Ever had a creative block? Worried about running out of video ideas? I can’t tell you how often I run into problems like this with my clients and students… and today I want to give you a tool to overcome them and generate new content ideas, even when you’re not feeling inspired.
Even if you feel like a well of inspiration right now… you’re worried that there will come a time when you will run out of ideas.
First of all, I want to ask you: are you actually afraid of a lack of content ideas? Because let’s think about this for a second – your niche and your entrepreneurial career are probably some of the topics you’re most passionate about. You’re fascinated by your industry, driven by your competitors, inspired by your mentors… I’m sure you’ve sometimes felt like you could talk forever about your niche, without ever getting sick of it, right?
So… where is this fear coming from?
In my mind, it comes down to that same old fear of failure. You’re afraid of what happens AFTER you run out of ideas. You’re afraid of letting down your audience. Afraid of losing the momentum you’ve built… right?
But regardless, this fear manifests in worrying about running out of content ideas. So I say, let’s work on overcoming that fear by adding some tools to your idea generation toolbox.
I want you to feel like – even if you’re struggling personally or you’re just feeling uninspired, you can rely on certain strategies to have your back and transform your mindset so that you’re able to generate new and intriguing content for your audience.
When you feel like you’re running out of ideas or maybe you’ve hit a creative block, rely on your 3 lifelines – “Who Wants To Be A Millionaire” style.
First, let’s try the “50:50” lifeline. Remember this one? On Millionaire, this is the lifeline that removes 2 of the wrong answers from view, so that the player has a 50:50 shot at getting the right answer. So… if you feel like you’re running out of ideas, ask yourself: “what do I NOT want to make content about? What are my limits? What are the concepts or overarching topics that I don’t want to speak on, or have no interest in?” Answering these questions for yourself will help you narrow your scope and more clearly define your movement, even if you feel like you’ve got everything figured out.
Second, we’ve got the option to “Ask The Audience”. As entrepreneurs and thought leaders with a presence online, I really don’t think we give our audience enough credit or consideration. Your audience is smart. They’re loyal followers of your movement, and your goal as a content creator is to appeal to their interests and needs… so ask them! Put out a poll on Facebook or Instagram, maybe do some kind of giveaway, or something that encourages audience participation to find out what does your audience actually want to see from you. What types of videos do they prefer? What types of videos could they go without? Do they have any questions that they want addressed from you?
Rely on your audience. When you trust them and actually utilize their ideas, they’ll only respect you MORE.
Lastly, “Phone A Friend”. I don’t necessarily mean phoning a friend to bounce ideas off of, although that can be really helpful, too. But sometimes phoning a friend and just hearing about their life and what they’re currently dealing with or celebrating… sometimes all of that can help you gain perspective and center yourself so that ideas can flow more freely. You can separate yourself from your content and think more clearly once you take a step back from your content for even just a few minutes.
Listen: I’ve been on YouTube for upwards of 4 years. Do you honestly think I’ve never experienced a creative block or faced the scary realization that I don’t know what to post about next? Heck yes. But it’s never stopped me, and it shouldn’t stop you either.
So when you’re faced with that fear that your well will run dry, try asking for a lifeline. When you do, you might be surprised by how quickly the right answer comes to you.
If you liked this episode and you want to get even more strategies like this to help drive massive impact and profit through video for your business, join the next private training on how to turn your YouTube Channel into a Lead Generation Machine!