#NerdsUnite: Path to YouTube Partnership- Comedy or Advice?

<editors note> Nerds, meet Brian Freedman!! He is 24, and has spent over four years answering men and women's relationship questions through various sites. He also loves him some comedy, so he's now combined the two into a web series called Spitfire where he answers relationship topics, with humor ⎯ new videos every 1st & 15th.  Go watch.  youtube.com/ImBrianFreedman. If you don't like 'em, he'll bake you pie.  Mmmm... piiiiiiieeee. K. That is all.  </editors note>

#TalkNerdyToMeLover's Brian Freedman

I've been struggling with this idea for awhile now.  There are two parts to me: I'm very funny and very spiritual.  I love making people laugh just as much as helping them grow and learn.  The dilemma when building my YouTube Brand is how to meld the two, if that's even possible.  I feel I've been focusing on being funny AND giving advice, but because my attention is split I've been good at both, but great at neither.

I would love to create purely comedic videos that are witty and bring smiles to millions.  Imagine I have 2 million views per video and most of the comments are "I love you Brian.  You're soo funny!!  LOL!!!"  But let's say I focused on genuine, helpful advice, only get 100,000 views, but most comments are, "Brian, you've changed my life and helped me so much in my relationships."

I'm an Alpha male.  I LOVE being the best, because I can be.  Whether in Call of Duty, defense in basketball, my humor, or my ability to relate and connect with others, I dominate.... easily.  That's what makes making videos so difficult.  If I go full on comedy, I will have extremely high views, but people probably won't learn anything of real value.  If I choose applicable advice, it's helpful, but not entertaining.  Thus, very low views.  The problem with low views is the less people I can reach, the less I can help.  So, going along with my Alpha persona, I want to be the best.  You CAN'T be the best with just spiritual, especially on YouTube.  People watch videos to be entertained.  That's a fact.  Solid advice is very difficult to make entertaining to the mass market.

I have always lived my life with compromise being the best solution.  That way, everybody wins.  But in this case, compromise isn't really an option.  Or if it is, I am not strong nor smart enough to figure out how to mix the two beautifully.  At best I do 75% Comedy, 25% Substance.

I would say comedy comes more naturally to me than anything else, hell even when I stub my toe I just laugh at how painful it feels (I guess at the simple stupidity of the whole situation).  As I write this I know what I need to do, primarily focus on making people laugh so that I may build a large audience.  My concern is, my audience will respect me for my comedy, but would they take me seriously when giving relationship advice?  Damn double-edged sword.  Then again, people like Ray William Johnson in several old episodes of Breaking NYC and Timothy DeLaGhetto's "Dear DeLaGhetto" have shown popularity equates trust, so I build myself up as an awesome guy and people will naturally be interested in my advice. 

Another option: my YouTube would be my comedic battlefront, and my articles, like this one, would be my outlet for engaging others hearts and minds.  I just do not believe it's possible to combine the two and still be Top 100 YouTube Status.

I still haven't decided, which leaves you guys with, "What the hell?  No concreate ending?  No closure!?"  Sorry to say, no closure.  But a line I heard watching Thundercats and will continue to be reminded of is, it's the journey, not the destination.

What a load of crap.  I'm kidding, I'm kidding.  People spend all their time on the journey, and the destination is merely but an instanst.  In reality, the destination is still apart of the journey ⎯ the last peice to achieving what you've sought after for so long.  But the second it turns from "One day" to "Today" barely a second has passed before you set your sights on a higher, more lofty goal and a new, more exciting journey has begun.

Sorry, I got philosophically sidetracked.

After going on one of my normal walks to clear my head, I feel I will build up my videos primarily as entertainment, to make people's lives full of laughter and joy.  Then, after I'm powerful enough, I'll focus part of my energy improving people's relationships.  There's your stinking closure.

If you guys see another path I haven't, feel free to let me know.  I'm all ears.

#nerdsunite