In 2013, 15-year-old me created a second Snapchat account, sharing daily updates, and gathering a small following in my local area. "HanWillsVlogs" turned into my alter-ego, allowing my personal account to stay followed by friends only.
People tried to persuade me to move to YouTube, saying they wanted full videos rather than just the odd story here or there. They seemed convinced I had it in me to do well. But something always stopped me — probably a combination of a fear of the unknown and being scared of the reaction I would get.
I finally started a YouTube channel in September 2019 when I was 21, to document a trip to Asia with my friend Vas. It felt like the perfect time to take the plunge because the worst-case scenario was having a memento of our travels, and the best outcome was continuing to grow the channel when we returned. We had nothing to lose.
Vas and I created the channel together, which made starting out less daunting. Two years later we've racked up almost 50,000 views, and still love making content. Looking back, I only wish I'd done it sooner. Here's what we've learned so far.