube channel.
I’m not going to lie, I did not and still do not watch as much YouTube as other people do, but I decided to go for it since I have always enjoyed being in front of the camera and what better way to practice than by actually doing it? Making the channel also allowed me the opportunity to practice marketing myself as well as my video editing skills.
I never stopped to think about what others would think about the channel or me. I think the fact that I was fresh out of high school and knew I would not have to go back to those same tight hallways for another year or two also gave me a small confidence boost and put the fact that the world is much bigger than the people who are directly around me into perspective.
So, the day after I had thought of the idea, I recorded and edited my introduction video. I posted it and promoted it on social media and, immediately, I got such nice feedback. It was something I was not expecting since I had not given it much thought due to the fact that I was really only doing the channel to strengthen my talents, my resume, and, as mentioned above, to start a new hobby. I believe the key was that I focused on myself and what I wanted to do, I just forgot about what others would even think about it when I published my videos. When brainstorming about the content of my channel, though, I did decide that I also wanted to help high school students with the college applications process because I personally made some mistakes I would go back and change if I could. I decided my channel would also include college and lifestyle related videos in order to capture and share my experiences throughout my four years of college.
I did not just want to write this article to tell my story, though. I wanted to share a common comment I get whenever my YouTube channel comes up and, believe it or not, it’s “I’ve always wanted to make one but, I don’t know.” The first time I heard this, I just thought “oh wow how interesting is that, you totally should though, it’s fun!” but when I heard it the second and third time, I began to understand that people are just actually worried about what others will think of them. Because time is not an issue, one can make time for it just like one can make time for other things like “accidentally” scrolling on Twitter for 40 minutes.
Well I say: Just Do It (credit to Nike). Just do it! Be yourself, as long as you enjoy yourself while creating your own content, people will be drawn towards it and look up to you for putting yourself out there. That is something I learned since starting my YouTube channel and I want to share that with you just in case your mind is creating second thoughts about starting that channel or even creating that blog you have been thinking about for some time now. Just do it!
Another thought me and a fellow HCUCF writer with her own YouTube channel realized once we created and posted our content was that our fear and thoughts of being judged actually diminished. I feel these worries are ones we have all gone through in our lives which should really not be given much importance. Creating the YouTube channel and focusing to better myself has distracted me from the negative thoughts of “what will others think?” “will people laugh? Will people like what I post?”
To wrap it up, my advice is to go for it. Do what YOU want, what makes YOU happy. Try and separate your fears of what others will think or say because in the end, it only affects you if you let it affect you. I wish you luck and, if you wish, check out my YouTube channel! #shamelessplug