Monetization Journey, Weekly Update: Goals, Plans, and Productivity Hacks for busy schedules!

[@AlexaSaarenoja]

What struggles are you currently facing in your youtube journey? Time? Motivation? Please share, as always I love hearing from you all! xoxo

[@slcrooks]

Great to hear the business focus and the energy you are bringing

[@AlexaSaarenoja]

I appreciate that! ❤️

[@TimGreigPhotography]

Shorts are great for bringing people to your channel who want to watch short videos and have a short attention span: whether that's the sort of person you want to attract is a choice. Love your content.

[@AlexaSaarenoja]

Very true! ❤️❤️

[@kristannonfire]

Hi Alexa! I had a nasty faceplant fall a few weeks ago and got a goose egg lump on my forehead and some terrible bruising on the left side of my face. I haven't made any videos while my face has been looking hideous. It did make me realize that, going forward, it is a great idea to have at least 1-2 videos all made and ready to go (nothing time sensitive, of course) in case something like this happens again, so I can still publish videos on a regular schedule (it will also help when I go on trips and don't bring my laptop along). My husband also has a YT channel and he does batches of videos, like he will make 3 in a day, but not release all of them until future dates. There's a feature in KZbin studio that allows you to select future video publishing dates and times. I don't want to have 3 week long gaps between videos ever again! Just thought I'd share this lesson learned (the hard way). I love your energy and your determination! Also, I am impressed that you are doing a deep dive on your analytics, even to the point of analyzing your thumbnails. I learn new things from you in every video, and you definitely are providing good value to your viewers. Have a great week! :)

[@AlexaSaarenoja]

Wow, so sorry to hear about your fall. And a great lesson learned regarding having back up videos. Thank you for sharing. I try to stay a week ahead, but even that feels a little stressful. I definitely going to look into finding time to batch videos as well. Thank you for your comment, I worry that I ramble a little too much in these weekly reviews, but I allow more freedom in these videos because I consider them more vlog style, but it is nice to hear that they are providing value, which is my main goal! Phew! :) I hope your injuries heal quickly so you can get back to it as soon as possible. xoxo

[@TheOtherBeekeeper]

@@kristannonfire Now ten months in I’m starting to remix older videos. Feel and heal yourself soon,

[@TheOtherBeekeeper]

I can relate. Went to college full time. Worked a job full time. Had 2 children. Had day care. Earned my AA. Finished BAin 3.5 years. Stay at home day for last 1.5 years of college. My wife worked full time all of my college career.

[@AlexaSaarenoja]

Wow. That's a lot. Yes, it is not an uncommon story unfortunately. But what doesn't kill you makes your stronger right? Or just tired... haha

[@Seatheworldwithkatandmik-jh2xz]

Good job and KZbin is pushing the small channels. I see it on my feed.

[@AlexaSaarenoja]

I know it's wonderful isn't it! Great for small channels! WOohoo! Thank you for the compliment, this one was lengthy! haha I even edited out 20 minutes!!! OMG haha

[@Mariia_tolvanen]

I was just thinking that I would like to make video tutorials about editing 😂 and I see that you would need a little bit of improvement in that field, but I'm sure you will do it in the future ❤

[@AlexaSaarenoja]

@@Mariia_tolvanen Yes, my editing is taking a huge hit with my kids home all day. The consistent focus is gone, which is what really helps for editing, it's more difficult to do it with constant interruption, so I need to figure out a better work flow for the summer, because I don't want to take a break and I do'nt want the videos to suffer. I think I could have shaved off another 10 minutes of this video had I focused on it with a full brain and more energy and less distractions. But this is part of the learning process, so working on it! Thank you for your feedback, if you have specific ideas or areas that you think could be completely edited out I would love to hear your ideas. xoxo

[@HenckMetCK]

Hello Alexa, you are doing well. Your channel has made me consider starting KZbin again this month. But I might have a tip, it is an idea to turn the video you have already made into Shorts, for example, you can easily make a lot of Shorts out of this video. This saves you extra work, since you are sometimes busy with your family. All you have to do is cut your videos to 1 minute. And I would especially do that for the videos that have done very well on your channel. Hopefully this tip is useful to you and good luck with your channel.

[@AlexaSaarenoja]

Yes, thank you! I need to get on that. Just waiting for the kids to get their booties back in school so I have some time to focus without distractions! haha xoxo

[@PaulRansonArt]

Well done Alexa - Taking into account your comments at the start of the video how sustainable do you think your workload will be? I kept up a pretty rigorous upload schedule to kickstart my channel. But after 6 months it was apparent that this was unsustainable and my content was suffering as a result. I changed strategy and focused on better longform content for evergreen growth. So that's the story so far for me. Hope my feedback is helpful. Best wishes - Paul 😃😃

[@AlexaSaarenoja]

Yes, I'm not sure how sustainable it is with kids home. I'm already working every night now and early mornings if I can. It's a lot, but I am very driven, however that has landed me in the hospital before. I'm trying to be very cognizant of burnout. But the way I see it, I just need to maintain through these 1.5 months of summer and then it will be smoother sailing when all the kids are back in school and daycare. My editing suffers when they are home, because I don't get full focus, it's constantly interrupted, but yes, figuring it out! To answer your question, not as sustainable with them home, but it's only temporary. xoxo

[@PaulRansonArt]

@@AlexaSaarenoja sounds lie you have a grip on things. Just don't let it start to take over. You think it couldn't but belive me its insidious - the first clue is waking at all hours and picking up your phone to check the stats! Sound familiar! Keep in touch we all need a little support from others on the journey to keep us grounded - Paul

[@AlexaSaarenoja]

@@PaulRansonArt Yes, thank you! Great to have community support! Have a great day Paul! :)

[@jylromain6439]

I have never recorded a video, made a thumbnail, or posted anything for the whole world to see, and I am not techy by any measurement. Yet I plan to start a channel in the Fall. And once I figure that out, I have an idea about starting a second channel. So I would love to learn everything you wish to teach. Glad I found you. I subscribed.

[@AlexaSaarenoja]

Love this! You will figure it all out, I promise and I will help you every step of the way. About to create a start a youtube channel basics series of videos. Thank you for watching and the sub! I appreciate it. Best of luck to you when you start! xoxo

[@TheOtherBeekeeper]

Oh, I like the spread sheet details. You must be a left brain. I'm right brain. Artist, photographer, builder.

[@AlexaSaarenoja]

haha I am so not a spreadsheet girl. It's really hard for me to be organized. Luckily I am married to an engineer and after almost ten years together his organization obsession has rubbed off on me. I see the value in it, but it is very difficult for me. I want to turn the data into visuals actually, so they are easier for my brain to understand. But yes, spreadsheet is the way to go to see it all in one place. Glad you like it!

[@Mindfuljourneywithme111]

Wow crazy how you went from 600 subscribers to 6k in a month! Congrats

[@AlexaSaarenoja]

I know!! Is nuts! Is unreal…but loving it and feeling so grateful. ❤️❤️

[@michaelhillary6810]

I've never done any editing work and definitely need help with that.

[@AlexaSaarenoja]

Ok this seems to be a common theme with many of my subscribers. I am definitely going to push that video to the front of the line. How would you like to edit, if you had to guess, on computer/laptop or would you prefer phone? Mac or PC? Iphone or Android, etc. I should probably do a poll about this actually! :) Thank you for commenting!

[@JackieWolven]

You can add a thumbnail to older videos. So if you post without one you can upload it later. 12:01

[@AlexaSaarenoja]

That’s so true! Xoxo

[@TheOtherBeekeeper]

Just gave you 33 minutes, plus of public watch time.

[@AlexaSaarenoja]

Thank you! I appreciate it. It turned out to be a very long video this week. Thanks for hanging in there and I hope it gave you some good nuggets of wisdom. xoxo

[@VERONICA-og8vl]

Hi did you make a video on how to signup to receive money once you’re monetized. I heard it’s better to do before you get monetized so no waiting period. You make awesome videos !

[@AlexaSaarenoja]

Hmmm I haven't. I couldn't apply for monetization until I reached 3k watch hours, but then I surpassed to 4k a day later so I didn't really have a chance to do it ahead of time. xoxo

[@VERONICA-og8vl]

@@AlexaSaarenoja that’s awesome 👏🏼👏🏼👏🏼