Quick Question First: Since I have pivoted my niche, I am wondering should I go ahead and start creating and publishing videos for this new channel. I was waiting for the time in the challenge when Alexa tells us to go ahead and create a video, but I don't know when that is. I plan to redo the 30-second video that ended up being a 1min43sec. What do y'all think? Okay, Day 11! I am liking this one. Creating Thumbnails and Titles. (Clearly the editing portion is stressful, but I will get pass that, lol.) I love how Alexa breaks these two down. I always needed to know the "science" of Thumbnails and Titles and she has it all here in this Day 11. For my background, it will be light against my dark complexion. The focal point will be the gift basket I am designing. It always wins whether I want to be focus or not (and I do not). However, I will be in the frame of my video. I will be showing all of those expressions based on the title and thumbnail and what I am trying to convey in the video. They all should match. For my thumbnail sizes, I have been using "thumbs up," which shows what my thumbnails look like on mobile, tv, desktop, tablet, playlist, etc. There are other tools out there that do the same, but this is the one I learned first and use. I believe, from what I have observed, my Thumbnail is the "What" and my title is the "Why": -"What" (thumbnail) is in the video, and -"Why" (title) my viewer should click. Did I get that right? That's what I have noticed even when looking at the playlist for this challenge. My thumbnail-title combination will not be clickbait! I hate clickbait. It's like lying! Deception! I hate lies!!! I've made all these mistakes except repeating the text of the title in the thumbnail. Guilty😅! I learned early on that this was a no-no. For this lesson, I will be spending a lot more time on creating my title and thumbnails no matter how long it takes before my video is uploaded. My key is going to be batch producing which I know is coming in a future lesson of this challenge.

I could have easily skipped this day since I have a little over 100 subscribers. The first time I did this challenge I had 53 subscribers, today 114. That may not be a big deal to some, but for me, that is 114 people who trust me! That is a big deal for little old me. I am glad I did the work this time with the workbook and not just taking notes while watching the video. I am now focusing on my First 1000 Subscribers! When I hit that number, it maybe time to do the challenge again! Time will tell. The steps are around engaging your views via comments, how to use shorts and to find micro-collaborators. I feel my weakest link on this is the collaboration with other creators who have overlapping audiences. I do follow and comment on other Faith Based channels, they have never really reciprocated. I want to say thank you for two tribe members who have become consistent commenters on my channel @Jenny Sharratt and @Charisse Uvonne. You both are helping me see what community with a YT channel is. You both spark my heart ✨💖! So with the intention of helping each other out, gaining more understanding of how to collaborate and following Step 3 on Day 16, here is my invitation and promise to @Charisse Uvonne, @Christy Keeter @Becca Lespier @Paul Swift and @JoDitt Williams, since we are all faith based creators with different niches within the Christian YT Community, I was hoping to build our channels with intentional commenting. No response needed here, you will all see me very soon in your comment threads. @Charisse Uvonne, and @Jenny Sharratt I owe you both an apology, I have not been as intentional with my commenting on your videos as you have on mine. You have shown me what it looks and feels like to be on the receiving end of kind comments, I will start doing better!

Today was all about building a content calendar. There’s so many ways you could do it… so many systems… so many moving parts… But what I’m starting to understand is this —it only works if it fits your actual life. For me, I know my energy is best in the mornings. That’s when I’m clear, grounded, and can talk about Kundalini, philosophy, or meditation without forcing it. Cooking videos are different… those are going to be afternoons. There’s prep, timing, and honestly it just flows better later in the day. So instead of trying to force everything into one perfect system, I’m building a rhythm that works for me: Monday–Wednesday → create, film, get aheadTalking videos in the morningCooking videos in the afternoon Nothing crazy… just something I can actually stick to. We also worked on building a simple 4-video cycle:• Cooking• Kundalini philosophy• Meditation / chanting• Then one experiment I really like this because it gives direction without boxing me in. And the biggest thing I took from today… I don’t need some complicated system to be consistent👉 I just need a simple plan I’ll actually follow That’s it. Because I can already feel how easy it would be to spend all my time planning… organizing… learning…and never actually hit record. So I’m keeping this simple. Show up. Film. Post. Learn.Repeat. That feels like a win to me. Let’s keep going @Dr. Saundra Stancil @Jenny Sharratt @Jaye Brunner @Dajana K.

I am just going to say it, "I NEED AN ADMINISTRATIVE ASSISTANT!" 😂 I am so glad I decided to redo this challenge, there are so many things I have let fall by the wayside over the last couple of months! There are so many things to keep track of, it can be mind boggling. Until this very moment I never liked the fact that my cousin threw me in the deep end of a pool and yelled "SWIM!", before I knew how. I am seeing the wisdom in learning to swim on the fly! I made it to the edge of the pool that day, and I am not scared to get thrown in any longer! I feel like this YT journey is the same thing, except I jumped in the deep end two years ago only knowing how to hold my breath and hoped I would survive. Well, since December, I have been taking YT swimming lessons with Alexa. I am building muscle everyday by showing up, learning the basics and applying them, then reapplying them as I learn more. I redid the description on the video that goes live tomorrow. I have yet to use cards, however I am working on a video that I give kiddos to another YTer, I will definitely insert a card on that one. Blessings my friends. One step at a time, overtime, and you will be in a whole new world. Striving to be a little better today than I was yesterday, will make me a new person, I can't wait to meet her! The today version is a little overwhelmed! I have been doing flow charts to keep myself on track. I made one for today. I put it in the clear sleeve, then use a dry erase marker to X off the steps I have done on a video! @Dr. Saundra Stancil @Jenny Sharratt @Eddi Pinegar @Dajana K. @Adam Tinkoff

Yesterday was all about testing something new — pulling 4 shorts from one long video and scheduling them out instead of posting everything at once. The idea is simple…Give the video multiple chances to be discovered. So instead of one upload and hoping for the best, I’m spacing the shorts out to see if they create little waves that keep bringing people back to the full video over time. I’ll be honest… this took more work than I expected 😅Cutting the clips, resizing, cleaning things up, figuring out timing — definitely a learning curve. But it feels like one of those things that could really compound if I stay consistent with it. So now we watch and learn 👀Does it help the long video?Does it bring in new people?We’ll find out. Also, just sharing what I’m working on next… I’m going to be doing a 30-day live Kundalini meditation series on YouTube. I’ll be going live each day and then leaving the recordings up, so over time it becomes something people can come back to and practice with whenever it fits into their day. Honestly, a lot of this was inspired by the engagement in this small group. Seeing everyone show up, share, and support each other made me realize how powerful that kind of energy is… and I’m hoping to carry that into the Yoga Skool and see if it creates that same feeling there. This whole process is starting to feel less like “posting videos” and more like building something piece by piece. Appreciate you all being part of it @Dr. Saundra Stancil @Jenny Sharratt @Dajana K. @Jaye Brunner