Should You Build a YouTube Channel?

Have you thought about doing KZbin before? Well, it is incredibly rewarding, and incredibly challenging. While many large channels talk about the difficulty of burnout, I want to instead talk about the struggles one might come across while still growing - things that I am all too aware of. Something I've been thinking about for a really long time is the direction I want to take my KZbin channel. After doing so much, people formulate expectations for you... ones you are not sure you can live up to. This might not be due to any lack of motivation or effort, but perhaps due to a fundamental disagreement you have with your own perceived fastest way to grow.
Today, I'm going to get a little personal, and talk about my experience, and how I've processed some of these emotions. I'll go over some positives, including tips on how to grow to begin with, but also provide some warnings on the emotions that might lie ahead, if you do choose a path like me. Ultimately, I still love doing this, and I wish I could do it more. It is a great hobby... but as always, there is additional context hidden beneath the surface.
0:00 So You Want to be a KZbinr?
1:48 Tips For Building a Channel
7:09 Does Grinding Work?
9:47 What Quantifies Success?
12:05 Why You Should Actually Make Videos...
15:44 The Downsides of Authenticity
20:18 The Repeatable Video "Gold Mine"
22:25 You Can't Force "Special"
24:17 Effort =/= Production
27:46 A Paradoxical Dream
31:56 What to Actually Focus On
Online Mario Kart: mariokartcentral.com
Rook's Domain: / discord
♪ Hanging with the Boys
♪ Phendrana Drifts
♪ Shooting Star Summit
♪ Space Junk Galaxy
♪ Aspertia City
Outro: • Sweet, Sweet Victory (...

[@linguine2081]

I really love this channel because to me if feels you just kinda do your own thing and prioritize building a more mature audience while still talking about stuff you love, if that makes any sense. I remember before riptide i found your baby park video and being interested in your style and how you think deeply about everything rather than just yapping like how some people do. Keep up the good work man, good video

[@HDRookie]

Appreciate you man. Sometimes, its not always popular. But it is true to myself.

[@autismandgaming4532]

Singapore Speedway in the thumbnail

[@jonahyoung55]

Something I just noticed: I tend to watch your videos at a lower speed than most other KZbin videos. This isn't because you talk too fast, it is because you say more interesting things than other content creators, IMO. Its like you said about making content just to make content. When someone does that, they end up not really saying anything, like in an essay trying to hit a word count. But the way you write your videos is the way good writers write.

[@HDRookie]

Some of the sentences contain a lot of info, so I get it. A single word can change an entire meaning of a sentence too. Admittedly, I don't always give time for people to catch all the things I put in the background as well. It's kind of an expectation that if you're trying to soak up everything, you might need to pause on occasion to stop and read something. It's there for the people who want it, but I know not everyone wants to read stuff, especially sources or long paragraphs, lol

[@xob7505]

The thing is that nowadays we tend to confuse success with popularity. I mean, if you were going after fame you wouldn't have based your content around Competitive Mario Kart in the first place. It has never been a mainstream topic to begin with and that's completely fine. Not everything that gets made is supposed to be consumed by everyone. What matters at the end of the day is being true to yourself and trying to improve your craft as a creator. In other words, this was a great video, please keep making content that inspires you.

[@HDRookie]

For sure. The difficulty comes when you start getting more traffic, and expectations start to mount. The thought that the channel could always be doing a little bit more is a great distraction from the real reasons as to why you started to begin with.

[@De_an]

I usually try to comment on every video I watch since I believe that everybody should have the chance to be seen by as many people as possible, and if my one comment has the chance to get the video into more people's recommendations, I think it's worth it. I can't think of anything to say on this video's topic, so I might as well just share this.

[@HDRookie]

Hey, it's still much appreciated. Definitely works, but some video styles definitely bring out more comments

[@hotwheelzgamer]

I love the focus on understanding your audience, this video feels like such a genuine way of giving advice. I love your style man, and I appreciate so much the amount of effort you put into these. You show so clearly that you care and that you have a seriously informed opinions on the topics you cover, and I think that's really what makes these videos so great. It almost feels like the principals of what you base your discussions on are perfectly fitted but can also be applied in a million places because of how open-ended they are. Great job dude, you deserve more success. Oh, and for what it's worth, I also whole-heartedly agree with the sentiment in the comment you highlighted. The fact that I've always thought of this channel as the place for the "real" opinions while everywhere else is the "this would be cool" logic was pretty much the reason I kept watching, but honestly, with how effective your video styles are, I would honestly watch almost anything you put out, because I know I can trust you to deliver a really well crafted experience. I don't know exactly how my overall tone comes out in this, but I honestly just want you to know that your channel is really great, and this video is such an awesome example of that. Thank you, dude.

[@HDRookie]

This is really nice of you to say, thank you. This is kind of why I decided to make a video. I was thinking about this one night and decided to write down some of my thoughts, and realized that it was a topic worth expressing to me. If I think something is thought provoking I suppose, it can be a worthwhile topic. I think this will be one of the least watched things I make, but I've talked myself into being fine with that. That said, I hope I can condense everything soon. Not everything has to be 40 minutes, and that's a big ask of a viewer. It's just how things have worked out recently.

[@ComedySpike]

This is quite an interesting video with a lot of insightful viewpoints. I'd recommend to any newcomer interested to take the time to listen when you can.

[@jonahyoung55]

Thank you for this video! I agree, it is better to do KZbin as something you want to do. Chasing trends and algorithms is often more trouble than it's worth. If you get successful by switching to something you don't really enjoy, you risk becoming dependent on it and not knowing when to stop. I must say that pretty much every video you've made has been highly entertaining to me. I share that same niche interest in the inner workings of Mario Kart, from the perspective of logic and both casual and competitive play. I am working on personal projects that I am excited to one day share. Your videos have been one of the biggest sources of inspiration for the project I am most excited about! If I ever get around to publishing it, I will be sure to give you credit! Thanks again for all of it! I hope the best for you, and may our Lord bless you!

[@HDRookie]

It sounds like you're the one doing the project, so no need to credit me for it. If you want to shout me out for inspiration though, give me a ping when you finish it, and I'll try to take a look. Thank you for the kind words!

[@jonahyoung55]

@@HDRookie That's pretty much what I meant, haha!

[@Sizzyl]

35:05 100% agree, that's the exact advice I would give to myself in the past.

[@ProjectMirai64]

Nice vid!

[@SyriakYT]

10:11 MY BOY MENTIONED

[@Xcell-Nintendo]

Thanks for talking about me in the video and you are right I should have asked you as well as the other people I do videos on to do an interview to make sure that I was not just assuming things and I got the full story and honestly this video does make me think differently about my rise videos and from now on I think I will try to make them better in the future and I really like your channel as well as everybody else's who I make videos on so if you took a little offense from my video I genuinely am sorry. (Nice video btw)

[@HDRookie]

No offense taken - again, I actually really appreciate your intent, and I recognize that you were only wanting to put something positive out there. This was partly a perception that I already was aware existed, but just stated out loud. Well before your video, I was understanding how a channel like mine may be perceived. The comments and even view counts on this said enough already. It has just gotten me thinking - can anything be done to actually grow for me at this point, that isn't contingent on factors out of my control, like the DLC happening? It was a topic that was well worth exploring for me. I hope you don't feel bad for it any way.

[@Xcell-Nintendo]

@HDRookie I appreciate this reply and if anything I thank you for this sort of constructive criticism especially by someone who is far more experienced than I am and I believe that this is something I probably needed to overall better my content in the long run.

[@HDRookie]

@@Xcell-Nintendo We all learn lessons along the way. There is some truth to the fact that I wasn't as strong of a video editor even when I was making my original content, even if I still find my old videos unique. But like everyone, you will continue improve as your channel grows for sure.

[@Sagario]

I think its kinda RNG from what your accent is, I think its way easier to blow up with an american accent than a european or like an indian accent

[@HDRookie]

It is certainly possible. Some people just have the perfect voice for this stuff.

[@etanemk]

Your videos give off such a professional vibe and i love how you take your time to reply to everyone's comments. It really shows that you take into consideration what your viewers are saying. Thank you so much for the high quality content, it really is great and we need someone like you in this community who actually scripts content instead of constantly uploading unedited competitive mario kart 8 deluxe videos.

[@HDRookie]

Much appreciated 🙂 At the very least, even if that form of video is much more consistently popular, it is good to have different offerings, imo.

[@Window_seatspotter]

This is a really good video! I am also trying to grow my channel as well and this gave some interesting insight! For reference, I literally make shorts on aviation related topics but someday I want to make more longform content. Honestly good work HDRookie :)

[@HDRookie]

Best of luck!

[@ElephantSix2]

Epic Video. Awesome to hear people open up about things like this. I really like how your channel is right now. Obviously more videos is cool cause more stuff to enjoy but I love how confident I can be that I will enjoy every Rookie video I click on. I think you can totally keep trying different types of videos. You are really good at it and like you said you can't really repeat videos with the topics you cover.

[@HDRookie]

Thank you for the kind words. I don't think something like this will happen again but of course, that's the nature of the channel lol. I hope I can open new perspectives for you on some of these, and vice versa 🙂

[@linguine2081]

4:48 BDD MENTIONED 🗣

[@ProjectMirai64]

I was thinking about starting a KZbin channel covering Nintendo topics in Romanian as the most famous Romanian Nintendotuber left in like 2019 and the scene has been pretty dry but I'm not sure if it would be a good idea.

[@HDRookie]

Don't do it because you want to fill a now open void. Do it if it's genuinely something you want to put the work in for!

[@ProjectMirai64]

@@HDRookie I want to but I don't have any experience at all, I'm not sure what and how to do.

[@HDRookie]

@ProjectMirai64 only one way to get experience. As a tip, even when your videos are getting zero views, pretending like they don't still goes a long way.

[@Account-ms3zg]

It seems like you struggle with authenticity because you want a larger audience. Do you want that larger audience because you genuinely want more people to engage with your content, or is this an issue with pride? You said you always felt like you wanted your voice to be heard which makes me think you struggle with loneliness. Are you driven by the feeling of desperately wanting to be heard?

[@HDRookie]

My whole life, I have had passions I have been interested in, that I really wanted to share with others. But you cannot force people to have the same passions as you - it has led to me wishing there were more similar people to talk to about the things I want to talk about, however. As I said at one point, I understood that I wouldn't have 30,000 people sit and listen to me talk about something really specific, but I still posted it anyway. It had nothing to do with pride then, and the only thing that has changed since then has been not wanting to let down people who might have tuned in for different expectations, more recently. These people did find my channel this past year through a similar interest though, and through me speaking authentically about something that mattered about me. At this point however, there isn't a lot more to say on the things that brought them here. It creates a bit of a crossroads situation, where you wish you could continue to be captivating to them, but you're not sure if they will care anymore. It is easy to tell yourself to just be you and to let go, but at the same time, it is a bit of a bummer when you see your channel turn into something that people seem to care about briefly - knowing that perhaps it could be short lived. I think of course I'd like my voice to be heard - it is not a thing I would call a desperation, but it is always nice. Because it does make life more interesting, when you find other people that care about many of the same things.

[@Account-ms3zg]

@@HDRookie I see. I was just interested in your motivations for the channel for a mid size youtuber. Seems like you just want to share your passion with others which is a good thing.

[@HDRookie]

@@Account-ms3zg Well, this is how we all typically begin I'd say, unless you're going after the "lottery ticket" method. The difficult part is eventually wondering if you have the ability to be a larger channel, and potentially be able to make YT a legitimate job, or part time job. The struggles come from resisting the urge to tap in to something that didn't get you to the point you were at, I think.