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What being a YouTuber in school is like for me

(Photo courtesy of New York Times) “YouTube has been a dominant cultural cornerstone of the internet since its creation.”

Tanner Hume
Connector Editor

I came to UMass Lowell last January with the hopes of completing my collegiate-level education so that, one day, I can achieve my dream career of being a high school history teacher. But what many people don’t know about me is that while I’m in school, I also run a YouTube channel, which can be very challenging during the semester.

My channel, in which I go by the online moniker “illogical Canadian,” is purely based on sports news as well as weekly reviews covering the NFL season. Running a channel seemingly full-time while completing my academics has left me strained and burnt out more times than not, but this is the path I chose, so I must live with it.

One difficulty I personally have while juggling both school and YouTube is time management. My brain’s capacity is that of a peanut inside its shell. So much so that whenever I try to come up with a formidable plan to manage my time between the two things, something always happens that messes that plan up, forcing me to start anew with the planning process.

Doing research and filming videos while doing academic research for essays and assignments is very time-consuming. As I stated earlier, I feel more burnt out and less motivated to do anything at any given time, which, during a semester where grades are crucial above all else, is not a good thing at all.

Now, I don’t want to have to make the decision to stop creating content on YouTube altogether just to be able to get my work done properly and in an orderly manner. So, instead of that, I decided to finally take a break after making daily videos for a full year nonstop. And so far, it feels good. I miss making content as I did, but I have to take care of myself and my academics. Because at the end of the day, I want to be a YouTuber while also living my dream.

Doing YouTube has allowed me to be open-minded and honest with myself about various events or topics. And doing YouTube while in school has given me a whole new perspective on things, especially given the benefits of being able to share my YouTube journey with people in my classes, my professors and just out in public to start a conversation. YouTube has given me so many social avenues that, in a way, have helped me be more open with people and allowed me to break out of my social anxiety shell.

Now that I’ve been working on my YouTube channel consistently for the better part of a year and a half, I feel more free to be expressive and it feels great. It gives me a sense of self-confidence that I haven’t had before, not even in high school. I’m just glad I feel free with myself and see the world as a good place with good people in it. And because YouTube has helped me out with that, I am forever grateful for it. Maybe watch one of my videos and see where I get that newfound confidence. Personally, I think it will help you find yourself just like it did for me.

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