I want to tell stories...

I keep getting stuck in the same ol’ same ol’ content performance wheel:

What does the algorithm want?

What is going to make me money?

What is going to get more views?

So, when I sit down to create my content calendar, I put these really cool, really thoughtful, really fun ideas down, but when it comes time to create, I default back to what I KNOW will do well.

TBH, I don’t even think it’s external approval, I think it’s just comfortable and easy, and the other ideas are more difficult - ONLY BECAUSE they’re not my normal.

It’s so farkin’ easy for me, because I’ve done it for 8 years, to sit down and be like, “10 Digital Product Ideas” or “How to Use X Tool”, but that is NOT (absolutely NOT) the type of content I want to create anymore.

I want to tell stories, I want to have fun with my content, I want to CREATE content, not just make content.

And quite literally, there is nothing stopping me but me, which is annoying as hell, honestly.

It takes more effort for me to go out of my house to film, or to vlog, or to take actual b-roll footage and so I just don’t do it, even though that’s what I want to do.

Telling stories and creating things is SO FREAKIN FUN for me, whether it’s with video or photos, it lights me the f up, so I HAVE to get to the point where it’s the normal and not the thing I do every once in a while.

But I feel like in order to create fun, storytelling, cool pieces of content, I needed to have a vision board that fit the overall “feel” I want to accomplish, that inspired the shit outta me, and that made me think out of the box.

And, I have been SO inspired lately by MY TEENAGE SON’S PLAYLISTS, ha! I mean, don’t get me wrong, I love these artists too, but I’ll usually opt for some 2000s pop or TSwift if my kids aren’t in the car, but if they are in the car and my oldest has control over the radio, it’s Benson Boone, Noah Kahan, and Zach Bryan.

And those guys - their songs and their cover photos for their songs - have been inspiring the crap outta me lately 🤣

I think in another life I was an angsty guy with tattoos, painted fingernails, long hair, and a love that got away.

Y’all KNOW I love (love love love) Peter McKinnon and I totally think his vibe fits right with the guys I listed above, but what IS that vibe? How do I describe it?

So, I went to chatGPT and I was like, “Hey! I love Peter McKinnon on YouTube and the music artists Benson Boone, Noah Kahan, and Zach Bryan, can you describe their overall vibe?”

And ChatGPT spit back words like:

Authentic, raw, creative, gritty, rooted, and cinematic.

YES!!

That’s it! Authentic, raw, creative, gritty, rooted, cinematic - that’s what I’m attracted to about these guys.

But also in a feminine way, with film grain and some pops of vintage color. That’s the vibe I want.

And if you’re like, “Why aren’t you listing any women that inspire you?”, it’s because, for this type of vibe, this type of feeling, this type of overall package, I CAN’T FIND ANY!

I even asked ChatGPT to give me some lady creators who fit the words they gave me and the list was garbage. Half of them were men with feminine names that obviously confused good ol’ ChatGPT and the other half were just photographers and artists, they weren’t really the same vibe I was looking for.

There’s a TON of female creators who inspire me, just not with this vibe I was looking to describe.

Actually, my girl Taylor Swift’s folklore era would fit nicely in here too, but surprisingly, that’s not my favorite TS era.

Anyway, I’m on a mission to lean into the stories I want to tell as a creator. I’m on a mission to be more authentic, raw, grainy, creative, gritty, rooted, and cinematic - with pops of color. I’m on a mission to start creating content that I LOVE, not just creating content that feels safe.

It’s a little bit scary, but I want to tell stories, I want to have fun with what I’m doing, and I want to actually have a purpose behind my content other than making money (even though I also need to make money, ha).

Wanna see the Pinterest board I put together to REALLY visualize this vibe and help me feel inspired to tell the stories I want to tell in the way I want to tell them?!?

Do you see it? Do you see the vision?

What does this look like when it comes to YouTube? I’m not 100% sure. I know I want to talk about cameras and gear because that’s fun for me, but I also want to share BTS that tell stories, and tell stories that fit the vibe, and overall just have fun with my content.

IS THAT TOO MUCH FOR A GIRL TO ASK FOR?!?

I think not.