I watched one of my very first YouTube videos earlier today, a video that I was pretty happy with at the time…
And I was shocked at how different I am on camera now and how much more confident I sound … yep. What was I doing…
As a video creator I don’t believe you ever get to a stage where you say, with total confidence, there is no way I could improve next time. As a content creator, as a speaker, as a teacher you will always be learning and evolving. You will improve or you will learn, or both, with every video. The only way to get better is to start. And start right now.
But hold up… you’re asking ‘But where do I even start?’
Before we begin, let’s make one thing absolutely clear: there is no wrong way to show up on video…
Unless… you’re trying really hard to be someone you’re not.
I know, ‘just be yourself’ is easier said than done and it takes a bit of getting used to when you have a camera in your face.
Making videos should be a fun and creative outlet for you to share something you love with other people. I believe, we are our most authentic selves when we’re immersed in something we love. Which is why I urge you to make your first video about something you really, truly enjoy, because the outcome will be far. far. greater.
You can plan, and research, and watch tutorials until the cows come home, but honestly, making videos is the only way to get better at making videos.
If you’re ready to take that step I am right here with you, cheering you on. And here are some ideas to get you started with creating your first video.
Film an Instagram Story
If you have absolutely no idea what you want to make videos about, start super small. Start, with filming Instagram or Facebook stories. Get in the habit of filming yourself and seeing yourself on camera. Share a business update, a funny or interesting thing you saw this week, share a tip from your area of expertise, tell your audience what’s on your mind.
If it’s short and sweet, 1. It won’t take up too much of your time to create, and 2. you can just hit that little x and record it again if you don’t like it.
Most of us are not used to seeing or hearing ourselves speak. We go through our whole lives hearing our voice internally and seeing ourselves only through reflection, which is a totally different viewpoint than our friends and family, and the rest of the world sees us. So it takes time to get used to hearing and seeing ourselves on video.
Set yourself a challenge to record a short story, talking to camera a few times a week. It might feel really awkward at first, but it will quickly become more natural, and if you can master this, you will feel so much more comfortable filming your first YouTube video.
Have a Friend in the Room
The first YouTube video I ever made, I had a friend in the room with me, hyping me up, prompting me with my talking points, and giving me feedback. I’d talked about starting my YouTube channel for literally months, but without the push she gave me I don’t know how long it would have taken me start… if ever.
I felt so awkward as I sat down to start recording, but having her there to bounce ideas off and honestly just give me the kick up the butt that I needed was so incredibly helpful.
My advice would be to have a friend with you to help you make your first video, but not just any friend. It needs to be someone who you feel really comfortable to be yourself around. Someone who will encourage you, and really gets what you’re trying to do.
Bouncing off someone else’s energy gives a totally different feel than if you’re sitting in a room by yourself talking to a camera, until you’re practiced and confident enough to just go for it.
If you’d like to explore this idea further, check out this video on the ‘One Person’ visualisation technique.
Write Notes and Record it Piece-by-Piece
The beauty of digital recording, is you don’t have to nail it in one take. Or 10. Or 50… you can record your video piece by piece and stitch it all together later if that’s what works for you.
Write a rough outline of what you want to talk about as topic headings or bullet points. If you go off on tangents or stray from your original plan, you can always edit later if it didn’t work, or it might turn into a completely different video and be better than what you had planned.
If you mess up…
If you mess up, start the sentence again and cut the stumbles out in the edit. You’ll become a better speaker, develop your own style and evolve with every video. In the meantime, take, retake, cut and paste to your hearts content.
And if you want to make it look more fluid, you can put b-roll like this over your video to cover up those cuts, like nothing even happened… ah, hold up – as long as the b-roll is relevant that is.
Watch Yourself Back
The part that nobody likes, watching the footage back. This is where the real learning happens. It’s a great idea to edit your own videos at least in the beginning, because you’re going to go through it with a fine tooth comb and you’ll see what you like and don’t like about the way you present.
This is the time for constructive criticism of your video. Emphasis on the word ‘constructive’. The way you think you’re presenting in the moment when you’re filming might be totally different to how it actually looks. It definitely was for me.
Your energy drops by about 10% the moment it hits the lens. For me I know it’s important to get my energy up before I record when I don’t have the luxury of having someone there with me. Through trial and error and watching yourself back you’ll get a feel for what was a good take and when you need to record it again.
Get Yourself on a Podcast
Now you’re thinking, but Rachel, we’re talking about video over here, I’m not interested in podcasts. But, hear me out…
To be able to speak naturally, confidently and unscripted, you need to practice speaking naturally, confidently and unscripted. Being interviewed on podcasts is one of the best ways to practice this.
You have to think and speak on the fly in an interview and as long as you choose a topic that really interests you, you’ll see how easily the words come out when you’re prompted with talking points.
Most podcasts are very conversational, and that’s the kind of feel you want to create with your videos to get your audience to connect with you too. Podcasts are the perfect training ground becoming a better speaker.
There are great platforms like MatchMaker.fm and Podbooker.com that help podcast hosts find podcast guests. Find a podcast about an area you are interested in and reach out to them about potentially appearing as a guest. You are an expert in something. It’s time to get out there and talk about it.
Publish
I seriously procrastinated editing and posting my first YouTube video. What were people gonna think? What if no one watches it? What if I look silly?
But, then I realised, these aren’t even real reasons. These are just excuses, trying to stop me from doing something outside of my comfort zone – which we know, is where all the real growth happens.
In all seriousness, what is the worst thing that could happen? Will people judge me? Probably. Will I look silly? Maybe. What if no one watches it? I mean, it’s my first video… it probably won’t get many views. More importantly, why should I let any of these things stop me?
But I tell you, all the excuses I made up totally vanished when I hit publish. I don’t know about you but, uploading my first YouTube video was a really freeing experience for me, and I get so excited every time I upload a new video.
Do it For YOU
The minute that you don’t enjoy it anymore. Stop.
Researching your target audience is important, giving people content they want to watch is important, but if you lock yourself in to a certain style, create rules around the way your videos have to be and put too much pressure on yourself to show up a certain way, and it becomes stressful instead of fun… honestly, what is the point?
Do it for you, because you love it. Because you feel compelled to create it.
If you’re just starting out this is your chance to experiment. Try different things until you find something that really feels right, feels like you.
And you know what, if you wake up one day and you don’t like that style anymore, you’re bored of that topic, then great! Change it up. Don’t lock yourself into invisible rules that take the fun out of creating videos.
At the end of the day, no one is living your life but you, and you videos are going to turn out a whole lot better if you have fun while you’re doing it.
There is no time like the present, so if you’re thinking about creating videos or starting a YouTube channel, get out your phone or you camera and start today. You know what they say, you don’t need to be great to start, but you need to start to be great.
Read on for tips on how to outline your videos.
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