When I produced my first videos, I used a Sony Handicam, which I would not recommend if we were still back in 2010. I had to hook up the camera to my tv, transfer it to another device, then to my computer. It was the only way with what I had available. After a few videos using that setup, I got my first smartphone. And everything was so much easier. 

I didn’t know at the time that 7 years later, I’d be asked to teach people how to use their phones to record videos and take pictures for their own businesses. 

There were a bunch of times I wanted to quit. I mean, there were people producing their own videos with pretty face setups and expensive cameras and here I was playing around with my phone. I didn’t feel legit. But I was part of a small group of people who made their own videos every week based on a theme. For fun. And one of our teachers, I consider him my mentor. 

He told me to cut the shit and stop comparing myself. To the point. And it took me hearing that several times (and more) before I started to lean into producing my own videos with whatever I had available. Which, until 2018, was my phone. 

I made some fantastic friends who inspired me, both with my phone and with a camera. One on particular worked with some pretty big brands. And he saw no shame in using a phone. He seemed to be obsessed with video just as much as I was. I also caught some rude and judgy comments from other videographers. But I noticed the rude ones were also pursuing the clients I was working with or who expressed interest in working with me. So I made a mental note of who inspired me and who I learned from…in a different way.

And so I keep creating. The video at the top of this post was created solely with phones, by the way. It’s made appearances at public speaking events, networking presentations, and as an encouraging word for frustrated small business owners struggling to keep going. 

It’s not about the equipment. It’s about the story.

You can do it too. Start posting something. It starts with one.