Happy New Year!!! Welcome to 2️⃣0️⃣2️⃣3️⃣
On the 28th of November 2022, I started a 30-day Shorts challenge which I told you about. Well, it ended on the 27th of December and I learned several lessons that can be applied across all areas of life.
As a refresher, (if you missed that newsletter) the challenge was "To create and post short-form videos for 30 days starting November 28. I must post on YouTube but I could also post on IG and TikTok."
I posted on all 30 days on YouTube. I posted on IG on 17 of those days. I didn't post on TikTok at all. I didn't feel the need to get on TikTok yet. That might change this year.
Lesson 1: Packaging matters. 🎁
Packaging in this sense is the video title. I did an experiment by reposting on another day exactly what I posted before with just a slight change to the title. I did this twice and I got surprising results.
Shorts 1 (54X views):
The only 3 things you need to be a success - 12 views (after 28 days)
How to be successful - 648 views (after 12 days)
Shorts 2 (7X views):
The Right Way To Set Goals - 8 views (after 35 days)
Why you don’t achieve your goals - 52 views (after 10 days)
The content could be life-changing but if your packaging doesn't appeal to people, they won't engage with it. This is also applicable in business, job interviews, etc.
Lesson 2: Motivation is not enough, get Accountability instead. 👭
Although I consider myself to be a highly motivated person, it wore out around the 20th day. Some days, the only thing that made me post was accountability. First of all, I had to give you feedback after the 30 days. Secondly, I had a friend I'd give $50 for any day I defaulted. This made me post on 10pm some days because I just couldn't default.
The goals you really want to achieve this year, get an accountability system for them. You would most likely achieve them.
Lesson 3: You can be flexible 🌊
I had told myself severally that when it reaches 2pm I can't shoot videos again. I won't have enough energy to. That's a lie I constantly told myself. This challenge had me shooting videos by 6pm with excitement and so much energy. I was also editing videos on my phone during my commute (walking and in a bus).
This made me to start questioning the stories I normally tell myself. The voice in my head that says things that just aren't true. I started changing the story from "I am an introvert so I can't make friends" to "I am an Entrepreneur so I connect with people to grow my network". From "I slept for 6 hours 40 minutes so I didn't sleep enough" to "My body is flexible so whenever I wake up, I can function optimally".
Lesson 4: 20 hours takes you from novice to good 🦸🏻
Malcolm Gladwell in his book Outliers said it takes 10,000 hours of deliberate practice to become an expert in something. Josh Kaufman found out you just need 20 hours of focused deliberate practice to get good (performing noticeably well). From 20 to 10,000 you move from good to expert. I spent at least 1 hour every day on the Shorts. I couldn't batch produce because I was also writing Exams at that time. With each Short I created, I got better and found faster ways of doing things. Some things you want to learn this year just require 20 hours for you to be good.
Lesson 5: The sub-conscious question everyone asks 🤔
"Why should I listen to you?" People don't like to verify a piece of information. We just want to trust the source and then believe everything they say. That's why the advice of investing in index funds is more highly regarded when you hear it from Warren Buffet than from a 20-year-old who doesn't have results.
The short that got over 1k views started with a catchy hook then "a scientific study says..." After the hook got them to stop, I mentioned a trustworthy source and they stayed to watch it through.
It's always better to talk about an area you have results than an area you're just interested in. With only interest, you'll have to reference authorities in the industry a lot till you become one. This is one of my content strategies for 2023.
Have a great weekend.
Zubby
💬 Quote of the Week:
To attain knowledge, add things every day. To attain wisdom, remove things every day.
Lao Tzu
🥘 Growth food:
📚 Book: Key Person of Influence by Kevin Harrington and Daniel Priestley. Popular opinion says you chase after opportunities and go after deals. On the flip side, there are people who attract opportunities. Few people have more opportunities than they can maximize. They are the KPIs (key persons of influence).
📚 Book: The Happiest Man on Earth by Eddie Jaku. Eddie went through hell on Earth. Only survived literally because of friends. There was nothing like a bright future during World War 2. They just worried about surviving today. This book changed my perspective on life and happiness. You can also listen on YouTube here.
Until next week, take care!
Zubby.