Summary

Justin, an aspiring content creator, experienced a brief success with his first YouTube video going viral but subsequently quit due to the pressure of replicating that success, and is now considering returning to YouTube with a new perspective on content creation and the value of learning from failure.

Abstract

Justin, who writes under the moniker JUSTINWRITES, shares his journey with content creation on YouTube. His first video unexpectedly went viral, garnering over 30,000 views, which initially thrilled him. However, the overwhelming pressure to produce another successful video led to his decision to quit. This pressure was exacerbated by personal stress and life changes. Reflecting on his experience, Justin has come to appreciate the insights from an article by Robert Porter on the benefits of not peaking too early. He acknowledges that his early success deprived him of the opportunity to learn through trial and error. Now, with a renewed approach, Justin is ready to re-enter the world of YouTube, embracing the possibility of failure as a learning tool and committing to enjoy the creative process.

Opinions

Justin recognizes his tendency to give up on projects before they fully develop, including his YouTube endeavor.
He values the medium of YouTube as a platform for full-time creative work, not merely for money or influence.
The viral success of his first video was both exhilarating and daunting, setting an unrealistic precedent for his subsequent work.
The pressure to match his initial success contributed to his decision to quit YouTube, revealing his struggle with maintaining mental fortitude as a creator.
Justin believes that his early viral success may have been a disservice, as it prevented him from experiencing the growth that comes from gradual progress and overcoming failures.
He is inspired by the concept that not peaking too early can be beneficial, allowing for a more sustainable and educational content creation journey.
With a fresh mindset, Justin is determined to return to YouTube, focusing on learning from each video and enjoying the creative process without the fear of failure.

CREATIVE | JUSTINWRITES

My First YouTube Video Went Viral

Then I quit

Sticking with creative work consistently takes a large amount of effort and dedication. I have a theme in my life where I quit projects before I ever get them off the ground.

My Son Did Something I Couldn’t

I am the king of giving up, and he didn’t

medium.com

It was no different when a few years ago I decided to finally live my dream of becoming a YouTuber.

My Love of YouTube

A few years ago I fell head-over-heels in love with YouTube.

When I say fell in love I mean:

I watched it every day
I spent hours learning YouTube strategies
I knew every big creator in most niches

I appreciated the communication medium of YouTube and quickly desired to seek out this career for myself.

It wasn’t about the money or the influence that I wanted, but rather I saw it as a way to become a full-time creator and love what I do for a living.

So I made a plan and decided

I’m going to become a YouTuber!

Launching the channel

I researched the best gear for the most affordable prices and bought it.

Thankfully I have a background in photography, graphic design, and video editing, so the learning curve wasn’t too steep.

I planned on launching a channel based on my love of the Walt Disney Company.

I wrote a few scripts and set up my camera and lights and just went for it.

Once I was done and had the video finished, I created my channel and let the video go.

I could never have been prepared for what happened next!

The video blew up

After I uploaded the video I walked away from the computer and enjoyed the rest of the day with my family.

For the first few days, there wasn’t much traction on it. After a couple of days had passed I woke up one morning and checked the stats.

The video was gaining around 1000 views per hour!

I freaked out and got glued to the screen. I couldn’t believe my stroke of luck that my first video was blowing up. It was one of the biggest rushes I had ever had in content creation.

I refreshed the screen and was obsessed with the numbers climbing. I tried to make sense of why but then didn’t care.

It felt so freaking good.

That is, until the next time I sat down to create.

The pressure was too much

I had a stroke of luck my first time out. 30k+ views on a rookie video is practically unheard of.

I put an incredible amount of pressure on my next video. The idea had to be just as good. I needed to continue the momentum.

Spoiler Alert: I didn’t.

Nothing I could come up with compared and I felt the pressure to an extreme amount so I gave up. I wasn’t ready for the mental fortitude it takes to be a creator and I buckled under the pressure.

I was going through a major life change and stress at the time so I am sure that factored in and contributed, but I decided the mental pressure and toll weren’t worth it.

So I walked away.

My takeaways looking back

I read an article this week by robert porter where he talks about it being a blessing to not peak too early on Medium.

Three Reasons It’s a Blessing Not to Peak Too Early on Medium

There’s been a plethora of recent stories about how life on Medium is a marathon, not a sprint. Here’s three reasons…

medium.com

At the time I didn’t see failure on YouTube as a “blessing.” I wanted to become a full-time content creator. Why would I want to not peak early and jump-start my career?

I now realize I wasn’t ready.

I didn’t learn the ropes and experience a trial by fire. Having my video reach success made it so I didn’t try hard on my second video. I didn’t have the luxury of learning anything from my first through failure.

It overwhelmed me instead and caused me to quit.

Recently I decided I want to jump back into YouTube. Writing on Medium and creating content regularly has given me the itch to do video creation again.

This time I will keep these three ideas in mind when I do:

1. It’s ok to fail

2. I want to learn what was right and what was wrong with each video release

3. To enjoy the ride a bit more.

I’m tired of being a quitter.

Let’s change that!

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