I've been immersed into YouTube these past few weeks. Hours have blended into days and my world has bent back on itself. Everything I thought I knew about YouTube is pretty much up for grabs. I've come to realize that YouTube is not just about finding funny little videos or downloading "hot" shows before they get deleted. It's about an ever changing realm of video blogging conversations.
Friendships, enemies, relationships and business contacts are being cultivated in this hidden little realm. It's right there beneath the surface. A part of the inane and even mundane content we so quickly pass over in our search for the next hot video.
But I can't bring myself to fully participate.
Do you remember your first BIG blog post? I remember mine very clearly. I worked on it for days and even had close friends proof it and offer feedback. Even then, I wasn't satisfied with it. I remember finally pressing that "Publish" button. It was one of the most daunting things I had ever done. The idea that some of the people I was referencing might come and read it made me keep doubting and reviewing what I was attempting to say.
I've certainly gotten over my first blog post. Sometimes to the opposite extreme of not thinking enough about what I'm putting up.
But here's the crux of the matter. I'm finding YouTube far more daunting than any blog post. Three weeks and I'm still staring at a blank YouTube account. I'm not inactive, rather just the opposite. I have plenty of subscriptions to OTHER people's content. I'm participating, commenting and following the inner lives of these people on a daily basis. But I'm struggling with even contemplating my first video blog post. Hell, the other day I decided to take it slow and just work on my YouTube profile. A few minutes later found me going back and forth on whether or not I should publish the link to my craphammer blog. I was struggling with wanting to keep these two worlds separate. It seemed safer.
These guys are RAW. And I can see them. I can watch their faces while they discuss life, death, fears, or any other emotion. They can't hide.
That's when it really started to hit me. How honest am I? Or better yet, how authentic is this persona I appear to be wearing? What am I crafting? Protecting? Hiding? I talk a lot about authenticity in regards to social media strategies. But how do I apply it to myself and my business?
Two weeks ago, I met with a most amazing man running a socially conscious food-related business. He operates a small bakery in a hidden little industrial park and proceeded to serve us a homemade four course meal. Speaking about his passion, his customers and his business, it became abundantly clear that any money spent with us was earned penny by penny from his very hands. There was no factory. No investors.
Driving back to our offices loaded with samples, I found myself deep in contemplation and Dave's article on his early days as a consultant ringing in my head. We have lots of successful customers. And lots of happy customers. But here was a man asking us to help him double his revenues. Clear. Simple. And trusting.
I couldn't shake the discomfort that I felt. I had made a half-hearted attempt to sell our normal "social media" offering. But it felt hollow. Sitting in that car I realized it was hollow because I wasn't certain it was the best solution for this wonderful man and his business. There was this immense weight on me to have the best answer I could manage. I was upset. Not because of the weight, but because there were too many cases in my business where this weight was absent!
Are you acting in the best interest of your clients? of yourself? Does it matter? I would love to know your views as it will help me procrastinate that first YouTube video post a little bit longer. ;)
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