Vinny Thomas - Make Sure That You Are Creating Content That You Are Proud of (Blogger From England)

Don't let a bad day, week, or month of content creation make you give up. I have had so many moments where I almost quit, and every time that I told myself that I have come too far to quit, I surprised myself with how much I grew following that low. You will never know how far you can go if you don't allow yourself to try.

1. Tell us about your background and journey.

I am originally from Essex in England. I trained as a Secondary English teacher in Kent, before relocating to Arizona in 2018. I have worked with youth since 2014 and have worked at summer camps, on cruise ships, and currently work as a High School English teacher in the States.

2. When did you first decide that you wanted to create content and how did you start?

I have always created content for myself and my close friends and family. During my teacher training course, we had a group chat and I would make mini vlogs talking about the road to becoming a teacher and the cohort would often find it comforting and amusing, to see that everyone was going through similar struggles. There was a point when I first moved to the US where I attempted to create full-time, but nothing ever took off with it.

Once I transferred my credentials and was able to teach, I went back to making content only for those around me. It was through sharing funny videos with my department, that my Team Lead encouraged me to start making my private TikTok videos public.

This then proved to be a success and since March last year, I have gained over 800,000 followers on the platform. This then led me to develop my public Instagram and Youtube, where I also share longer IGTV and YouTube videos, as well as the shorter content that I created for my TikTok.

3. Is vlogging and YouTube content creation a financially sustainable career?

Vlogging and YouTube have the ability to become a sustainable career. The main element to keep in mind is the sustainable piece of content creation. Quite frequently, content creation is trial and error. It is a matter of creating concepts that your audience connects with, whilst also showcasing your personality and allowing people to see why you should be someone they follow. The main thing to keep in mind is that content creation has highs and lows.

You could have one series of ideas that are extremely popular, where your views are high and your income goes up, but then the next week your views could drop, and with that, so will your revenue. Once you reach a point where your content is regularly making a sustainable amount per month, you could definitely rely on it, but I would always advise you to not rush into becoming a full-time content creator, as it takes time to reach that point.

4. Who is your favorite creator and why?

I absolutely love watching AJayll on YouTube. I love music and their reactions always make me laugh. I like how they never take themselves seriously and have fun reviewing all different genres. I also love Taylor Swift and thoroughly enjoy watching them react to all of her albums. Frequently their responses are similar to mine, so it brings me so much joy to watch their content. I love their personality.

5. How and where do you find inspiration to churn out content?

I am naturally a very anxious person and have battled depression on and off most of my life. The one thing that has always helped me through times of depression or anxiety is comedy. I love watching videos that are funny and escaping where I'm currently at through laughing at things. I have always known that I have a strong sense of humor and I love to make people laugh.

The fact that my videos bring others joy, makes me feel like I am making a difference and it really does motivate me to continue creating content. Even on days where I'm not feeling as creative, or I have a video idea that hasn't gone to plan, to see messages from people saying that they love my content, or that it's helped them through a rough time, makes me so proud to give others that comedic escape that I always sought.

6. What does your typical day look like?

I am a full-time teacher, as well as a content creator. Usually, I bulk film all my content on the weekend, with occasional videos filmed throughout the week. My regular day is waking up, going to school, making sure my daily videos are edited and ready to go.

Teaching a full day of school and grading, then interacting with my audience online after school. When I bulk film content, I usually take anywhere from 6-10 outfits with me and will film anywhere between 6-10 videos, depending on how funny I find the videos myself and the mood I am in.

7. Which is your favorite book and why?

My favorite book is a compilation. The Brothers Grimm Fairytales. I absolutely love fairytales and reading different interpretations of them. I am also a massive Disney fan, so seeing some of the darker origins of the characters that I grew up with always interests me. I'm also just such a fan of shorter stories and enjoy being able to analyze them in detail.

8. What piece of advice would you like to give to future and aspiring creators?

My main advice would be to set yourself a personal goal and keep to that. If your goal is to make money, it's going to take a while to get there. But if your goal is to make people laugh and connect with people, you're going to constantly be reaching that goal and continuing to grow. People want to follow people, they don't want to follow businesses.

Make sure that you are creating content that you are proud of and even if a video doesn't take off, that's fine because you showed up regardless. Also, focus on yourself, don't compare yourself to others. There may be other creators with similar ideas of niches, but do not compare your views or followers, because it will not help you.

Don't let a bad day, week, or month of content creation make you give up. I have had so many moments where I almost quit, and every time that I told myself that I have come too far to quit, I surprised myself with how much I grew following that low. You will never know how far you can go if you don't allow yourself to try.