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Hey guys! So 2013 was a pretty amazing year for me.
As many of you know, I actually left my full time job as an engineer to pursue a career
in YouTube. So, anyway I just wanted to take this time
to recap some of the best videos that I made this year as well as talk about the not-so-great
worst videos I made, and you know, just kind of tell the story behind those as well as
share some of the things that I learned through my experiences.
So, here we go. So the first video that I ever, ever made,
was the Secret to being a Baller. And I had never ever ever ever made a YouTube
video before, and so now when I go back and watch that video, I just cannot.
It is way too embarrassing. I had no idea what to do for my intro and
I know that you had to avert your eyes for the last 5 seconds, but please don't stop
watching... please? But I am really proud of that video because
I submitted it to Internet Icon and for some reason they accepted me, that video, into
their top 100 entries. Which actually probably tells you more about
the competition than about my actual video. But anyway the thing that I learned from this
video is if you want to do something, you just gotta just go, and do it.
And at the time, you're going think that you made the greatest video in the world, that
you're the best? And it's okay! To be... completely delusional.
So yeah. So the next video I want to talk about is
love camp. If you've ever seen it -- well, if you haven't
seen it, don't watch it -- but if you have seen it, then you know that it is literally
the worst video of all time on all of YouTube. And that is not an exaggeration.
I cannot watch it without stopping it within the first 10 seconds.
If I was your boyfriend, I'd never let you go. Swag, swag, swag, swag...
The thing is though, that is one of the most fun videos I have ever made.
I actually co-wrote, co-directed, and co-edited the video with my friend DaeYoon in one weekend.
And it was just an amazing time, I remember we were like "Oh my gosh, we're like wong
fu! We're driving around doing multiple takes
at multiple locations with multiple actors. And while doing that video is probably a bad
idea because it was the worst video ever created, that definitely was a turning point in which
I thought to myself, wow... I could see myself doing this YouTube thing as full time as a
career.... Maybe. By far, the most successful video on my channel
in 2013 in terms of views and response was Labels.
It's funny though, because this was the first video I made where I actually did not intend
for it to be shared with a broad audience. In fact, I made it as an application video
to get into the Jubilee Project film fellowship. If I am given this amazing opportunity, you
will see the most hardworking, the most passionate, the most enthusiastic dreamer soak in everything
that you guys have to offer. And I will use those tools that you guys provide
to pursue my dream: Inspire lives 1 video at a time.
And thankfully I got in. Butthe thing is, I learned from making this
video that it's all about focusing on the creativity and art of making videos as opposed
to simply thinking about ideas that will go viral.
You see, I feel like I'm happiest and I make the best content when I love what I'm doing,
when the video reflects my true personality and what I believe in.
And I learned that success is really about being excellent at your craft, and not about
seeking the fame that goes with it. This year I also did a cover of the viral
song "What does the fox say", in Chinese.
Ironically, this video has gotten the most
views on my channel despite being the one I spent the least amount of time and effort
on. As you can see, I'm pretty average at singing
and am certainly not fluent in Chinese. It was cool though because I learned how to
say a couple different animals in Chinese and it was so much fun making this with Mia,
although trying to do it in one take was a bit stressful.
Finally, the last project I took on in 2013 was A Cat That Barks, which told the story
of Asian Americans who don't speak their native language growing up.
This was directed by my friend David, and it was definitely the best piece and my personal
favorite on my channel. After we finished the video, we actually had
this goal to get to 10k views in one month. In retrospect, that was really silly because
we were constantly texting and telling each other "10k views," "10k views!"
And, yeah, that video actually flatlined at around 3.5k views.
It's all good though, I really really enjoyed making that video and it motivated me to start
learning more Chinese. Also, some of my viewers said that it inspired
them to start learning their native language too, so that was really cool.
Overall, I had an amazing year. If you want to read more about how my year
went, you can visit my Tumblr where I talk more about everything more in depth with links
to all the cool stuff. But thank you guys so much for being supportive;
I read every comment and every message and every tweet that you guys leave me and you
all inspire me as much as I attempt to inspire you guys.
I love you guys, and have a blessed 2014! Bye!