Despite what all the gurus tell you.
I’m not sure about you, but I know for a fact I watch way too much YouTube. Wait, actually, you probably do too as the “watch time” is up 60% year-over-year.
Although there are worse things I could be doing with my time, such as dabbling in illegal drugs or coughing in public with no mask, I know deep down that YouTube is not the answer to my problems.
At the start of any new year, people are usually pretty ambitious and have plenty of goals they want to reach. This is evident as seen by the number of newbie gym goers that steadily die off as the months pass. In fact, a staggering 80% of new members will quit within five months.
What does this have to do with YouTube, you ask? It is the number one place to go to make you feel like you are being productive when in fact you are really squandering your time.
The number of self-help experts and self-proclaimed gurus that can be found here is astounding. It seems like almost every other ad I come across is someone telling me how they made X amount of dollars a month working from home (props to you if you remember the never-ending Tai Lopez ads).
Dr. Svend Brinkmann is a psychologist and professor who warns of the potential dangers that come with constantly focusing on self-improvement. He argues that while it is good to strive for improvement, this constant obsession can lead to depression if left unchecked.
“If we’re only okay as long as we are striving, moving, developing, then we’re never okay.” I couldn’t agree more, Dr. Brinkmnann. It is good to want to improve, but we have started to obsess over this idea that we are not good enough. This can be a slippery slope.
I would even add that the constant barrage of self-help messages can be more of a negative rather than a positive. This is not to say YouTube is all bad, but rather there are legitimate things we need to be wary of when using it. Listening to self-help experts on YouTube can result in a cheap dopamine hit for people that doesn’t last. It tricks us into thinking we are being productive when we really aren’t.
In a way, it can be similar to pornography in that it can be addictive to search for more and more. To find that one video that delivers on the promise of making $20,000 a month by working from home. The ability to finally be able to quit that hated 9–5 is a fantasy for many.
While this fantasy can be fulfilled by watching videos on the subject, you can’t get rich by watching videos alone. This is the main problem I see when it comes to YouTube and other self-help experts promising everything for little in return.
We all know that being successful takes action. While Youtube can be helpful if you are able to watch a couple of videos and then take action on what you learn, this is not the case for most.
We watch 1 billion hours of YouTube videos every day, which is more than Netflix and Facebook combined. Yeah, you read that right. 1 billion hours EVERY DAY. Suddenly, my three hours a day doesn't seem that bad.
As stated earlier, I personally watch way too much. I can’t just watch one video. I’ll tell myself “just one more” and before I know it, hours have passed. Hours that could have been used to write more, work an overtime shift at work, clean my apartment, or any other TRULY productive activity.
If you are able to control how much you watch and it doesn’t make you feel like you are not good enough all the time, then you are a better person than me. Hopefully, I too can get there one day. But for now, I’m taking a break from YoutTube and focusing more on taking action.
Have a great and productive New Year!
