Week 3 of 10 - Ideas come first!

Armory of contents:

1. Stealing Like An Artist. A piece of content that inspired us to create this week

2. Our Response, Unfiltered. Responding to a controversial comment.

3. Mind-Blown. Something that provoked our thoughts.

4. Early to the Party. A small creator on their way to stardom.

5. Zoom Out. Thinking big picture for our brand

6. Roasted. A light dig at each other’s content.

Lighter log this week, fellow explorers. One of us is globetrotting! Thanks for being here, as always. We love coming together each week, chronicling our journies as creators, and sharing these bites with you.

Let's get into 'em!

Recently, I’ve been quite inspired by TikTok culture specifically - videos that are short, memorable, funny, and typically utilizing a sound different than the original video. This video in particular got me thinking about how I can use (gag warning) *trends* in a unique manner. Can I use these audio and visual ideas to kickstart something completely unique for a video? For example - the trend acts as a hook, and is followed by a voiceover and a longer story. I think I totally can put my own spin on trends, but the question is… can you?

This is something I, and I’m sure lots of you, tell ourselves a lot.

“What am I doing? I have no idea what I’m talking about.”

It’s universal. Even on topics I consider myself an expert in, I still occasionally wonder when I’ll be caught out for being a fraud. It’s the blessing and curse of such an accessible platform - everyone’s an expert, and no one's an expert. And sure, I’m no professor, but I know what I’m talking about. I make videos on things I’m passionate about and study daily. I also never claim to have all the answers. I’m still working this all out, like the rest of us. Even you, Mr. Bread profile picture. It’s a hell of a lot easier to point a finger and claim “false” than it is to question things. So keep being curious, creators.

Every so often, I’ll scroll to the very beginning of when I started posting on TikTok. When I do, one thing always happens before the other - first I cringe at the kinds of videos I was making, and then I feel more confident about what I now have to do. I cringe because I see right through the facade of the early videos, trying to game the algorithm. I cringe because I know I’ve grown as a creator. As I scroll back up to the latest posts I’ve made, I’m more aware than ever of the importance of making videos that’ll withstand the test of time. Videos I’m proud of, and that I can look back on a year from now and still believe in.

One of Sean’s greatest qualities is also something I believe can hold him back. It’s his insistence on applying a fresh lick of paint on everything he does. Sean has been tiptoeing the idea of re-starting YouTube for a while now, and is soon to finally take the plunge. And lord knows, when that starts firing up, he’ll have the sexiest graphics and animations on the platform. But because of that, it’ll have taken him longer to post that first video. Sean, I love you and your impeccable design skills. But as important as presentation is, ideas come first.