For a while now I’d been tossing up the idea of starting a YouTube Channel. There were a few things holding me back including:

1. Will I get any subscribers?

The fear of not having an impact through this new platform did scare me. The need for success in social media does weigh heavily on me and I’m always tossing up whether the effort in really trying to grow my platforms is worth it, or if I should let it all happen naturally. I decided that I would give this a go, put up a couple of videos each week, and to try and keep it as simple as possible.

2. What if this is too hard?

When trying out a new platform, there’s a whole new set of skills you need to learn. I initially thought that using my phone to record videos would be enough. I thought I’d be able to do one take and no editing and BAM! I’d have a complete video. Turns out there’s a little bit more involved, but after some reading and watching how to videos on YouTube, I discovered that it’s not too hard. I borrowed a shotgun mic from school, dug out my DSLR camera and tripod, and gave it a go.

3. Do I really need another social media platform?

I already have an Instagram account, Twitter account, LinkedIn and this blog. Did I really need another medium to communicate my love of books and share my thoughts? Obviously I decided that yes, yes I did. I’ve decided that Instagram will always be the quickest way for me to share my love for books and lifting, and I love it as a platform. LinkedIn is a platform that is all about my profession, so anything specifically teacher/education related belongs there. As for Twitter, well I don’t use that as much as I could but I do share my content and other interesting things I find on there. This blog will probably now evolve past written book reviews and move more towards thoughts on teaching and my studies. I might still post the occasional book review here, but I often find actually talking about books, rather than writing about them, so much easier. Hopefully having multiple platforms will be sustainable and fun, not arduous.

Anyway, those were just some of my fears around creating a YouTube Channel. I’m glad that I did it and I’m looking forward to reviewing my first book and sharing that on Saturday this week! I just have to pick the book now… For those that are interested, the video is below!