That video pretty much sums it up. Over the past few months my involvement in the YouTube community has been waning. There are a few reasons for this. One of the main reasons is lack of time and sleep. It is not an easy task to make videos on a regular basis while keeping balance with work, family and church responsibilities. As well as freelance work!
It is one thing to make videos and post them to youtube and it is a completely different beast to be involved in an online community. Over the past 18 months I have made friends with or watched dozens of channels. There are currently 35 unwatched videos in my subscription box that have been uploaded in the past 24 hours. The moral of the story is that over time it has gotten impossible to stay up to date with everyone. I was actually doing a pretty good job of it for a while, but, I was spending way too much time on YouTube and twitter; plus occasional live shows on BlogTV. I made some sacrifices to be at VidCon 2010 and 2011. Being a part of this community has been a big investment of time and even money.
Recently, I had to stop and evaluate whether or not this was a wise investment. What would the end result be if I continued on this path? Would I eventually work towards doing YouTube full time? Is that even a possibility? Is that what I want? If you have watched many of my videos you might notice that my family is important. They come first. No job or hobby is worth it if it prevents me from being the best husband and father I can be.
I don’t know that I’ve actually come to a decision. I think I am in the denial phase of overcoming an addiction. I really do enjoy making videos. I also enjoy watching other people’s videos and even analyzing what makes a video popular. I enjoy learning new things and improving my videos. I do wish I had more time to dedicate to this hobby. I will continue to make videos because I enjoy it. I also enjoy watching some of my older videos. Every once in a while I will sit down with the kids and we’ll watch several older videos and I love watching their reactions. They love it! I hope these videos will be something they will enjoy the rest of their lives.
I see YouTube as a platform to share our life to hopefully inspire others. I want to be a positive influence on the world. I want to show that it is okay for grown men to play and have fun with their kids. I know I am inspired by other YouTube dads and I want to do the same for the people who see my videos.
Do you find that YouTube consumes your life more than it should? What other sites or hobbies have this effect on you? How do you find balance? I find it helpful to take personal inventory on a regular basis to determine where I need to improve.
1 Comment
Laurel · October 25, 2012 at 11:43 pm
I could watch your family videos all the time, and not get bored. Just showed the first Don Francisco vid to the missionaries and they cracked up. But, that being said, I’m probably not the best for unbiased info. You’ve always entertained me, and I expect that not to end. I agree though, your family comes first, and they need both quantity and quality time with dad. Making the videos contributes to that, but you need balance in the rest of your life, and sleep. There might be a 12 step program out there for youtube addiction. There are some recent good articles in the Ensign about balancing electronics and social media in our lives. You’re not going to find an easy answer to this – you have to make a living, and making videos is an enjoyable thing for you. It’s all about balance. Keeping a log of how you spend your time, might be helpful in the assessment process. I know watching other youtubers is fun and gives you inspiration, so enter that into your time evaluation. Good luck, you’ll find the right thing to do, or not, but at least you’re creating memories. Oh, and you gotta listen to your partner too, and work that into the equation. She’s your most important asset. I didn’t say anything you don’t already know. But I do like to watch your creativity, and it would be sad to give that up.
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