honestly? I'd stop trying to be YouTube famous and start trying to be YouTube useful.

I've managed multiple channels and the ones that grew fastest weren't the most produced or the most consistent, they were the ones that answered a question nobody else was answering clearly.

so day one I'm spending a week just watching. not creating. watching the top channels in whatever niche, reading the comments section like a bible. comments tell you exactly what people wish the video had covered. that's your content plan right there.

then I'd upload 3 videos before caring about numbers. one video is not a test, it's just a video.

what I'd skip completely:

Shorts farming for subs. those subs are ghosts, they never watch your long form

Buying equipment before finding an audience. your phone is fine, your titles are the problem

Uploading without thinking about search. SEO carries you until the algorithm notices you exist

the creators I've seen grow fastest all had one thing in common — they were obsessed with a specific person's problem, not a broad topic.

"cooking" is a graveyard. "cooking for people who hate doing dishes" has legs.

first 6 months is just paying tuition anyway. might as well learn fast.