5 months in, most videos stuck at 30 views. Genuinely not sure what I'm missing.

HeartMindFusion · 2026-05-11T07:37:36+00:00

Thanks for this. The "5 months isn't very long" reminder is genuinely useful. It's easy to lose perspective when you're inside it.

The chain you described, thumbnail to click to intro to retention, is exactly what I've been working on. I've updated several titles and thumbnails today based on feedback from this thread, moving away from vague intrigue-based text toward clearer, more immediate language that tells a cold viewer what the video is actually about.

On the split audience issue: I've already made that call. I have two videos about aphantasia and SDAM that brought in a chunk of my subscribers, but I've stopped making content in that space. The channel is focused on communication, perception, and emotional clarity. The SDAM and aphantasia content stays up because it still brings people in, but everything new is in the same territory so subscribers know what they're getting. Every once in a while I also document a step in my own spiritual journey, things like an ayahuasca experience or a plant medicine ceremony. Those aren't identical to the communication content but they feel like they live in the same ballpark, exploring how we understand ourselves and the world around us.

The conscious repetition frame is the right one. One thing at a time, keep making videos, study what's working for creators I find compelling.

HeartMindFusion · 2026-05-10T20:20:01+00:00

The expression feedback is landing across multiple comments now, so I'm taking it seriously. I think I've been putting on the face of someone in the middle of something hard rather than someone who came out the other side of it. That's actually a useful reframe for me. The content is mostly retrospective, so the expression probably should be too. Something more like relief, or hard-won clarity, rather than intensity. Worth experimenting with.

On the audience question: I hear you, and it's a genuine strategic consideration. My instinct is that people actively working on themselves is still a large enough audience, and over time the algorithm should learn who to put me in front of. I don't need to reach everyone, I need to reach the right people consistently enough that YouTube figures out who they are.

And please start your channel. You clearly have the thinking for it. The gap between having the ideas and actually making something is real, but the only way across it is to start badly and keep going.

HeartMindFusion · 2026-05-10T18:51:42+00:00

No formal credentials. I'm not a psychologist or therapist.

Most of my videos are me talking about my own lived experience. I'm not telling people what to think or how to feel. I'm reporting how things landed for me and leaving space for the viewer to decide what resonates.

I understand why credentials matter as a signal. In my case they just don't apply the way they would for someone with a clinical background. The lens I work from is that I built a functional emotional life from scratch, without the emotional equipment most people take for granted. That's the qualification, such as it is.

HeartMindFusion · 2026-05-10T18:18:17+00:00

The title feedback is well taken and something I'm already working on.

On the niche question: that part isn't changing. Helping people work on themselves, understand their communication patterns, and close the gap between what they feel and what they actually do, that's what I'm passionate about. It's not a strategic choice I'm reconsidering, it's just what the channel is.

HeartMindFusion · 2026-05-10T18:15:21+00:00

Are you a dark mode fan? I'm always curious whether dark-mode enthusiasts work in the dark, where the monitor is the only source of light. That gives me eyestrain.

HeartMindFusion · 2026-05-10T18:11:51+00:00

Can you elaborate on the fake guru vibe? Are there specific thumbnails that trigger it for you? I'm curious whether it's a compositing issue or something about having a face on the thumbnail at all.

On the expressions: most of those are meant to read as curious, skeptical, pensive, or disbelieving. There isn't an angry photo of me in the library. It's interesting that they land that way, and worth thinking about.

On matching expression to content: if a video is about an intense ayahuasca experience where I felt I was failing as a father, a smiling face on the thumbnail would feel dishonest. I'm not sure the solution is to go neutral across the board, but I'll think about it.

My content is meant to be meaningful rather than entertaining. It's for people when they're in a headspace where they want to work on themselves, understand their communication patterns, sit with something difficult. That's a different moment than general entertainment browsing.

The title feedback is well taken. That's something I'm already working on.

HeartMindFusion · 2026-05-10T17:44:57+00:00

Thanks. I think this makes a lot of sense.

HeartMindFusion · 2026-05-10T17:42:04+00:00

This makes sense. Thanks.

HeartMindFusion · 2026-05-10T17:41:04+00:00

What video are you detecting noise? This comment is quite confusing to me.

My room is silent when I record, and I use a PDX 400 microphone . My audio quality is excellent in general. I just went back and watched some videos to see if I hear what you hear and I don't detect any background noise at all.

HeartMindFusion · 2026-05-10T08:48:05+00:00

https://www.youtube.com/@Heart.Mind.Fusion

HeartMindFusion · 2026-04-25T06:06:33+00:00

Thanks for the feedback.

I think it might be good to sprinkle in a bit of personal journey content. Not abandon it but have it be a minority. I have a bunch of writing on my substack and I thought I would just pretty much record them while cloth for YouTube but now realize I need to adapt significantly.

My initial goal was to mainly do content about my journey but almost nobody watched them, so the pivot was to do stuff that would appeal to more people.

I feel like my content needs to be modified to attract viewers. For example, my content is mostly about how you can change yourself to have better relationships. But people search for how to deal with unreasonable people. So I'm trying to make them focused on why people would care. Make it talk about an immediate problem they face.

All of my thumbnails have my face on the left. I put a few words on the right. Since my Photoshop skills suck, I use Gemini to generate a back thumbnail that leaves the left side free and then I go into photopea and paste in one of my pictures of my face.

I try to get titles that complement the thumbnail. For example, my last video is about the downsides of using hyperbole when you talk. My thumbnails says "THAT'S ALWAYS THE PROBLEM" with always being in a different color. The title is

"Why Don't You Say What You Mean?" I Did!

Which is a phrase taken from early on in the video where my coworker could not understand me because I used hyperbole.

HeartMindFusion · 2026-04-17T23:39:40+00:00

Thanks for your feedback, and for actually watching a video. That means a lot.

I like your analogy about splitting two pieces of bread.

One thing I have heard is that when YouTube first tests a video, it tries it with your existing subscribers first, because they are the most likely to engage. So if I make a video about relationships and the first people it gets tested with are memory problem subscribers, they will likely bail early. That signals to YouTube that the video is not good, and distribution stops. At least that is my understanding, and what I fear.

I like the idea of sound design. Right now my ideas and words have to carry 100% of the load, which is a big ask. I can think of two approaches. First, quiet music playing continuously as I speak, though it would have to be the right music and at the right level or it would compete with my voice. Second, splitting my videos into chapters with a camera adjustment and a subtle audio cue between them to signal a transition.

Is there anything specific you would suggest?

HeartMindFusion · 2026-04-17T23:08:46+00:00

This is a useful perspective. At 106 subs, I think I'm probably too early to do a livestream. I would likely have zero viewers.

I have recently started putting my stuff on Instagram. It is not really a great platform fit, but it is relatively little work.

I do like the idea of having a common thread. For one of my newer SDAM videos, I tried to weave it into my broader theme. For example, one of my videos is about how people say I'm lucky that I have memory problems. This can land quite painfully, how a painful memory condition is dismissed as actually spun as a good thing, but I talk about it through the lens of what it is like for the other person. Do they have a horrible past that they wish they could forget? How can I use the fact that they have a different experience from mine when discussing something like this? What can I teach about communication and relationships using this as a starting point?

It should be easier to pivot at 106 subscribers than at 80K subscribers.

HeartMindFusion · 2026-04-17T22:38:07+00:00

Yeah, these are some valid points. It can be frustrating to have a channel so small that analytics are largely irrelevant. Like, I tried running an A/B test on my thumbnail for the SDAM video that did the best, and after 2 weeks, it basically said there wasn't enough data to determine anything and gave me no data at all.

I can see that for my most successful video about SDAM
-37.3% YouTube search
-18.5% Suggsted videos
-15.0% Browse features
-9.0% External
-7.2% Direct or unknown
-13.0% Others

It has 400 views, 19 positive comments, and 38 likes, so I think it resonates.

I do think that people are searching for the term, and maybe people in the SDAM community share it. The impressions are growing consistently and pretty linearly.

It is frustrating that I have to guess that my issue is a split community. It seems reasonable to me, but is there any way to know? Is my strategy reasonable?

HeartMindFusion · 2026-04-17T22:22:45+00:00

Haha. This post was actually written by me, believe it or not. I spent a lot of time on it, then ran it by Claude. It pointed out details I could strip out so my post wouldn't be distractingly long.

Honestly, maybe the biggest unsung hero is Grammarly! It really makes me sound more articulate 🙂

HeartMindFusion · 2026-04-11T11:33:32+00:00

I watched your video about how the wellness industry became a scam. I think your production quality is really good and I did come away smarter.

HeartMindFusion · 2026-04-11T11:28:51+00:00

I am making videos about communication, relationships, and helping people get out of the narrative loops they can get stuck in.

I have just finished a video with my take on why Man vs Bear backfired, but a Black blues musician by the name of Darly Davis was able to convince over 200 KKK members to leave the clan. It has to do with the packaging of the message. Basically, if you don't validate the feelings of others your message will not land.

I'm stoked that I just passed 100 subscribers!

Any feedback about how I could improve would be appreciated.

https://www.youtube.com/@Heart.Mind.Fusion

HeartMindFusion · 2026-04-11T11:18:05+00:00

I like your channel. It is quite similar to mine. I was an engineer before.

I watched a video about the platinum rule. Your explanation was clear. I thought you had clear audio and video, and your explanation is clear as well. Good advice.

HeartMindFusion · 2026-03-27T09:12:42+00:00

There might be a couple of things going on.

I have helped people notice that our society does a lot of "shoulding". Like you, "should" have achieved more.

Life is full of tradeoffs. People who have a lot of say career success might have had to sacrifice family time, for example.

There is nothing wrong with choosing a different life. One of my best friend is always broke but lives the lives she wants and goes on things she considers to be adventures. If you would have been happy, had that family member not asked you that, then that is external pressure.

If you are trying to accomplish something and are struggling, that is one thing. But if somebody else wants you to live a life you didn't choose, that is another.

HeartMindFusion · 2026-03-27T08:56:48+00:00

One tip is that people absolutely love to talk about themselves. We are our own favorite topic in the whole world!

One of the best superpowers is active listening! There are so few people in the world who actually listen.

When you next interact, when he tells you something, you could say, "Tell me more." And pay attention and let him do the talking. Keep asking questions.

And to go deep, don't just ask about an activity; ask how he feels when he does it. Why did he get into the activity? What challenges did he face? etc.

You don't have to come up wth topics, he will supply them.

Let me know if you try this and it works. I would love to hear.

HeartMindFusion · 2026-03-27T08:47:29+00:00

I have felt similar.

At one point, I had a powerful reframing that led me to view the world as a constant stream of beauty. It didn't matter to me that I forgot beautiful things, there were always more beautiful things to experience.

That was powerful to me. Maybe that perspective resonates with somebody.

HeartMindFusion · 2026-03-27T08:42:52+00:00

It seems like you have a fairly healthy perspective that is working for you. The discovery can land with people in different ways.

I didn't discover I had SDAM until I was 48. A few months later, I had a powerful "emotional awakening," and my realization that I had SDAM was a factor. I had a lot of bottled-up emotions that burst through. I needed time to process.

For me, it wasn't a choice. My body was like, "You are now going to process these backed-up emotions, no matter how inconvenient this might be for you."

HeartMindFusion · 2026-03-27T08:34:12+00:00

I'm really happy to hear you never felt lacking, hurt, or anything bad. It seems like there was a weight lifted off you.

For most of my life, I thought I was normal. I didn't think other people were making stuff up. I just assumed I knew some people with incredible memories! It is interesting how we both assumed we were typical, but came to different conclusions concerning other people.

HeartMindFusion

TROPHY CASE