You guys, let’s talk procrastination. If I could get a PhD in procrastinating… I wouldn’t. Because I’d be too busy watching cat videos, or endlessly scrolling through pinterest.
But here’s the thing: when I finally get my rear in gear and actually do stuff, I always find myself wishing I’d done it sooner.
Case in point: for the past two years, I’ve been wanting to get into videographing. Video-ing. Videography. Whatever.
And what’s been stopping me? Me. Me and my big fat lazy butt. Also, the little voice in my head that kept telling me that shooting video is scary, that learning new software is scary, that letting other people see me / my house / my pasty white arms is scary. (Seriously, how can I be so pale?) I kept playing out in my head how I wanted to shoot things, mentally directing each scene, but when it came down to it, I was too afraid to take it from the drawing board to reality.
Then one morning I caught my fear off guard — maybe it was on break — and without even thinking twice about it I got my camera and started filming. And it was so. Much. Fun. Sure it was challenging, sure there were (and still are) a lot of learning curves… but I like challenges, and I like learning, and even if I had failed miserably, I still had so much fun doing it.
And isn’t that the point? To learn, and grow, and have fun. To quote from Elizabeth Gilbert’s book Big Magic: …”why should I go through all the trouble to make something if the outcome might be nothing?” The answer will usually come with a wicked trickster grin: “Because it’s fun, isn’t it?”
So here’s a little reminder to myself, and to you if you’ve been putting something off, too: just do it. Do it because it’s fun, or new, or interesting, or challenging. Not because you’re set on success, or afraid of failure… do it for the adventure, for the experience, for the fun of it.
Here’s the video I made. I hope it inspires you to grab a cup of coffee, step out of your comfort zone, and tackle whatever project you’ve been meaning to tackle. You’ve got this.
(And if you want to follow along on my video adventures, head over to my newly minted youtube channel and hit the subscribe button. It’s lonely over there!)
I hope this Monday is treating you well, friends!
xoxo
I’m a horrible procrastinator too – my roommates and I even did a report on procrastination in English 101 in college! Video is something I’ve been saying I would “get to” for the last 3 months; I think you may have given me the motivation to do it. That is if I don’t get distracted by another cat video first :)
Haha, that’s hilarious! I hope you do go out and try video. You have so got this!
Willow, what a great video. Love the sound and the angles. I don’t drink coffee but this totally put a smile on my face and inspired my morning. Now if I could just stop watching my cat (or if she could just stop staring at me with that face!) and get to work… :-)
Thanks, Christine! I go between coffee and tea, but some mornings coffee is a must for me. And having pets makes it so mark harder to get things done! When Neko was a puppy I was constantly distracted by his cuteness, haha!
I love it!! I have made a few videos but I’m scared to get into it more… because it IS hard work and it’s like putting yourself out there even more. I love your video (and your coffee maker and cups for that matter) – subscribed!!
Thanks, Lauren! Making videos is a LOT of work… but so worth it. Fingers crossed I’ll be making many more after this!
I could almost taste the coffee! Good job Willow, looking forward to more:) Hope your special Monday will continue going well too!
Thanks, Ellen! :)
Omg, Girl! For this to be a starting point on videos for you is amazing! I have also ben wanting to try videos and I too have been procrastinating so thanks for being another source to inspire me! I can’t wait to see more!
Thanks, Tori! I did technically make a couple short videos a long time ago, but nothing like this. It definitely felt like starting from page 1. If I can do it, you can do it — I hope you give it a try!
Beautifully done! I made tea this morning, but you’re making me want coffee. Tomorrow!
I look forward to seeing more! What video editing program are you using? I learned on Adobe Premier for work, but at home all I have is windows movie maker–talk about whiplash! I would love to learn more.
Thanks, Abigail! I wish I were using adobe premier, but I’m not. I’m also stuck with windows movie maker on my PC, and since I’m just getting into video I didn’t want to splurge on Adobe or Final Cut Pro just yet, so I opted for a free program called Lightworks (they have a paid version with more functionality, too, but I’m just using the free one for now). It has decent editing capabilities, and I’m happy with the results I’ve been able to get from it, but it is a huge learning curve — not intuitive at all, especially if you’re used to using adobe products. It took me many hours to figure it out even a little bit, but now that I’m getting the hang of it I like it. Thankfully there are some tutorials on youtube, and also a forum on their website, which have been really useful. Hope that helps!
I’m not reading this on a Monday, but my Wednesday could definitely use some inspiration. Thanks for providing it!
I’m so glad, Allyson!
Dude! Awesome job! I loved the sound of the beans, the music you chose, lighting, colors – it was all on point!! Like everyone else I want to start doing videos, even bought the equipment, but it’s hard to start something new when I feel like I’m barely keeping up with the old way! You’ve inspired me to just start already though! Fantastic work!!!
Aw, thank you, Mellissa! You should absolutely do video. I know you’ll be awesome at it! :)
Beautiful.
Thanks, Sarah!
Gosh, your first efforts are so awesome, definitely subscribing to your YouTube channel! I was surprised at how much fun I had shooting my first video. Of course I was a little overwhelmed when I got it into iMovie and realized that the 6 times I hit record turned into 24 frames per second.
Thank you, Megan! And thanks for following on youtube — hopefully this is the start of many more videos to come. Editing is a whole new world for me, too, but it’s been equal parts challenging and fun so far. :)
Hi Willow, I can’t believe this is your First video. It looks fantastic and professional. I love the way you put them all together. I’m thinking about adding videos on my site too, but don’t know how to make it pretty. Maybe I should stop by some day and see how you do it. :)
Thank you, Joyce! Technically, I made a couple of small videos a long time ago, but nothing like this so I really feel like this counts as a first for me. I put a lot of time into it, and am really happy with how it turned out. We really do need to get together sometime! I can’t believe we live so close and still haven’t done it! Maybe this summer we can have a potluck. :)
Nice work. Maybe we should keep in mind that the prefix “pro” as a preposition mean “for” and as an adverb, in support of something! So perhaps we should focus on “pro” and just go “for” it.!
Thanks, Mary! I’m all for that!