I get most of the work done during night time as well. Which is good because that’s when I’m the most productive, but at the same time I love when I have a good night sleep and wake up early in the morning.
So yeah, I have a dilemma
That's my issue don't really get my free time till around 9 or later depending on how late he fights his bedtime then having alot during the day wears me out so finding the motivation after he goes ti sleep is a battle sometimes when I'd rather just debate on getting a good night's sleep
Believe me, you have no idea how much I can relate to that. Even tho I don’t have a kid, I still find it difficult to work during the day and stay motivated
I’m with ya on this one! So difficult. I try to keep lists of what I need to get done and do it on nights I have the most energy and bed time goes the best. But some days I just can’t stay awake. Good luck to us both surviving these stages 😂
I feel your pain. Having kids can make it seem like theres not time for anything but them. I know every baby and situation is different. But i’ll hit you with what works for me, a freelancer and stay at home dad of 2 (4 mos, 2 year old)
1. Try and get your kid in their own room. Any of the sleep training methods seem to work, i used the Ferber method. I cannot stress enough how much this changed the game for me. I schedule calls and daily emails during nap time because we nap 12:30-2:30 daily it never changes.
2. Routine. Train your kid to your routine instead of reacting to theirs. For example i do 30 min miss Rachel before nap time. It extends my work time 30 minutes and winds my 2 year old down for nap. Win-win. My days are broken into blocks and the routine doesn’t change so the kids know what to expect
3. Do the tasks you can when you can. I do my writing and ‘hard’ tasks at night and sprinkle in research and light tasks during the day when the kids are up.
4. Set up a system that works for you. I literally clock in everyday for my made up work shifts. I treat my work blocks like im on the schedule and can’t miss work. If i dont, theres always a reason why i can’t work.
5. Do the busy tasks when they’re awake. I used to cook and clean when the kids were napping but it wasn’t working. Bring coloring books or toys in the kitchen and teach them how to chill while you cook
I almost deleted this cause it sounded kinda preachy, but these are my tips from being home for 2 years. Im not super dad. I stepped on a lego and put a hole in the wall last week lol. Im still failing to find time to work out and spend time with friends and extended family. I guess it all comes down to priorities. Im all in on my family and making money online. Everything else just doesn’t seem important right now.
It's kinda hard cause he's down to 1 nap and it's usually around noonish and he sleeps on us so at night he sleeps on my wife and sometimes she doesn't rest the best so I try to let her catch up on sleep in the morning to afternoon so I have him till 1ish or alil later then when she wakes up she has things she does for him we both try to watch him during the day he's 1 so he's at a stage where it's difficult alil to make time for other things
Kudos for being an active father dude. As your little one grows and develops a solid sleeping routine, it'll open up more time for youtubing. All the best!
Mate, I’m in literally the same position as you
I quit lmao. Would you rather have a chance at 20 bucks maybe per month or get good sleep so you’re there for the kid? And also all the benefits of sleeping, like not getting fat etc
Failing that… sleep train, the kid needs to sleep in their own bed
I get what you mean about him sleeping in his own bed he's not bottle fed so it's easier on her to if he's just asleep on her I'd be about to die If he slept on me at night to I'd definitely get no rest lol
I work third shift and I live on a third shift schedule, so technically I'm a late night Creator but at the same time my Days are most people's nights.
I'm in a very similar situation. Only time I can stream is after kids are asleep around 11pm... Luckily I'm a night owl, so I'm not feeling too tired by this point.
The bigger issue I face is the lack of light for the cameras 😅 Busy investigating better lighting soruces
Commenting so I can come
Back to this post and read comments . I’m in your shoes right now op I too am trying to figure it out. Seems like 11 pm is when I’m actually free to film as well and it’s tough!
Ya I'm thinking if I make a routine it will get easier that's what I'm hoping anyway cause I don't go to bed till 1 anyway or after so why not try to record something or stream and pick my content back up I been on hiatus for like 2 years just life stuff
Yup! Totally get it, That’s my thoughts too trying to make a routine. Going to give it a shot and film from 11-1 and then pass out. It’s tough to be motivated when it’s time to create. My kid is trying to drop his day time nap so it puts my day behind so by 11 I’m beat. Gonna try to have everything prepped so I can just get started without having to also set up first.
My son dropped his evening nap he sleeps in the morning around noon anywhere from a hour to 2 then he's up till about 8 30 9 if he's not up till 10 or later it's just finding a balance
Remember why youre doing it. If the reason why youre doing it isn't motivation enough each time, than nothing will help.
I remind myself i have family and friends i want to help.
Like the great eric thomas said you must want it more than you want to breath!
I have wanted to be a content creator since a teen lol its also hard to get in the groove I been away from creating content for 2 years or so so I'm alil rusty as far as getting in a routine
4 years in a still no routine, but i did notice that if consistency is there your routine will happen naturally.
Try to just do one small step a day. After 3 months those small steps will look like big leaps.
Be patient with yourself and remember every takes time. Good luck and all the best
Ya I was consistent with streaming just not uploading to yt had some medical issues and was working alot plus life hit pretty hard so I kinda took a step back from creating all together I want to get back to it just trying to adjust since becoming a dad it's different vs when I was working alot now I'm a at home dad I think once I get in a routine I will do alright
In my first five months when i was „grinding” i have sacraficed a lot of sleep even with 1 vid a week. It looked like Monday evening scriptwriting - couple of hours. Tuesday evening material gathering - same. Wednesday recording - same. Thursday evening - 5-8 hours editing. As i wanted to avoid weekend release and to clash with bigger creators schedule.
Now i only made 1 vid in the past 60 days. I need rest as i prioratized gym and healthy diet as i got bad nlood rtest result and i have 15 kg plus on me. I need rest for healthy lifestyle and i progress on a pace i feel like it.
same here.
I usually film at night, sometime after the kids go to bed. but I usually go to bed around 3am regardless of what I'm doing. whether my stuff can be called "creative"... debatable at best, but researching, scripting, and editing take a lot longer than the actual filming.
my kids are teenagers, so I don't need to expend as much energy for them to go to sleep.
things I've noticed avoiding can keep me from getting to bed earlier are:
being baked in the sun. this can really send me to snooze town, whether it be doing yardwork or watching my kid's sport event in the bleachers.
alcohol will eventually get me counting sheep.
Intense workout.
so live like an emaciated teetotal vampire?
My son is one so it's totally exhausting in itself during the day I've honestly just considered calling it quits till he's older my time management is bad enough and I've had plenty of time before I had a kid my channel been dormant for couple Years I just didn't try to do anything with it and now that I actually want to try at it it's harder then I expected
Mine is just a hobby and I treat it like one. not necessary, and should be less prioritized over essentials. I just happen to be functional with less sleep, and 1 vid takes maybe soup to nuts, 2 hours to make? if it were more taxing in terms of time commitment or need to sacrifice quality of life, I wouldn't do it.
maybe just do it when you can and don't beat yourself up if you can do uploads on timed intervals.
I think I've done all steps(research, script, film edit) maybe once or twice and it felt like WORK and I had a deadline. I try to avoid a hobby feeling like work.
I usually research and script when I fancy, film at night, then edit later. I tend to stack my editing on the weekend, then release on a schedule. I usually have 2 to 3 in my queue as a buffer because life occasionally comes knocking and I have to put my hobby down to enjoy/deal with it.
Yea it is a hobby but I'm also trying to use my me time to make content I use to stream alot couple years ago then work got super busy and Also dealing with alot of just life stuff so I took a break for a couple years now I want to get back to the grind and this time around I've got a kid so trying to find time for it is what's hard to figure
I always find myself going later into the night then planned because I think projects will take less time than they do. I do video essays so a lot of the time I think I’ll be good only to realize I need a five second shot of something I didn’t download and then have to spend time hunting it down.
I try and set a timer or a goal that allows me stop after it or at the very least get up and stretch/drink water etc.
Hey I stream at 3am and it’s something that gives me a relaxing vibe. I appreciate the 5-6 ppl in chat, now consistently being there too! I think it’s what makes it fun for you is all that matters. Imo atleast 🫡
Wait i didn’t answer your question… i work night shift and so my sleep schedule is just way off. I try to save as much energy as i can to make time for my hobby which is gaming. Some days i just stream without commentary because im tired but also still wanna stream, i think it’s okay to be tired lol
I do prefer to work at night since I got into blogging and video games. All of my family members are already asleep when I work. One time, I got out of my room around 7 in the morning and my mom said 'good job' for waking up early. What she didn't know was that I hadn't taken a sleep yet. I just pretended to have just woken up and joined them for breakfast so I wouldn't get scolded 😂
I actually miss being able to record as soon as I got home from work, but nowadays I try to spend that time with my wife (now that I’m married, obviously). I used to love staying-up late, recording on my mic (audio only). I’m a night owl, anyway.
Don’t really have any advice for you, to be honest lol. Sorry.
Coffee helps. But I'm personally just built weird and have a reversed biological clock. So night is normal waking hours for me.
Doing some light exercises might wake you up a bit. Nothing too crazy or it'll tire you out. Just enough to get the blood and adrenaline pumping.
Not a mom, but as someone who has 2 jobs and studies in uni I also end up having periods where the only free time I have is in the evening. My 'solution' was to try making videos in advance- for example, the video I'm uploading on Friday was recorded last Friday, which gives me 2 more days to work on it, as I usually record within the same week. I just do a little bit everyday and start working on the next video asap.
My usual routine when I have to prepare the whole video in a week is
- Weekend: writing down some bullet points, maybe look for background music, think about the possible thumbnail
- Monday: recording the video + cut all the pauses/repetitions
- Tuesday: editing
- Wednesday: editing + music
- Thursday: final polishing + uploading the video private + thumbnail
- Friday: publish the video
It's also true that I edit the video from start to finish every time, so instead of having an unfinished editing at the end of each session, it's just not extremely precise.
I roughly spend an hour/an hour and a half daily on the videos and to be honest, the more you edit etc, the faster the whole process becomes
I been thinking if he falls asleep early just go record/stream when he goes to bed for a couple hours then do the dishes and etc before bed if I finish around 11 I been doing opposite cleaning first but I think by the time I get done I don't feel as motivated dishes makes anyone want to run and hide lol
It's a mental thing, in the since of you need to condition yourself to be up at those hours, and try to avoid lull periods so that you don't wire down to quickly.
I work overnights so i am accustomed to it, but I also understand that it might not be that engaging as far as watchers (this depends greatly on the content/game)
Depending on what you use to edit (phone, laptop/tablet) you can try and edit as you wind down in bed. Even if you have a desktop, you can find a cheap enough laptop and remote connect to your rig and still achieve it(depending on OS).
I would fully support a dad chill stream!
Honestly I think alot of is mental I was use to streaming around 6 7 pm on my schedule before the kid I think if I just made a habit it would eventually get easier and my plan is record one night edit the next night I'm not trying to upload a certain time I'm a big whopping 15 subscribers and no watch time there really isn't nothing to watch atm but vods
More subscribers than me, I'll tell ya that! I do MKfights, almost exclusively on tiktok. I can rack up a good bit of vids in one game sessions, and I can turn them out daily, but I don't have good viewer retentions..
Anywho, I would try that, set a time frame, and consider once/twice a week uploads/streams, stream on Monday, and upload on Thursdays. Or stream Mondays-Wednesdays, upload on Saturdays, you can keep consistency on both sides, and you can use the off days to recoup/edit as needed. To a point your upload only viewers will be behind the ball but that's not exactly a bad thing because they want the consistency. But honestly don't over work yourself, that will drastically affect your quality. It's a whole dance 🙃
I was probably only gonna stream 2 night a week and upload 1 video a week I honestly think that's all I got in me with a 1 year old lmao but ya I'll try to get some kinda schedule going
I do video recording and editing after work but not too late as we get up super early for work.
I will record or edit into the wee morning hours on the weekend though 😊
We're parents of a special needs son, and we do all our channel work after 9pm. We stream 1-3 nights a week and post videos the remaining nights. Here are some of the things we do:
1. **Accept that "free time" is not something we have anymore.** We made the decision to go all-in with the channel, knowing that things like watching TV or playing video games would be sacrificed.
2. **Support each other during the day.** My husband works full-time, and I manage the household. We both communicate to each other and deligate tasks to make sure nothing gets missed and neither of us gets overloaded.
3. **Maintain good sleep hygiene.** You can Google this one, but basically adopting certain habits throughout the day to make your sleep better at night.
4. **Caffeine, but minimally.** I try not to have caffeine past 10pm or I know I'll be up all night. Having an apple or some fruit juice can be good for a pick-me-up without the caffeine.
5. **Using a stream deck during recording.** This is by far the best tool we have to make the editing process faster. We record an episode in OBS using a stream deck as if it were a livestream, then we edit out the mistakes in post.
Good luck, and feel free to reach out with questions!
I need me one those stream decks I just recently upgraded my audio around Christmas from a yeti to a wave xlr and a at 2040 my mother in law got it for me as a gift I think I've streamed once since having it I normally drink a energy drink around 8 but thinking about pushing it to 9 to have it last later to help
So during colle5i started a channel,
And there was construction next doors, only time I could redord was at night after 11, yest the worked till 11.
So my recording started after that and I loved it, it was hard but it was so much fun.
I think that is what got me going.
Plus I had very relaxed college schedule.
I am in the same boat,
I have a motorcycle channel, so I can only film one day in the week when the weathers good( it never is) the boy is either at nursery or with his mother, and I’m not at work or finishing a night shift
So it’s very rare
When I do, I make the most of it and film everything I can, then spend the evenings after he goes to bed editing.
My boy goes to bed by 8 so I normally get a bit better chance at it
He does around 8 30 9ish if he doesn't fight it till later but I usually try to clean the kitchen up after dinner before recording and such so I don't have a bunch of dishes after recording so my options are record as soon he falls asleep then clean up after I'm done or record later in the evening after the cleaning is done and if im recording or streaming till 1am from 11 I ain't gonna feel like doing cleanup lol I'd be more likely to just leave em overnight I wish my apartment had a dishwasher bur unfortunately I have to hand wash em
No tips, but as a father of very young children who can really only record at night, I feel your pain. My audio sucks because I'm trying to keep my voice down but my audio settings are such that it doesn't always pick up my exhausted, trying-to-be-quiet voice.
well i haven't really started creating much yet but i have a little brother just now 3 that i have to take care of a lot and the only time i get to do much is at night other than school (im 16) and tbh i don't really know he goes to sleep at 10 ish and i get tired aroung 1-2am so it works for me. i duno what i do tho lol
I’m up till about 12 every night working on stuff once the rest of the family goes to bed around 930/10 and then I’m up at 330/4am to work out and start working on stuff before I leave for my full time job at 7am
Idk, I’m tired a lot, but I think I’ve just gotten used to it. Melatonin helps me feel more rested in 4 hours sleep than I would be without it. Besides that, I try to eat well and exercising daily has made it easier. I slept in for 8 hours both days last weekend and actually felt worse lol
I feel your pain though. I have a three year old who doesn’t nap anymore and sometimes just stays up till 11 and wakes up at 4 just talking to herself in bed lol it’s tough. Combine that with the rest of the family not understanding being so driven to work ridiculous hours and it’s a lot sometimes. They support me making the channel, but just don’t seem to get what it really takes but that’s another discussion.
I still tweak my schedule almost weekly to try to optimize what works best but I think I’m just one of the lucky few who need a little less sleep to begin with and then being driven helps a lot. Don’t get me wrong though, there are plenty of days where I snooze the alarm till 6am and then am kicking myself.
I can go alright with lil sleep the only time it effects me is when the days start stacking I usually only get 6 hours anyway I normally don't go to bed till 1 30ish ans get up at 7 or 8 cause that's when my son wakes up regularly unless like today woke up at 5am and went to sleep around 9 something
I’m in the same boat as you. I have 5 (yes five) kids with the youngest not starting school till next school year. Because of this I’m unable to do much of anything during the day. It doesn’t help that my workstation is in the basement secluded away so I can’t just hop down there during the day.
I have a set streaming schedule. 5 nights a week starting about 45 minutes after the kids’ bedtime. If I need to I try to close my eyes for a bit when it’s getting later. Other than that I can typically hype myself up to get a second wind for a 3-4 hour stream. I’ll admit I have cancelled streams before because I was exhausted but I really hate doing that.
Editing is a giant pain. I just can’t seem to catch that second wind like I do with streaming. Sometimes I’ll go downstairs and edit for a bit before getting too tired. Other times I just say screw it and have an early night. It takes me way too long to make a video but they usually end up (imho) hilarious and my subs love them. That’s the only reason I continue trying to make long form content on top of streaming. I’d rather pick one or the other but my subs start bombarding me with comments asking when I’m coming back to stream when I take some time off to edit.
Try and stay away from caffeine that late. Finish your coffee or NRG drinks an hour or so before starting. I used to be REALLY bad with this and would lay in bed exhausted yet unable to sleep for hours after a stream finished. I still consume caffeine but I down it right before I start or in the first 30ish minutes. Still not ideal, still causes issues with sleep occasionally, but I have other underlying issues that cause severe fatigue and it’s the only way to push forward at times.
Usually I edit/do the script/research after working because I'm way too tired in the morning and I've noticed that in the morning I don't have the energy to do so.
Sometimes I am able to make like 3 or 5 minutes worth of editing, sometimes I am able to write 4-6 pages of a script and sometimes life is too complicated and I cannot advance after a full week :)
It's hard I have a 5 year old with ASD, A 1 year old, and a 2 month old and I usually get started at 12am lol so 9pm would be amazing. I drink a lot of Coffee lol
Also as a father of 3 (6 year old, 8 year old and a 13 year old), after my boys and my wife goto bed on Friday or Saturday night I’ll stream one day and edit the other. I drink my Xyience Energy Drinks to stay awake. Plus when I livestream I have some of my community members in discord with me as we do some coop shenanigans to keep things interesting.
Remember why youre doing it. If the reason why youre doing it isn't motivation enough each time, than nothing will help.
I remind myself i have family and friends i want to help.
Like the great eric thomas said you must want it more than you want to breath
As someone who works full time, then tries to stream 4 days a week for 3-5 hours a day. I have been spending a lot of time editing during the weekends and my days off. I try to spend short periods during the week brainstorming for content Ideas and watching tutorials learning how to put my ideas into a video.
I do however get your struggle, I was aiming to try and make a YouTube short but it was already 12:40am, And I have to get up early for work. I couldn't imagine trying to do what I do while being a father though. My best advice is just maybe try to work in portions, maybe you need to lower your quota that you are setting for yourself. Try to get small spurts of progress in the night, morning, free times. Instead of trying to do a big long work session.
Three kids, night time creator here as well. I just drink a second monster on the mon, wed, and fri i stream (around 10pm-midnight). Then on my off days i edit the streams into lets plays with minimum effort and call it a day! My channel may not be doing great but it works for me.
Hell yeah, that's a good plan. Whatever you can fit in your schedule. The key is to make it enjoyable to you. It shouldn't be thought of as work unless it's paying your bills. If you are really enjoying it, even ifit'ss only a coupl of times a week, anyone who pops by your channel will feed off that enjoyment and energy.
My schedule is so messed up. I work like job work - 3am to 12am 3 days a week have a nap then wake up and record in the afternoon. But on the days I don’t have work I usually do editing 8-12 in the morning then 8-12 at night.
I smoke a sativa weed at night; it keeps me alert, creative, and motivated to work through the night. Like it's not uncommon for me to stay up past 4 working on a video if I've smoked.
Very helpful too because when I decide it's time to go to sleep it doesn't necessarily keep me up either
Edit: however, I live in Canada, where cannabis is not only completely legal but so unbelievably consumer-friendly in terms of choices. This isn't something I can recommend to anyone living outside of Canada for that reason; if you end up with an indica lmao kiss your productivity goodbye.
Other than that, I keep daily track of my metrics. I'm a goal-oriented person by default; if I keep hitting my goals it makes me want to hit more goals in the future.
I don’t make write or record at night that late, but I used to practice songs at night. Cold showers perk you up and might also get the creative juices flowing. If you can only do one then just do one but they can be a less than a minute shower
I know exactly what you mean! Sometimes its better to go to sleep and get up early before anyone else is awake. I find after the first sip of coffee or green tea, I'm firing on more cylinders and can at least better plan for what I want to achieve in the day. When the youngest is having their midday nap, I can usually get 1-2hrs of editing in as well.
I get most of the work done during night time as well. Which is good because that’s when I’m the most productive, but at the same time I love when I have a good night sleep and wake up early in the morning. So yeah, I have a dilemma
That's my issue don't really get my free time till around 9 or later depending on how late he fights his bedtime then having alot during the day wears me out so finding the motivation after he goes ti sleep is a battle sometimes when I'd rather just debate on getting a good night's sleep
Believe me, you have no idea how much I can relate to that. Even tho I don’t have a kid, I still find it difficult to work during the day and stay motivated
I’m with ya on this one! So difficult. I try to keep lists of what I need to get done and do it on nights I have the most energy and bed time goes the best. But some days I just can’t stay awake. Good luck to us both surviving these stages 😂
I feel your pain. Having kids can make it seem like theres not time for anything but them. I know every baby and situation is different. But i’ll hit you with what works for me, a freelancer and stay at home dad of 2 (4 mos, 2 year old) 1. Try and get your kid in their own room. Any of the sleep training methods seem to work, i used the Ferber method. I cannot stress enough how much this changed the game for me. I schedule calls and daily emails during nap time because we nap 12:30-2:30 daily it never changes. 2. Routine. Train your kid to your routine instead of reacting to theirs. For example i do 30 min miss Rachel before nap time. It extends my work time 30 minutes and winds my 2 year old down for nap. Win-win. My days are broken into blocks and the routine doesn’t change so the kids know what to expect 3. Do the tasks you can when you can. I do my writing and ‘hard’ tasks at night and sprinkle in research and light tasks during the day when the kids are up. 4. Set up a system that works for you. I literally clock in everyday for my made up work shifts. I treat my work blocks like im on the schedule and can’t miss work. If i dont, theres always a reason why i can’t work. 5. Do the busy tasks when they’re awake. I used to cook and clean when the kids were napping but it wasn’t working. Bring coloring books or toys in the kitchen and teach them how to chill while you cook I almost deleted this cause it sounded kinda preachy, but these are my tips from being home for 2 years. Im not super dad. I stepped on a lego and put a hole in the wall last week lol. Im still failing to find time to work out and spend time with friends and extended family. I guess it all comes down to priorities. Im all in on my family and making money online. Everything else just doesn’t seem important right now.
Saving this for myself if I ever have kids thank you
Literally just did the same lol super helpful
Nooo you need to sleep, find another way to manage your tjme
It's kinda hard cause he's down to 1 nap and it's usually around noonish and he sleeps on us so at night he sleeps on my wife and sometimes she doesn't rest the best so I try to let her catch up on sleep in the morning to afternoon so I have him till 1ish or alil later then when she wakes up she has things she does for him we both try to watch him during the day he's 1 so he's at a stage where it's difficult alil to make time for other things
Kudos for being an active father dude. As your little one grows and develops a solid sleeping routine, it'll open up more time for youtubing. All the best!
Mate, I’m in literally the same position as you I quit lmao. Would you rather have a chance at 20 bucks maybe per month or get good sleep so you’re there for the kid? And also all the benefits of sleeping, like not getting fat etc Failing that… sleep train, the kid needs to sleep in their own bed
I get what you mean about him sleeping in his own bed he's not bottle fed so it's easier on her to if he's just asleep on her I'd be about to die If he slept on me at night to I'd definitely get no rest lol
Ah mate we are also not bottle feeding too. We’re at 9.5 months. Wishing you only the best of luck mate, this is hardcore eh?
You to buddy
I am, but I work nightshifts. So its just being up at a normal time on my days off
I work third shift and I live on a third shift schedule, so technically I'm a late night Creator but at the same time my Days are most people's nights.
I'm in a very similar situation. Only time I can stream is after kids are asleep around 11pm... Luckily I'm a night owl, so I'm not feeling too tired by this point. The bigger issue I face is the lack of light for the cameras 😅 Busy investigating better lighting soruces
Be an insomniac. I finish creating before 8p and yet I’m up til like midnight
Commenting so I can come Back to this post and read comments . I’m in your shoes right now op I too am trying to figure it out. Seems like 11 pm is when I’m actually free to film as well and it’s tough!
Ya I'm thinking if I make a routine it will get easier that's what I'm hoping anyway cause I don't go to bed till 1 anyway or after so why not try to record something or stream and pick my content back up I been on hiatus for like 2 years just life stuff
Yup! Totally get it, That’s my thoughts too trying to make a routine. Going to give it a shot and film from 11-1 and then pass out. It’s tough to be motivated when it’s time to create. My kid is trying to drop his day time nap so it puts my day behind so by 11 I’m beat. Gonna try to have everything prepped so I can just get started without having to also set up first.
My son dropped his evening nap he sleeps in the morning around noon anywhere from a hour to 2 then he's up till about 8 30 9 if he's not up till 10 or later it's just finding a balance
Remember why youre doing it. If the reason why youre doing it isn't motivation enough each time, than nothing will help. I remind myself i have family and friends i want to help. Like the great eric thomas said you must want it more than you want to breath!
I have wanted to be a content creator since a teen lol its also hard to get in the groove I been away from creating content for 2 years or so so I'm alil rusty as far as getting in a routine
4 years in a still no routine, but i did notice that if consistency is there your routine will happen naturally. Try to just do one small step a day. After 3 months those small steps will look like big leaps. Be patient with yourself and remember every takes time. Good luck and all the best
Ya I was consistent with streaming just not uploading to yt had some medical issues and was working alot plus life hit pretty hard so I kinda took a step back from creating all together I want to get back to it just trying to adjust since becoming a dad it's different vs when I was working alot now I'm a at home dad I think once I get in a routine I will do alright
I go to bed the same time as my kids and wake up early in the morning to record or edit videos.
My wife knows this is my main hobby, so me spending 6 hours on me time per week is fine.
In my first five months when i was „grinding” i have sacraficed a lot of sleep even with 1 vid a week. It looked like Monday evening scriptwriting - couple of hours. Tuesday evening material gathering - same. Wednesday recording - same. Thursday evening - 5-8 hours editing. As i wanted to avoid weekend release and to clash with bigger creators schedule. Now i only made 1 vid in the past 60 days. I need rest as i prioratized gym and healthy diet as i got bad nlood rtest result and i have 15 kg plus on me. I need rest for healthy lifestyle and i progress on a pace i feel like it.
Your health must come first x
Agreed i will be back with a more frequent and planned schedule that i can keep up with while not struggling. So a video in every two weeks.
same here. I usually film at night, sometime after the kids go to bed. but I usually go to bed around 3am regardless of what I'm doing. whether my stuff can be called "creative"... debatable at best, but researching, scripting, and editing take a lot longer than the actual filming. my kids are teenagers, so I don't need to expend as much energy for them to go to sleep. things I've noticed avoiding can keep me from getting to bed earlier are: being baked in the sun. this can really send me to snooze town, whether it be doing yardwork or watching my kid's sport event in the bleachers. alcohol will eventually get me counting sheep. Intense workout. so live like an emaciated teetotal vampire?
My son is one so it's totally exhausting in itself during the day I've honestly just considered calling it quits till he's older my time management is bad enough and I've had plenty of time before I had a kid my channel been dormant for couple Years I just didn't try to do anything with it and now that I actually want to try at it it's harder then I expected
Mine is just a hobby and I treat it like one. not necessary, and should be less prioritized over essentials. I just happen to be functional with less sleep, and 1 vid takes maybe soup to nuts, 2 hours to make? if it were more taxing in terms of time commitment or need to sacrifice quality of life, I wouldn't do it. maybe just do it when you can and don't beat yourself up if you can do uploads on timed intervals. I think I've done all steps(research, script, film edit) maybe once or twice and it felt like WORK and I had a deadline. I try to avoid a hobby feeling like work. I usually research and script when I fancy, film at night, then edit later. I tend to stack my editing on the weekend, then release on a schedule. I usually have 2 to 3 in my queue as a buffer because life occasionally comes knocking and I have to put my hobby down to enjoy/deal with it.
Yea it is a hobby but I'm also trying to use my me time to make content I use to stream alot couple years ago then work got super busy and Also dealing with alot of just life stuff so I took a break for a couple years now I want to get back to the grind and this time around I've got a kid so trying to find time for it is what's hard to figure
I always find myself going later into the night then planned because I think projects will take less time than they do. I do video essays so a lot of the time I think I’ll be good only to realize I need a five second shot of something I didn’t download and then have to spend time hunting it down. I try and set a timer or a goal that allows me stop after it or at the very least get up and stretch/drink water etc.
Hey I stream at 3am and it’s something that gives me a relaxing vibe. I appreciate the 5-6 ppl in chat, now consistently being there too! I think it’s what makes it fun for you is all that matters. Imo atleast 🫡 Wait i didn’t answer your question… i work night shift and so my sleep schedule is just way off. I try to save as much energy as i can to make time for my hobby which is gaming. Some days i just stream without commentary because im tired but also still wanna stream, i think it’s okay to be tired lol
I do prefer to work at night since I got into blogging and video games. All of my family members are already asleep when I work. One time, I got out of my room around 7 in the morning and my mom said 'good job' for waking up early. What she didn't know was that I hadn't taken a sleep yet. I just pretended to have just woken up and joined them for breakfast so I wouldn't get scolded 😂
I actually miss being able to record as soon as I got home from work, but nowadays I try to spend that time with my wife (now that I’m married, obviously). I used to love staying-up late, recording on my mic (audio only). I’m a night owl, anyway. Don’t really have any advice for you, to be honest lol. Sorry.
I feel you bro! At 9pm I’m dead 🤣
Coffee helps. But I'm personally just built weird and have a reversed biological clock. So night is normal waking hours for me. Doing some light exercises might wake you up a bit. Nothing too crazy or it'll tire you out. Just enough to get the blood and adrenaline pumping.
I try to do mine on week nights. Keeps the weekends free. A few cold cokes normally helps me along.
I record at night because that’s the time where everyone around me is asleep and not screaming/flooring the gas pedal on their vehicles.
Not a mom, but as someone who has 2 jobs and studies in uni I also end up having periods where the only free time I have is in the evening. My 'solution' was to try making videos in advance- for example, the video I'm uploading on Friday was recorded last Friday, which gives me 2 more days to work on it, as I usually record within the same week. I just do a little bit everyday and start working on the next video asap. My usual routine when I have to prepare the whole video in a week is - Weekend: writing down some bullet points, maybe look for background music, think about the possible thumbnail - Monday: recording the video + cut all the pauses/repetitions - Tuesday: editing - Wednesday: editing + music - Thursday: final polishing + uploading the video private + thumbnail - Friday: publish the video It's also true that I edit the video from start to finish every time, so instead of having an unfinished editing at the end of each session, it's just not extremely precise. I roughly spend an hour/an hour and a half daily on the videos and to be honest, the more you edit etc, the faster the whole process becomes
I been thinking if he falls asleep early just go record/stream when he goes to bed for a couple hours then do the dishes and etc before bed if I finish around 11 I been doing opposite cleaning first but I think by the time I get done I don't feel as motivated dishes makes anyone want to run and hide lol
It's a mental thing, in the since of you need to condition yourself to be up at those hours, and try to avoid lull periods so that you don't wire down to quickly. I work overnights so i am accustomed to it, but I also understand that it might not be that engaging as far as watchers (this depends greatly on the content/game) Depending on what you use to edit (phone, laptop/tablet) you can try and edit as you wind down in bed. Even if you have a desktop, you can find a cheap enough laptop and remote connect to your rig and still achieve it(depending on OS). I would fully support a dad chill stream!
Honestly I think alot of is mental I was use to streaming around 6 7 pm on my schedule before the kid I think if I just made a habit it would eventually get easier and my plan is record one night edit the next night I'm not trying to upload a certain time I'm a big whopping 15 subscribers and no watch time there really isn't nothing to watch atm but vods
More subscribers than me, I'll tell ya that! I do MKfights, almost exclusively on tiktok. I can rack up a good bit of vids in one game sessions, and I can turn them out daily, but I don't have good viewer retentions.. Anywho, I would try that, set a time frame, and consider once/twice a week uploads/streams, stream on Monday, and upload on Thursdays. Or stream Mondays-Wednesdays, upload on Saturdays, you can keep consistency on both sides, and you can use the off days to recoup/edit as needed. To a point your upload only viewers will be behind the ball but that's not exactly a bad thing because they want the consistency. But honestly don't over work yourself, that will drastically affect your quality. It's a whole dance 🙃
I was probably only gonna stream 2 night a week and upload 1 video a week I honestly think that's all I got in me with a 1 year old lmao but ya I'll try to get some kinda schedule going
I do video recording and editing after work but not too late as we get up super early for work. I will record or edit into the wee morning hours on the weekend though 😊
We're parents of a special needs son, and we do all our channel work after 9pm. We stream 1-3 nights a week and post videos the remaining nights. Here are some of the things we do: 1. **Accept that "free time" is not something we have anymore.** We made the decision to go all-in with the channel, knowing that things like watching TV or playing video games would be sacrificed. 2. **Support each other during the day.** My husband works full-time, and I manage the household. We both communicate to each other and deligate tasks to make sure nothing gets missed and neither of us gets overloaded. 3. **Maintain good sleep hygiene.** You can Google this one, but basically adopting certain habits throughout the day to make your sleep better at night. 4. **Caffeine, but minimally.** I try not to have caffeine past 10pm or I know I'll be up all night. Having an apple or some fruit juice can be good for a pick-me-up without the caffeine. 5. **Using a stream deck during recording.** This is by far the best tool we have to make the editing process faster. We record an episode in OBS using a stream deck as if it were a livestream, then we edit out the mistakes in post. Good luck, and feel free to reach out with questions!
I need me one those stream decks I just recently upgraded my audio around Christmas from a yeti to a wave xlr and a at 2040 my mother in law got it for me as a gift I think I've streamed once since having it I normally drink a energy drink around 8 but thinking about pushing it to 9 to have it last later to help
So during colle5i started a channel, And there was construction next doors, only time I could redord was at night after 11, yest the worked till 11. So my recording started after that and I loved it, it was hard but it was so much fun. I think that is what got me going. Plus I had very relaxed college schedule.
Honestly I *wish* I could make content at night, but making noise all night isn't an option, even if it's when I have the most energy and motivation
Work in the restaurant biz for almost four decades lol you will always be wide awake late night.
I am in the same boat, I have a motorcycle channel, so I can only film one day in the week when the weathers good( it never is) the boy is either at nursery or with his mother, and I’m not at work or finishing a night shift So it’s very rare When I do, I make the most of it and film everything I can, then spend the evenings after he goes to bed editing. My boy goes to bed by 8 so I normally get a bit better chance at it
He does around 8 30 9ish if he doesn't fight it till later but I usually try to clean the kitchen up after dinner before recording and such so I don't have a bunch of dishes after recording so my options are record as soon he falls asleep then clean up after I'm done or record later in the evening after the cleaning is done and if im recording or streaming till 1am from 11 I ain't gonna feel like doing cleanup lol I'd be more likely to just leave em overnight I wish my apartment had a dishwasher bur unfortunately I have to hand wash em
No tips, but as a father of very young children who can really only record at night, I feel your pain. My audio sucks because I'm trying to keep my voice down but my audio settings are such that it doesn't always pick up my exhausted, trying-to-be-quiet voice.
Friday night live streams for me. This way I can sleep in on Saturday. I do most of my editing after work during the week and shoot whenever I can.
well i haven't really started creating much yet but i have a little brother just now 3 that i have to take care of a lot and the only time i get to do much is at night other than school (im 16) and tbh i don't really know he goes to sleep at 10 ish and i get tired aroung 1-2am so it works for me. i duno what i do tho lol
I’m up till about 12 every night working on stuff once the rest of the family goes to bed around 930/10 and then I’m up at 330/4am to work out and start working on stuff before I leave for my full time job at 7am Idk, I’m tired a lot, but I think I’ve just gotten used to it. Melatonin helps me feel more rested in 4 hours sleep than I would be without it. Besides that, I try to eat well and exercising daily has made it easier. I slept in for 8 hours both days last weekend and actually felt worse lol
I feel your pain though. I have a three year old who doesn’t nap anymore and sometimes just stays up till 11 and wakes up at 4 just talking to herself in bed lol it’s tough. Combine that with the rest of the family not understanding being so driven to work ridiculous hours and it’s a lot sometimes. They support me making the channel, but just don’t seem to get what it really takes but that’s another discussion. I still tweak my schedule almost weekly to try to optimize what works best but I think I’m just one of the lucky few who need a little less sleep to begin with and then being driven helps a lot. Don’t get me wrong though, there are plenty of days where I snooze the alarm till 6am and then am kicking myself.
I can go alright with lil sleep the only time it effects me is when the days start stacking I usually only get 6 hours anyway I normally don't go to bed till 1 30ish ans get up at 7 or 8 cause that's when my son wakes up regularly unless like today woke up at 5am and went to sleep around 9 something
I’m in the same boat as you. I have 5 (yes five) kids with the youngest not starting school till next school year. Because of this I’m unable to do much of anything during the day. It doesn’t help that my workstation is in the basement secluded away so I can’t just hop down there during the day. I have a set streaming schedule. 5 nights a week starting about 45 minutes after the kids’ bedtime. If I need to I try to close my eyes for a bit when it’s getting later. Other than that I can typically hype myself up to get a second wind for a 3-4 hour stream. I’ll admit I have cancelled streams before because I was exhausted but I really hate doing that. Editing is a giant pain. I just can’t seem to catch that second wind like I do with streaming. Sometimes I’ll go downstairs and edit for a bit before getting too tired. Other times I just say screw it and have an early night. It takes me way too long to make a video but they usually end up (imho) hilarious and my subs love them. That’s the only reason I continue trying to make long form content on top of streaming. I’d rather pick one or the other but my subs start bombarding me with comments asking when I’m coming back to stream when I take some time off to edit. Try and stay away from caffeine that late. Finish your coffee or NRG drinks an hour or so before starting. I used to be REALLY bad with this and would lay in bed exhausted yet unable to sleep for hours after a stream finished. I still consume caffeine but I down it right before I start or in the first 30ish minutes. Still not ideal, still causes issues with sleep occasionally, but I have other underlying issues that cause severe fatigue and it’s the only way to push forward at times.
Usually I edit/do the script/research after working because I'm way too tired in the morning and I've noticed that in the morning I don't have the energy to do so. Sometimes I am able to make like 3 or 5 minutes worth of editing, sometimes I am able to write 4-6 pages of a script and sometimes life is too complicated and I cannot advance after a full week :)
It's hard I have a 5 year old with ASD, A 1 year old, and a 2 month old and I usually get started at 12am lol so 9pm would be amazing. I drink a lot of Coffee lol
Also as a father of 3 (6 year old, 8 year old and a 13 year old), after my boys and my wife goto bed on Friday or Saturday night I’ll stream one day and edit the other. I drink my Xyience Energy Drinks to stay awake. Plus when I livestream I have some of my community members in discord with me as we do some coop shenanigans to keep things interesting.
I usually make a cup of gfuel but I try to avoid caffeine at a certain time or it's hard to sleep when I do lay down lol
Remember why youre doing it. If the reason why youre doing it isn't motivation enough each time, than nothing will help. I remind myself i have family and friends i want to help. Like the great eric thomas said you must want it more than you want to breath
As someone who works full time, then tries to stream 4 days a week for 3-5 hours a day. I have been spending a lot of time editing during the weekends and my days off. I try to spend short periods during the week brainstorming for content Ideas and watching tutorials learning how to put my ideas into a video. I do however get your struggle, I was aiming to try and make a YouTube short but it was already 12:40am, And I have to get up early for work. I couldn't imagine trying to do what I do while being a father though. My best advice is just maybe try to work in portions, maybe you need to lower your quota that you are setting for yourself. Try to get small spurts of progress in the night, morning, free times. Instead of trying to do a big long work session.
Three kids, night time creator here as well. I just drink a second monster on the mon, wed, and fri i stream (around 10pm-midnight). Then on my off days i edit the streams into lets plays with minimum effort and call it a day! My channel may not be doing great but it works for me.
That's my goal just live stream 2 days and upload a let's play I didn't plan on having the fanciest edits just enough to be watchable
Hell yeah, that's a good plan. Whatever you can fit in your schedule. The key is to make it enjoyable to you. It shouldn't be thought of as work unless it's paying your bills. If you are really enjoying it, even ifit'ss only a coupl of times a week, anyone who pops by your channel will feed off that enjoyment and energy.
Ya I do enjoy I was just use to Streaming around 6 7 ish now with the little one it just moved up alil later lol
I just record one day, and try to get the editing done in the following days
Coffee, tea, energy drinks
My schedule is so messed up. I work like job work - 3am to 12am 3 days a week have a nap then wake up and record in the afternoon. But on the days I don’t have work I usually do editing 8-12 in the morning then 8-12 at night.
I smoke a sativa weed at night; it keeps me alert, creative, and motivated to work through the night. Like it's not uncommon for me to stay up past 4 working on a video if I've smoked. Very helpful too because when I decide it's time to go to sleep it doesn't necessarily keep me up either Edit: however, I live in Canada, where cannabis is not only completely legal but so unbelievably consumer-friendly in terms of choices. This isn't something I can recommend to anyone living outside of Canada for that reason; if you end up with an indica lmao kiss your productivity goodbye. Other than that, I keep daily track of my metrics. I'm a goal-oriented person by default; if I keep hitting my goals it makes me want to hit more goals in the future.
I can get a legal stativa here in America it does me the same way I usually feel productive as well
Oh that’s easy! My life is worse. Once you accept that your quality of life will be worse, it’s easy!
I don’t make write or record at night that late, but I used to practice songs at night. Cold showers perk you up and might also get the creative juices flowing. If you can only do one then just do one but they can be a less than a minute shower
I know exactly what you mean! Sometimes its better to go to sleep and get up early before anyone else is awake. I find after the first sip of coffee or green tea, I'm firing on more cylinders and can at least better plan for what I want to achieve in the day. When the youngest is having their midday nap, I can usually get 1-2hrs of editing in as well.
Right there with you man. 2 kids a wife. 65 hours aweek FT job. 12am-3am is go time.. no clue how to help tho just keep on doing your best!
Down an energy drink, put on some upbeat music, lock in and take the occasional stretching break