Every YouTube guru says consistency is key. In December 2018, with twins, a full-time job, a new house and Christmas breathing down my neck, I admitted on a winter beach during my lunch break that a strict schedule just wasn't for me.
Why I couldn't keep a schedule
It had been a couple of weeks since my last upload, and I had good reasons. When you have twins, a full-time job, everything normal life throws at you, plus Christmas presents and trees, keeping a posting schedule is, for me at least, impossible. At the start of the year I hoped for one video a week. For a while I thought I could manage it, but I couldn't. I had to accept some compromises.
That doesn't mean I'd stopped creating. In the meantime I filmed the wedding of a really good friend, did a photo shoot of a house, and was about to have my own personal studio. My hope for 2019 was that a faster setup would help me upload more.
3,000 subscribers
I had just reached 3,000 subscribers, which felt incredible. When I started, around the middle of the year, I was hoping for 1,000 and to get monetised by the end of the year. I got there, and I went past the one-video-a-week average I'd been aiming for. Slowly the work was paying back. It makes you feel useful when people appreciate what you do.
Two things I learned
I filmed this on my lunch break. Everyone else was eating, and I was at the beach, which luckily is very close. Winter by the sea is beautiful and inspiring. Two lessons from my first year:
First, the best ideas come when you're overwhelmed. When I had three or four free days to create, I often lacked inspiration. So if a great idea hits you at 3 a.m., get up and write it down. Second, take time for yourself, away from YouTube and work. Spend it with your family and the people who give you memories. When you stop chasing ideas and you're relaxed, the ideas come.