The 6 Ways
A show for action-taking entrepreneurs...
The dirty little secret that the business gurus don't want you to know is that there’s no wrong way to be an entrepreneur. They want you to do things THEIR way, but THEIR way may not be YOUR way.
The key to success is finding the strategies that work best for you, so every week we're having a conversation with a smart, innovative guest that is thriving in their field expertise to share their best tips with the rest of us, so WE can all achieve our entrepreneurial goals.
Because I believe we all do better when we all do better.
My name is Jerry Potter, founder of Five Minute Social Media (100,000+ Subscribers on YouTube), and I can't wait to see you take action in your business using the strategies and tips we'll be sharing each week.
The 6 Ways
6 Ways Entrepreneurs Got Over Their Fear Of Being On Camera
You can Watch or Listen to this episode: https://the6ways.com/28
The online world is being flooded with AI generated content, so video is becoming essential for building trust with your audience. But what if being on camera is terrifying (or even just somewhat uncomfortable) for you? In this episode 6 entrepreneurs (including myself) are sharing how they went from being afraid to make videos to having it be a key part of their business success.
YOU CAN JUMP AHEAD OR REVISIT ANY SECTION BY CLICKING ON THE TIME STAMP:
00:00 6 Ways Entrepreneurs Got Over Their Fear Of Being On Camera
01:47 #1: Camilla McGill goes from tears to success
03:29 #2: Tazeem Jamal had 48 hours to “figure it out”
05:48 #3: Richard Ralston’s 1,000 Facebook Lives
08:47 #4: Lea Jacobson figuring out who she is
10:26 #5: Cindy Landham could barely turn on the camera
13:24 #6: Jerry Potter’s Frightening Facebook Live Story
Watch Jerry Potter’s first Facebook live from 2017: https://www.facebook.com/jerrypotter206/videos/10155863217092210
Some REALLY awesome tips were shared in this episode – please think about who you know that would benefit from these, and then make sure to share it with them. Because WE ALL DO BETTER WHEN WE ALL DO BETTER. 😁
Learn more about our guests in this episode:
Camilla McGill: https://www.myparentingsolutions.com/
Tazeem Jamal: https://tazeemjamal.com/
Richard Ralston: https://richardralston.com/
Lea Jacobson: https://www.leajacobson.com/
Cindy Landham: https://www.theliberatedeater.com/
If you enjoyed this episode you may also enjoy these:
6 Ways Your Money Mindset Is Blocking Your Growth: https://the6ways.com/19
6 Ways Entrepreneurs Can Quickly Increase Their Visibility: https://the6ways.com/24
🧰 Need help picking gear, tools and resources to grow your business faster? Click here to see the stuff we use and love: https://fiveminutesocialmedia.com/toolkit
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Video feels pretty essential for marketing ourselves these days. But if you watch other entrepreneurs confidently make video content for their business and assume they were always that good at it, I guarantee you're wrong.
I cried my heart would start thumping I was super nervous. White knuckle mortified. I'd go blank I've never done a Facebook live in my life It was a true phobia.
USB Audio CODEC & Insta360 Link:Just like we have to learn to talk to people at all. When we're a kid, we have to learn to talk to a camera when we first start as well. So I've invited five entrepreneurs who I know used to be terrified of video and are now great at making video to share what it was like for them in the beginning and share specific steps they took that you can also use to get better.
what I do, my advice would be Here's a bunch of tips Something that helped me get through
USB Audio CODEC & Insta360 Link:And I'll be reluctantly sharing my own embarrassing on camera story for when I first started making video as well. Lot of these people also shared that part of the way they got over their fear of being on camera is hearing stories from other people. So the story that you have been waiting to hear could be coming up right now. Welcome to episode number 28 of the six ways every week, we Bring on a smart, innovative guest to share what they're doing in their field of expertise to help all of us do better in what we're doing, because I truly believe we all do better when we all do better. In this case, we're going to have six different people, five guests and me each share away for this special episode. Starting with Camilla McGill, who is a parenting coach and founder of my parenting solutions. Brilliant coach. And when she started, um, I'll just say tears were involved and I'll let her share her story.
When I first realized I needed to get on camera to be able to reach more parents, I was petrified. I hated watching myself back or hearing my own voice on video. And I was so worried that I'd look stupid and forget what I wanted to say. The first time I tried, I put the camera on and literally nothing came out of my mouth. I switched it off, I cried and I almost quit. I think there were three things that drove me to try again. One, I've always tried to be an example to my own kids, and this is something I teach other parents too. Show our kids we can do things that are hard. So I pick myself up and I try it again. Secondly, I am passionate about helping parents and I know that video is such a powerful way of teaching. So in my mind, I decided to make helping others more of a priority than my own fears. And three, I just broke it down. I set myself smaller goals. Just do two minutes and see how that goes. Don't try to be perfect. That's another thing I teach parents. Never strive for perfection. If you're scared to put yourself out there, my advice would be to think to yourself, there are people out there in the world who need my help. And if I don't do video, they will likely never find out about me. So I just say, give it a try. It honestly gets so much easier the more you do it. What's the worst thing that can happen? You just try again.
USB Audio CODEC & Insta360 Link:Six ways entrepreneurs got over their fear of being on camera AppNexus to Zim. Jamal, who is a master esthetician and a spa business coach. And one of her first camera memories was getting invited to do a Facebook live for 10,000 of her fairy. Perfect clients. With only 48 hours notice. And she'd never done Facebook live before. Here's her story.
This woman that I know, um, had a huge group over 10, 000 estheticians and she invited me to do a Facebook live takeover inside of her group. So my response to her was, well, there's just one tiny little problem. And she's like, what's that? And I said to her, I've never done a Facebook live in my life. And she said to me, great, you have 48 hours to figure it out Tazeem. And I thought, oh my goodness. Okay. I'm going to rise to the challenge. So how did I do it? Well, first of all, I did this a lot. I practiced on my own video camera a lot. And every time I finished even just like a 10 or 15 second video. I went back and I re watched it and I find that when you re watch yourself, as hard as it is to do that, you get to figure out where you need to improve. The things that you need to do or change. Maybe you're fidgeting too much. Maybe you're not making enough eye contact with the camera. Maybe there's, You know, five too many ums. And you will still find that it's never going to be perfect, right? We are not, it's not supposed to be scripted. Your audience wants to hear from you. They want to hear your gems. And if you have great content to share, they're not even hearing those things. So, what I do, some tips, is I always write out just a few points that I want to cover, um, in my video so that I can follow through with what it is that I want to talk about. I think it's really important to stay in your authentic self. People want to see who you are. It's your personality that needs to shine. Don't be afraid to fail. Because you're going to get better. That's the thing. You're going to get better and you may hate the sound of your voice, but your audience needs to hear from you. Thank you for letting me share my experience about going live on video. I hope that you are inspired today and that you will step out of your comfort zone and let your audience hear from you.
USB Audio CODEC & Insta360 Link:Six ways entrepreneurs got over their fear of being on camera up next, ease Richard Ralston, who works with membership site owners to help their members make progress and stay in the membership longer. Using very specially designed accountability groups that he calls progress pods. We actually used them and they're amazing in our social media leads lab program. And Richard right now is in the middle of doing something that I guarantee. If you do what he's doing, there is no way you don't get way better at video here's Richard story.
I was so nervous when I first started doing video. I remember right at the beginning I would push the, uh, the record button and all of a sudden my heart would start thumping and I'd go blank, I'd forget everything that I was going to say even though I'd written it down and sometimes I'd even practiced it and then I'd get frustrated with myself and then my internal dialogue would start going off And man, I'm not going to tell you what it was saying to me because it was nasty. Yeah, those early days, those first videos, they were tough. They were horrible. There are a few things that have helped me get over the fear of doing video. One is just doing lots and lots of them. Over time, I've just got more confident at doing it. I've lowered my expectations about how good I thought they would be. Um, And, you know, I got to the stage where I was quite happy for the first lot of them to be rubbish. Some of them are still rubbish, you know, and I'm actually okay with that because I know that as I do them over time, I'll get better and better at them. I'm currently on a mission to complete 1000 consecutive daily Facebook lives. And as of this recording, I've completed 440. That means I've gone live every single day, For the last 440 days. And I tell you what, I have made all the mistakes. Um, I've been live outside and nobody's been able to hear me talking. I've had stuff stuck in my teeth. Um, I forgot my name one day. I just stumbled over my own name. You know, I, I've made all the mistakes and it's okay. I'm okay with that now. Here's a bunch of tips that I use all the time that you might find helpful as well. The first thing is, just make a start. The second is, realize that you can do another take. Don't turn the camera off. Just keep recording and start again. You might like to try this little exercise. Um, start tiny. Say your name and, or say hi and then say your name. Like I would say, Hi, I'm Richard. And just do it that short and have a look at it and see what it's like. Lower your expectations. about how good you think your video should be. Be okay with them being rubbish at the beginning. You know, if you're going live, you can always delete them at the end. That's absolutely okay. And commit to consistency. Over time, if you stay with it, you will improve.
USB Audio CODEC & Insta360 Link:I love these stories. Let's continue. Six ways entrepreneurs got over their fear of being on camera. Up next is Leah Jacobson. Leah is a certified clinical aroma therapist who teaches people how to use essential oils safely. And Leah found herself doing something that I think we all do. But not many people talk about when she first started trying to be on camera and make videos for her business.
when I first started going live and getting behind the camera, I was super nervous. I would spend a lot of prep time trying to figure out where I was gonna sit, what I was gonna say. I would spend a lot of time overthinking, figuring out, you know, exactly how I was supposed to look and act. I kind of adjusted my voice to be a little bit like the people that I wanted to emulate instead of just being myself. And honestly, my first videos are terrible. Something that helped me get through it is number one, realizing that I just had to be myself. Just pretend and act like the person you're talking to is literally right in front of you and just chat. Don't imagine what you might look like on the other side of the camera. Don't try to be somebody that you're not and try to look and sound like somebody that is a professional that you may admire and is natural for them, but it's not natural for you. Another thing that helped me to get over it is to just do it.
USB Audio CODEC & Insta360 Link:Now I definitely did what Leah described. I was definitely trying to sound like what I thought or look like how I thought someone on camera should be right. Have you done that? Six ways entrepreneurs got over their fear of being on camera up next is Cindy Landem, coach and founder of the liberated eater and she actually realized that something about the way she grew up. Impacted her ability to do well on camera, but she got over that and a whole lot more. And now it makes great videos. As you'll see in here right now.
White knuckle mortified. It was a true phobia. I was virtually paralyzed in front of the camera, but I believed in the message so much. It had given me my life back and I see it give other people their lives back. So I couldn't stop, but it was so bad that I would have to take this hand and hold this one because it was shaking so much to hit the button to start and stop recording. This wasn't just the first time, Jerry. This lasted a decade. And there was a voice in my head telling me that I was inept and ridiculous. So I want to add something here that won't hit everybody, but if it hits you, it can be key in getting over this fear. If you grew up in an environment where you weren't safe, where staying off the radar screen was how you stayed out of trouble, Then the fear we feel about being so public is probably more than just ordinary stage fright. It's a primal survival instinct telling you not to be public. Understanding this can help you make sense of it and move past it. First, do not isolate yourself. Get help. The kind we get right here with Jerry and with each other. Engage. Share. Get feedback. I needed feedback from people I trusted to counteract that voice in my head that was telling me what I was doing was ridiculous. Second, be unstoppable. Check in with yourself and see if the mission is more important to you than the pain it's going to take to work through this. And if it is, just decide. I will not be stopped. I don't know how many times I've said to myself, I will succeed. I don't know how long it's going to take, but I will succeed. And you will too. Third, practice. Fire perfectionism and just make videos, make videos, make videos. Using Jerry's framework gave me the confidence to believe I could do it. Fourth and last, remember why and for whom you are doing this. I have a dear friend who some years ago, when I was in the throes of this panic, I was telling her how much I wanted to be able to do this, but I was petrified, blah, blah, blah. And she said to me, I wrote it big and put it on my wall. You cannot help people if you're invisible. Whew. Oh, there is one more last thing. Then, be damn proud of yourself for doing it. Jerry, can you bleep that? Now watch this. I'm going to hit the stop record button with one hand.
USB Audio CODEC & Insta360 Link:I love that so much, Cindy. And for those of you listening to the audio version of the podcast, basically she can now use one hand and it's not shaking when she hits the record button to start and stop making videos. All right. Six ways entrepreneurs got over their fear of being on camera. And, uh, the sixth one is from me, which I am, uh, reluctantly sharing. Um, I feel like there's embarrassing, but I know that they help other people. And so that's why I'm going to share, and I want to share two stories. Okay. First one was actually the first time I was on the radio. So if you're not familiar, I worked as a radio personality and programmer for over 20 years. And I started at my high school radio station. I was 16 years old and I had to go and read the news on our high school station. Now we had a big station. There was a 30,000 watt station with a lot of listeners. And as a 16 year old guy, I was trying to be as cool as I could. I was not cool. So I had to like use everything. I could, you. Get it going for me. But I was so scared to go into the studio and read the news. The first time that I actually asked my teacher. To please come in. And hold my hand. While I did it. To calm my nerves. Which is something that a kindergartener might do, right? Ask a parent or a teacher to hold their hand while they do something brave. For the first time, um, I made it through and I went on to have a career in professional broadcasting. And of course that was just radio video. I did some TV while I was in radio a little bit, but I wanted to share the story of the first time that I did a Facebook live. And even though I had this broadcast background, I was still so scared to do a Facebook live because at this point I had sort of reestablished myself. I had this broadcast background and I had reestablished myself as a social media strategist. And people were hiring me for that specific thing. And so I thought, well, everyone. I gotta be great at this. And I built up my nerve so high. I didn't know what to do. Well, sometimes I don't know if it's called immersion therapy or what, but maybe this will work for you. Sometimes when I'm really scared to do something or nervous about doing something, I'll think of what is. What's the worst that like, how can I make it even harder for myself that it's almost laughable? And so what I did was for my first Facebook live, I went to a park. I remember it was Halloween here in the United States. I went to a public park and I said, Hey, Uh, it is, um, uh, Halloween. And so we're talking about scary things. So I'm going to live stream. One of my biggest fears right now. Now internally. One of my biggest fears was doing a Facebook live. But what I told them was a different fear. And that was talking to strangers. Uh, believe it or not, I'm pretty introverted. And so my whole thing, my gimmick on this Facebook live was I'm going to stay on Facebook live until I can get a stranger to give me a hug. So I went live on Facebook and I walked around this public park. I get nervous, just even thinking about it. I'm asking people for a hug. I think it only took three or four minutes, but believe me, it felt like three or four hours where somebody gave me a hug. You know, I just, and I, and I didn't say, Hey, I'm doing this for a Facebook live. I said, Hey, I'm walking around the park today. Seen if a stranger will give me a hug. If I ask nicely or something like that. Um, I did find the link for this and if you want to watch it. Uh, I won't go back and watch it. It's too cringe-worthy but if you want to watch it, I'll link up to it in the notes, wherever you're consuming this episode, but that was my thing. All right, I'm going to start doing Facebook lives. So I might as well face two fears at once. And I dove right in. I hope one of the stories from today helps you move forward to be more confident on camera. And if nothing else, I hope you found these amazing people, uh, in, during our entertaining, um, in some way, otherwise, If you want to go deeper with this episode, you can go to the six ways.com/ 28. The six ways.com/ 28. And if you enjoyed this episode, a couple others that you might enjoy as well. Six ways your money mindset is blocking your growth. So a lot of camera confidence is of course mindset. So if you have a money mindset issue, definitely check out that episode as well. as six ways, entrepreneurs can quickly increase their visibility. Links are in the show notes, wherever you are watching or listening. Thank you so much. Keep helping each other out. Remember we all do better when we all do better. And I appreciate you listening to another episode of the six ways.
