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Sean Cannell
Hey, before we get into today's episode, let me ask you a question. Do you want a step by step plan to start and grow on YouTube fast? Well, we're doing something brand new and it's called YouTube Jumpstart. It's a free three day online event and it's happening July 23rd, 24th and 25th live and online. You're going to get the exact blueprint we use at Think Media to grow, get views and even earn money before hitting 1000 subscribers. No fancy equipment needed. We're also going to be sharing some of the latest AI tools and YouTube strategies that we've never taught publicly before. So don't miss it. You can go to tubejumpstart.com to register for free and save your spot. And that is tubejumpstart.com to get access to this three day free online event. All right, let's jump into today's episode. So I haven't shared this publicly, but over the last year, I've been running on fumes. I've still been uploading, I've still been showing up. But inside, my joy has been low. I felt fatigued, I felt foggy. It's been tough. Between leading a growing business, being a father of two kids, dealing with family conflict and managing chronic pain, it's been a lot. And I've been stretched thin. Now I think the wild part is I didn't even realize how bad it was. My natural disposition is just grind through, suck it up, find a way. But burnout can be insidious. Sometimes I feel like you don't even really know that you're burnt out. But what you might notice is that you're kind of just going, going through the motions. You're kind of just in survival mode. You're not in thrival mode. So today's video, I want to share how I've started recovering, how I've been getting my focus and my energy back, and why I believe that mental energy and emotional health is really the number one strategy for creators going forward this year. And specifically, we're going to address one of the biggest lies that we believe as creators. The nine silent killers of flow. My personal three step routine for getting in the right zone when I don't feel like filming or when unmotivated. And some tips for energy management. And so stick around because all that's coming up. Welcome back to the Think Media podcast. This show is all about bringing you unfiltered tips for growing a profitable YouTube channel. And today's episode is brought to you by Magic mind, but a little bit more on them later. If you're anything like me, you're probably not lacking things to do on your to do list. As a content creator, building a YouTube channel, building a business, there is an endless things to do. Usually the biggest challenge is not the to do list, but it's finding the energy or the motivation or the clarity or the inspiration to actually do them. And I think right now there's a major lie that creators believe and that's just hustle harder, do more, keep pushing. But nobody talks about the invisible cost, the real fatigue, the real brain fog that comes from knowledge work and from pumping out content. The real ups and downs of actual inspiration, like being filled with enthusiasm and the life force that you need to actually create consistent and powerful content. But if you know me, you know I love black coffee. It's how I start my day. No cream, no sugar, just straight up focus fuel. But here's the thing. Caffeine by itself doesn't always help me stay locked in. And what if I have too much? I get anxious, I get jittery. And what about that afternoon crash and mental fog? Well, I recently discovered something really cool that helps with this called Time Release Caffeine. For example, if you get your caffeine from something like Matcha, it actually is released slower than traditional caffeine from coffee. But there's even newer tech called Nano encapsulation that releases the caffeine even more gradually. And that's why I'm excited to tell you about the sponsor of today's Think Media podcast, Magic Mind. Now, this isn't just some random sponsor that gave us a product to talk about. This is actually a brand that I've been a super fan of for over a year. You might know that I am always looking for something to give me an edge. I'm really into nootropics and supplementation, and I subscribed to Magic Mind over a year ago and consistently this has become part of my entrepreneurial business building routine and especially my content creation routine. Magic Mind is a mental performance shot that tastes great and ultimately helps me think clearer, feel calmer, and stay focused on longer. The original blend has 55mg of caffeine as well as all of the adaptogens and nootropics that they include in this stack. And the way this makes me feel, if I could say anything, is calm, focused, but no anxiety, no jitters, just a nice sustained amount of energy. And that's also thanks to the Time released caffeine it's got B vitamins for vitality, Ashwagandha for managing stress. And I really think it's something you'll love as a entrepreneur or a content creator. And what's really cool is they're doing a massive discount for the Think media community. If you click the link in the show notes and use the promo code think M60, you can get 60% off a subscription and they've taken away all the risk. You can cancel anytime, totally try it out risk free. You really have nothing to lose, but everything to gain. And the cool thing is Magic Minds also launched a couple new products that I've been able to test out for the past couple months that I've been falling in love with. And as well, the first one is the caffeine free version. Now this is great if you're not wanting any caffeine at all or if you're like me and maybe you want to drink your coffee, but you don't want to add any caffeine. And if sometimes you drink too much coffee and maybe your anxiety goes up a little bit, the jitters are going up. I've actually found that I can reach for a magic mind free and actually lock in a little bit better, bring some calm, some de stress to my nervous system. And so I've drank in many of these, especially in the afternoon paired with my afternoon coffee. And then they also have launched magic mind max, 165mg of caffeine, all the other brain boosting ingredients. The other day I needed to batch record a couple different videos and so that was an occasion for a Magic Mind Max. And so if you're ready to take your mental performance to another level, just click the link in the show notes or if you're watching the video version of the podcast, you can scan the QR code on screen, but make sure to use the promo code think M60 to get the insane discount of 60% off. This offer will not be around for very long. It is a limited offer and so lock that in to supercharge your productivity at a fraction of the price and there is zero risk. It's backed by a 100% money back guarantee and no questions asked. So you can try it out completely risk free and cancel anytime. And I think the lie and the mistake that a lot of entrepreneurs make is they think that they need to master the skill of time management. But I think the era of time management is over. We are now officially living in the era of energy management and emotional health management. There are so Many things that are sucking our souls dry and that are stealing our dopamine and our serotonin, whether we're getting stuck in the scroll, whether it's just trying to keep up with how much news is happening, whether it's our fragmented attention, whether it is the various distractions and interruptions that are coming our way, or whether it's just the increasing amount of anxiety and loneliness and disconnection that's happening in our society. There is an all out onslaught on our emotional and really mental well being, including spiritual. So it makes it more difficult than ever to really lock in, find ourselves center and create powerful content. But the truth is, as a YouTube content creator, at the end of the day you have to post videos. Like if you want to have success on YouTube, you have to actually upload content on YouTube. So how do you do that when you're not feeling it? Well, I believe in a moment this three step process that I've developed for myself will be really helpful because I've really been in the hardest year of my life and you know, I've taken time for myself and I have reflected and relaxed and I'm working on self care and I'm doing a lot of different things. But I've also found myself in a circumstance where as the founder and CEO of Think Media, there's a lot of weight and pressure and even other people counting on me, including our community. So I have been able to stay consistent with uploads, I have been able to keep going. And so I think that three step process is going to help you. But the first thing we got to cover is the nine silent killers of creative flow so that you can fix those and be more energetic for your next video. So there's a phrase you've probably heard that they use in medical situations and that is stop the bleeding. Which is all about immediate, decisive intervention to avoid medical catastrophe. And I think before we summon or find new energy to create content, we actually have to address the silent killers that are stealing the our energy and our concentration and our focus. Because most creators are not lazy, they're just drained. So I wrote down nine silent killers of flow and here are some of the things that are depleting us. Number one, over consumption. Scrolling comparison YouTube rabbit holes. TikTok rabbit holes. Instagram rabbit holes. It is not actually giving us energy to be over consuming content, it's actually adding more noise, more chaos to our brains. Now, do you need to learn? Of course. Should you be studying? Yes. Are these platforms good for education and even helping us sharpen our skills as creatives and entrepreneurs, of course. But over consumption is actually a drain on the energy you need to create more than you consume. Number two, too many open tabs. Now, if you're watching the YouTube version of the podcast, let me know. How many tabs do you got open right now? Are you somebody that's got like multiple Mac windows with 10 or 20 or 30 tabs on each of them? If you're able to comment, let me know. And of course, if you're on audio, you just might think about this in your own mind. How many Safari windows do you have open on your phone or Google Chrome if you were to click through? For me, I actually have all of them. Like, literally, I think it's 500. It's just maxed out. Like, I mean, it just keeps. Keeps doing new ones. But that's kind of a picture of where we are in our culture. There's too many tabs open, there's too many windows open. And from time to time, if you're like me on my desktop computer, I oftentimes I'm like, I just need to restart the computer. I got to shut them all down. I got to start from scratch. There's no hope of going back and methodically figuring out what all of these were. Sometimes I keep them open because I think I'm going to come back to that later. No. No, I'm not. You know, and sometimes you just need to hit the reset button. But the truth is, too many tabs is also a metaphor for life in general. There is just too many inputs, too many open loops, too much messaging, too many things happening in our lives coming at us that, of course, you feel overwhelmed and drained. So step one, let's think about how we can close the tabs down on the digital devices to create some space and margin for creation. But let's also think about how we can simplify those open tabs in our life and in our brains so that we can lock in. Number three, unresolved text messages and DMs. I know. Emails, too. How many emails do you have in your outlook? I'm not going to tell you mine right now. Number four, trying to do everything without recovery. One of the biggest epiphanies I've ever had as a content creator. I actually learned from the world of sports, and that is the difference between pro athletes and those that are in, like, the top, top 1% of their sport. And what was common between them was that both had an incredibly high level of skill. They might have had equal Levels of skill, incredibly good at the game, able to play precise and whatever their specific discipline was. But the difference between those that were good and those that were great was their recovery. But the top 1% of athletes had a better recovery routine. It wasn't just how they played the game, it was how they recovered. Active recovery, whether that was exercise or walking or you get into the whole cold plunge world or diet and things like that. Both can hit the field and play hard, but who recovers better? That's who ultimately got the edge over time. And so one of the silent killers of our creative flow is trying to just do more and do more, but not having an actual recovery routine. Number five, inconsistent sleep. Number six, no ramp up or ramp down routine. We'll cover that later. The ramp up routine to the time you film or the time you shoot and your process for how you get in the zone. And then also a ramp down routine of how you recharge and refill your energy tanks and unwind off of creative projects. Number seven, not communicating your filming time to others or not setting up your filming time for content creation so that your flow is not broken by interruptions. Number eight, no clear boundaries, especially for work from home creators. It can be difficult. Kids, family, and we'll cover some of these things in a bit. And number nine, too much input and not enough solitude. So you need to close those tabs literally and mentally. Okay, so now let's dive into my creator flow protocol. These are three big lessons and some nuanced tactics that I've learned that have helped me consistently create content in every season. Whether I'm feeling great or whether I'm feeling burnt out, whether I'm feeling fatigued. And I think these will serve you. As you're thinking about, maybe you've been in a rut, maybe you're looking to just keep the momentum going, or maybe you need to restart the momentum. Of course, the first goal is to stop the bleeding and eliminate or at least reduce some of the drains. But now let's take action and kick it off with number one, which is have a ramp up routine. One of the things that has helped me over the years post consistent, quality content on YouTube, no matter how I'm feeling, is having a ramp up routine is one putting on the calendar, when am I going to film? Knowing there's the deadline, knowing that there is something I need to create, something that I need to film, and then working towards it to ramp up. And so here's a couple of things that I do. First, if possible, I Know that I'm filming tomorrow, let's say. And so I'm thoughtful about my sleep the night before. Tired eyes rarely see a bright future. And so the more rested I can be, the better I'm going to show up on camera. The next one is going to be hydration and nutrition. Being thoughtful about what I put into my body when it's time to film. There's just some situations if I'm in vacation mode, I might overeat a little bit. Knowing that I can take a nap in the afternoon and knowing that when you consume a certain amount of food, it fatigues your system. That's usually why on Thanksgiving we eat a big plate of food and then you like fall asleep on the couch. So it's kind of thinking about the opposite of that. What's the nutrition and hydration that I need to get me in the zone? The next one is to shut off inputs early when it comes to sleep. So I like to think about, you know, no phone and maybe no watching TV or YouTube. But let me be honest, I usually do anyways, but at least I'll do blue light blocking glasses. And I don't have any fancy ones, but I just got some off Amazon that had some decent reviews. And this idea of again, they talk about the night before, things that'll mess with your sleep. And you don't get REM sleep, so the next day you're dragging. And so these tactical things can really help me now when it's time to film. If I know that today I'm going to film, I will just do a couple things to ramp up to filming. I'll hit a shower. Now these days I'm hitting cold showers and it's kind of weird and kind of awkward, but incredibly invigorating. Uncomfortable for sure. But it locks me into the zone and you can look up the science with it. There's the dopamine, all the different things. It actually does eliminate brain fog, so that's really helpful. There's like a ramp up playlist that I'll have. You know, having music that'll get you in the zone. Maybe you have a hype song that could be helpful. Prayer. There's some prayer mantras that I'll kind of say some different things like while I'm taking that cold shower. And all of these things are architected to have an intentional mindset shift to get me in the zone. Now here's a massive tip. And all of this is based in science, but this one really taps into neuroscience and it's this Prep your content on a different day than on the day that you film your content. Here's why. Preparing content involves the left side of your brain. It's analytical planning. It's the writing side of your brain. And so if you've ever felt weird, like trying to prepare and plan a video and then shoot the same video at the same time, there's a reason you feel weird. Because the right side of your brain is where creative, expressive and the performance side of your brain functions. So you'll feel off if you try to do both at once. Planning is precision, performing is presence. And so if you want to show up on camera and be in that performative right brain mode, it's a different mode than the planning mode. Now, we don't always have the opportunity to do this. And if I have to do both in the same day, I like to think about a distinct break. I might like wake up, start planning my videos, like think, you know, get them on Google Docs and then have a break, reset in some way. Then hit the shower, go on a walk, take a break, breathe, and then get back in the zone. But I found, if possible, I like to actually plan out my videos on an entirely different day. I've got all the analytical side of things going. And then when it's time to film, this taps into batch producing and shooting multiple videos at once, at times or in a row. When you're in that right side of the brain, that's where that benefit can really tap in. So this is all part of the ramp up routine, which is the big idea number one that I think can help us show up more powerfully on our next video. Which brings us to big idea number two, which is protect your filming block. So this assumes that you've actually scheduled a time to film your YouTube videos. You've put it on the calendar, and hopefully you've done a ramp up routine. And now you finally pressed record. So a couple ideas. Put your phone on airplane mode. Now, what's hilarious is, is all a lot of times forget to do this. I'll hit record, I'll be in the middle of the session, energy's flowing, I'm in the right side of my brain and inevitably a text message will come through or I'll get a phone call. And you know what happens? In my own psychology, I think to myself, how dare you call me when I'm filming? Like, I just, it's, I get so offended. Like it triggers. Now obviously the person has no idea that I'm in the midst of filming. They're just lobbing out a call because they need some information at that moment. But I take it so personally. And I think because you're in the zone, you're like in the flow, and it's this interruption coming in. The truth is, it's my fault for not turning on airplane mode. You know, the other thing you could do is you might think about being at home and you could consider putting a sign on your door. You could get really crazy and install one of those radio station record signs and actually flip a light on. You know, I'll remember back when I was working at a church in Las Vegas and I would get into flow states of content creation or editing. And I realized that actually one of the things that would happen repeatedly is people would just roll in my office and interrupt me all day long. They just bust through the door. They'd have a question, and one you could say that's maybe rude or not. But the truth is, like, as a leader, I was in a leadership role at some different people that I was working with. Like, they just assumed I was there to help them. But I figured out a way to fix it. Put a sign on the door, do not disturb, or put a sign on the door, filming, recording. And then at that point, people stop interrupting or they disobey the sign. And that becomes a whole other issue. So what we're talking about is communication or boundaries or limits or things that it becomes up to you to put in place. So can you communicate with your family? Can you say, hey, I'm going to be filming? And this gets into the practical of, of, well, what do you do if you've got kids? Well, talk to your partner, or can you talk to a family member? Or can you schedule it, or can you do it at night or do it in the basement or different times. Like, you gotta be thoughtful because if you're gonna get in the zone, you're already stressed. If you're already feeling burnt out, like, then. Then it's not helpful if you're getting interruptions in the middle of that. So airplane mode on, sign on the door, communicate with your family. And then think about one focus, one task. No multitasking. This gets back into. Maybe when you're in the creative flow, you get inspired, you do a little bit more research. Maybe when you're filming, you, you know, you hit record and then a call does come in that you have to take. Of course, there's those exceptions, but multitasking will destroy your rhythm. Can you relate? Multitasking will get you out of the zone. And then also give yourself permission to pause and reset because that recording time is sacred. Something about getting in the zone, staying in the zone. If you get out of the zone, get back in the zone and breathe. Sometimes I'll feel that I get the phone call. In fact, one happened during this shoot and I realized my airplane mode wasn't on. And I tried to be very kind and of course the person has no idea. But in my own mind I'm like, you know what? Like what am I saying now? I was mid thought, can I even finish this video? You know, I kind of wanted to give up. Like it broke the chain of thought. Breathe, give yourself time to pause, reflect, and get back to it. Okay, so we covered number one, the ramp up routine. How do you get in the zone for filming? Then we covered number two, protecting your actual filming block that when you are filming, avoiding interruptions. And now number three, let's talk about ramp down recovery. Now this has been a concept that has changed my life once I was exposed to it in regards to sustaining creative work over the long haul. Now there's a book called Deep Work by Cal Newport. And it has some very powerful concepts that every entrepreneur and creator needs to know. And one of the biggest ideas is this idea of strategic stopping. That counter to hustle culture's opinion we shouldn't just burn every ounce of energy and creativity that we have to total depletion, but we should actually leave something in the tank. And the idea is that you should have structured downtime with the idea that burning out your creative energy leads to diminishing returns. So especially in this last season of my life, I have absolutely been more committed to recovery than ever before. And I found that this has been essential, not just to be able to sustain uploads, but also to sustain my sanity. And I'll share some of my recovery hacks and tips here in a second. But there's also a few other things from the book Deep Work the Science of Downtime. Providing your conscious brain time to rest enables your unconscious mind to take a shift to sorting through the most complex professional challenges. So good news, if you're listening to the podcast, you need downtime. And there is science behind letting your brain rest. If you want to pump out more videos and higher quality videos, you should have higher quality downtime. And then the craftsman mindset. Rather than squeezing every drop from a creative session, Cal Newport encourages thinking like a craftsman. Deliberate, rhythmic and sustainable work. Creative professionals often improve by working with a consistent system, not by overextending and so pace yourself and invest in strategic recovery. Now, here's a few things that I have personally found that I've been investing in over the last couple years, but have become essential to me surviving this very challenging year that I've been going through. One is walks. Go on walks. Walks for recovery, walks leading into things. I love going on walks. I'll just walk out of my house and go on a walk. I suppose it depends on where you live and what time of year it is. And I got a walking pad. Actually, come to think of it, probably my favorite investment as far as a home office goes. If you want to see the one that I have, I'll link it up in the show notes. Also, naps. I'm a big nap fan. I heard once Drake in one of his songs, he goes, I don't take naps. Me and the money are way too attached to go and do that. And I'm like, all right, well, Drake might not take naps, but I do. You know what I mean? Okay. Weird thing to include in the podcast, but, like, naps. Power naps. Have you ever had a napuccino? Make yourself a cup of coffee or a shot of espresso, drink it instantly and then lay down. The caffeine doesn't hit for like 20 minutes, and so, boom, you're off to the races. Nappuccino. I have found that bed rotting is one of my favorite things. That's a TikTok trend. And so if I can just after especially being super creative, like, crawl into bed and like, watch Netflix or YouTube and try to just zone out, like, I. It's. It's almost like a reaction to a lot of creative output. I just sort of want to sit rot, look it up. It's called bed rotting. You might. Why does it need to be called anything? How about it's called resting in bed? But yeah, it's a whole, like, TikTok trend. And I think. I think it's important that we understand as creatives the difference between active recovery and passive recovery. So bedrotting is passive recovery. What? Some of us, if we just want to chill on the couch, just kind of relax, just turn on a movie, watch Netflix. Okay, that's more passive recovery. Now, active recovery is going on a walk or you start tapping into things like cold plunging and things like that. And one of my favorite things that has changed my life over the last year is this place called the Banyan. Now, this is a Russian steam bath, and it kind of combines hot and cold. They've got the cold Plunge. They've got a super hot sauna, they've got a steam room, they've got a red light therapy room, and they've got a jacuzzi. And so not every week, but I try to go about every week, sometimes solo, sometimes with some friends or people from our church, a couple other guys. And it's actually an active recovery investment. And not only is there the nervous system reset and the sweating and all, it's good for you on so many different levels. These activities have become essential to my creative survival in this season. And as you know, it's also not just videos that we produce as YouTube content creators, but depending on where your business is at or what other responsibilities you have, I mean, I gotta show up for meetings, show up as a leader, show up as a father, show up for my family. A lot of different pressures. So let's head into the next section of the video because in addition to the routine, there's another massive category that has given me an unfair advantage when it comes to sustaining my creative career, and that is strategic supplementation. There is a direct correlation between energy performance and nutrition and supplementation. And when it comes to supplementation, that is definitely a deeper dive conversation we really could devote an entire episode to. Let me know if you'd be interested in that. The basics are this one, Hydration. I hope you're drinking enough water. And in my opinion, you should be drinking electrolytes. That means you got a good sodium, magnesium, potassium mix. That's what I always have going on in my shaker bottle. Number two, you might not be a coffee drinker, but I think coffee on shoot days is a essential that I have found if I want to get in the zone. But number three, this is one of the reasons why I wanted to partner with Magic Mind on this episode. Because out of all the different nootropic stacks out there, Magic Mind is absolutely one of my favorites. You know, when I finally found out that we could actually work with them to sponsor this video, I was pumped because I've already been a Magic Mind subscriber for over a year before we ever did the sponsorship. I actually started drinking the original and I subscribed to that. And you heard a little bit about it earlier in the ad. But that does have some caffeine in it. But what I love is that it's time release. It has no jitters and it doesn't get you too charged for filming your video, but it gets you that perfect edge and clarity so that you can lock in and record what you need. To record. I actually since that time have started drinking the free version, meaning caffeine free, because I'm a coffee drinker and I don't want to necessarily over caffeinate. So you still get all the benefit from the lion's mane and the other ingredients in there, the cordyceps and everything else paired with your coffee. If you're a coffee drinker or if you're sensitive to caffeine, then they have the free version. And then when you really need a kick in the pants, there's the max version, which just has extra caffeine, but the awesome blend that they've put together as well. So if you want to check out Magic Mind, use the promo code THINKM60 for a super limited 60% off deal. Definitely worth trying, risk free. You can cancel anytime, you're gonna love it. But if you don't, then just get your money back and no big deal. But I think you're gonna love it. And here's the big idea. I think that any serious professional is gonna be thinking about how they can create an edge when it comes to rest. How they could create an edge with their diet, their nutrition, their calendar, their recovery, they're active and passive recovery and their supplementation. A video like this would be unbalanced if you didn't have all of those pieces and components. And I have found that, especially when life is hammering me with stress, when I'm feeling overwhelmed, and when I'm finding that my energy is low, then reaching for the right supplement is incredibly helpful. And it's been essential for staying consistent. Let me encourage you, if you're tired, you are not broken. It just might be time to rebuild your rhythm, to make some strategic decisions and some changes to your routine that can set you up for success. You can get your energy back, you can get your mojo back, and you can put out your best creative work that you ever have before. And I hope that this episode has been helpful. And there is a part two where I've taken some of the frequently asked questions and community questions related to some of the stuff we didn't cover. Family, kids, juggling rhythms and more nuances to this conversation around burnout, energy, creativity, filming, showing up powerfully on camera. So definitely subscribe if you're new here and you want to be notified when that episode is out, or if you're watching this sometime in the future, you could check it out in the library. This is the Think Media podcast and my name is Sean Cannell. And if you got value today, can you smash like rate review wherever you watch or listen, and I cannot wait to connect with you in a future episode.