[00:02] That's a lot of time making mistakes, but it's also a lot of lessons learned. knew when we started VTubing. And I say we because joining me for this video is a special guest, Flox. Hi guys. I'm Flox. I'm a VTuber made of
[00:17] flesh and blood and my content focuses on art, VTuber software, and tech. Happy >> The first thing we wish we knew was that you need to be at least a little bit obsessed with VTubing. Not off the rails crazy obsessed, but obsessed enough to
[00:30] that stands in your way. Because speaking from experience, there will be >> And while you might hear that pushing yourself to your limits is a bad thing, definitely find yourself doing that from time to time. [music] And that's because
[00:45] doing this yourself is far more time-consuming than you would ever assume. You will run out of time for things. You will face pressure. And you have to be a little bit crazy to keep all of that up. Over time, you'll learn
[00:58] the difference between a safe amount of overworking and pushing yourself over >> But a bit of obsession can also help you hone your craft as you'll tend to look for ways to improve with each stream and each piece of content. But while
[01:11] weaponized obsession is something within your control, hate comments aren't. And unavoidable, especially when you get to a certain following. But for some reason, no one ever tells you how to deal with it. So, we'll do it instead.
[01:25] the years accusing me of faking my voice, name-calling, or even straight-up hate raids. That one happened during my first year with a couple of hundred subs and two people watching my stream. So, seeing that number spike up only to find
[01:39] the chat spammed with the most abhorrent and obscene hate was quite the emotional roller coaster. What really helped me deal with it was not only to set strict relying on my friends and community members for help. It's natural to get a
[01:52] bit too emotionally invested. So, having a support system to pull you back will space. I have some input as a fan-presenting person. People will say heinous things to you simply because you look like a woman. There's already a ton
[02:06] and streaming space, and VTubing is sadly no exception to that. While we all harassment stem from the person having internalized issues, you need to remember that it's not your responsibility to teach them kindness.
[02:21] >> [laughter] >> Learning to build up a tolerance for, all, but second of all, learning to withhold the response and choosing to remove and block them will take you some time to get used to. So, if you catch
[02:35] yourself hurting when you experience this, just know that you aren't alone >> That being said, hate doesn't always come from random chatters. VTubing is a very interconnected social medium, and
[02:47] as such, you're going to run into a lot of people. You'll have new chatters and new friends, but also new haters. And these haters can come from your community or, in some unfortunate cases, your own friend circle.
[03:03] VTubing, like most things, is not all sunshine and rainbows. Whether it's conflict stemming from insecurity, jealousy, or otherwise, interpersonal drama is a lot to deal with. But you also need to keep yourself in check to
[03:15] later down the line. Training your emotional response to these things is will greatly benefit you in the long run. Being in the community can sometimes function like a workplace. While you might not like or get along
[03:29] coworkers. So, they're going to be around regardless. And that means it's inevitable that you will butt heads with someone. Just remember to keep it professional, keep personal matters personal, and try to resolve things
[03:42] [music] can manage it. Learning better ways to handle drama is important, and that's exactly why lesson number four is always to be a student. No one ever starts off knowing everything, and even the most experienced VTubers are still
[03:56] Learning is your best friend as a VTuber. There's so much technology and software knowledge that inherently comes into play as part of VTubing, especially if you're independent and receive no management assistance. And that's pretty
[04:10] much all of us, particularly while we're getting our footing. Aside from getting your model, learning to calibrate it, mastering your tracking software, and puppeting, you will also need to learn time discipline, Time to stop. video
[04:23] editing, and script writing. Plus, you need to study, too. That means mindfully scrolling through social media to find new trends and topics, keeping up with software and hardware launches, and
[04:35] looking out for networking opportunities. And to top it all off, at learn how to understand your analytics without taking them to heart. So, that means that, yes, you also need to learn how to be nice to yourself and give
[04:47] needed. >> This sounds like a lot, but the reality >> This sounds like a lot, but the reality is that it is. It is what it is. This is obsession can help you hone your craft.
[05:01] something, you'll naturally want to learn more and more about it. And one of the biggest lessons that all of us inevitably have to experience is failure. But we shouldn't fear or avoid failure, but rather embrace it to learn
[05:14] >> Sometimes there's a topic you might want to cover or a stream idea you're ready to pursue, and it's simply too niche for it to be successful in terms of performance. But that shouldn't stop you from making it. Even if the idea fails
[05:26] in your eyes, either from you being unhappy with the results or maybe it wanted, it doesn't mean that it wasn't worth making. Not every video can be a success, and that's okay. Leave your early content and low-view vids up
[05:40] because they could still receive traction in the future. And if not, it's there as an archive for you and others to see how you've improved over time. Additionally, you should use your failed content as an opportunity to learn. Why
[05:53] videos? And what can you do better next time? Treat content creation like a science experiment. It's all trial and error, but the miracle cure is only found by cross-referencing what's failing with what's working.
[06:06] You could get a viral hit tomorrow, but trying to replicate it blindly will never get you the same results. Trust me, I've tried. But even if you've crafted the best video, a masterpiece that rivals even Iron Lung in the box
[06:19] office, none of it will matter if no one even clicks to watch it. And that's exactly why packaging is our sixth lesson. You need to take packaging seriously. That is, your video title, thumbnails, and your hook. While your
[06:32] out to them regardless, the best way to bring in new viewers is by pulling them in with a good thumbnail and title. Both should be independently strong and get needing the other. If you're at a loss for ideas, just start paying attention
[06:46] to which videos you click and what the thumbnail and title format looked like. But of course, the title and thumbnail won't carry a bad video idea. So, you interesting and unique. And most importantly, that when the video starts,
[06:59] you need to confirm the video concept to the viewer by using a good hook. People don't want to waste their time. Even if it's stupidly obvious, you immediately watching is the video that they clicked on. But once you've affirmed their
[07:13] expectations, make them invested to stay with a good hook. Promise an outcome, don't deliver too early, but give enough information to where the viewer needs to know what happens next. >> While titles, thumbnails, and the first
[07:25] sentence of your script might not seem like anything hard to conceptualize, the three together are actually the key to success for most content. So, don't >> And the way you present your packaging also ties into lesson number seven,
[07:38] consistency. Humans are creatures of habit. Our brains are wired to seek out video, we expect the creator to make similar videos. Otherwise, it disrupts our monkey brains and then we click off. Therefore, consistency in video style,
[07:52] important to satisfy expectations. This makes people want to binge your content, which is a huge green flag for the algorithm. And speaking of which, Algorithms do reward consistency. So, it's never a bad thing to try and
[08:06] even need to be brutal. Even aiming for once a week is still consistent. But being consistent doesn't mean you have means you need some sort of accountability for yourself to show up.
[08:19] Be that scheduling allotted time for working on projects, setting a goal for something new every now and then. Just don't allow yourself to fall into stagnation. And one sure way to fall into stagnation is through experiencing
[08:32] burnout. In its most simplest definition, burnout is the result of doing too much work but seeing too little results. So, a great way to avoid this is to do less work by accepting that not everything needs to be 100%
[08:45] perfect all the time, especially as a content creator, let alone a VTuber. >> You can't expect [music] everything to be your most perfect, best work. Your video or stream setup will never see the light of day if you spend too much time
[08:59] perfect. Get it 80% of the way to where you want it and call it a day. You might find yourself editing a video thinking, "Wow, this spot is boring and needs another edit in it." But what if you just didn't? Sometimes when you have a
[09:13] thought like that, you need to ignore it, even if it hurts you. You don't need to add in every edit, and you don't need to refine [music] everything you do. to refine [music] everything you do. Clean tables, Mr. Krabs.
[09:25] about this 80% [music] rule. Get your project to 80% of the best you could possibly do. And after that, post it. Let it go. It's okay to be imperfect, better than having nothing to show at all. And with that, concludes the eight
[09:41] >> Thank you so much for having me in today's video, Zekos. These two videos were a lot of hard work, and I'm super happy we can finally share them with you something today. >> It was a pleasure to have you, Flox. I'm
[09:54] together. And if you're curious about our other collab video, you can watch it our other collab video, you can watch it over on Flux's channel. CIAO. WOO! YES! over on Flux's channel. CIAO. WOO! YES! YEAH, YEAH, YEAH, YEAH.