You’ve been caught on video before. Horrible, isn’t it?

No matter what the occasion or how much fun you were having at the time, when you see the video later on all you can think is… I look weird. I sound funny. I wish this wasn’t posted on the internet for the world and his dog to see.

I feel you. Seeing myself on video freaks me out, too. And from what other writers tell me, we’re not alone.

But the world is video-oriented now. Even books have video trailers, and adding video to your skill set means you can command higher rates for some of your online writing gigs by including a short video clip as part of the service package.

Time to kick this video phobia to the kerb. It’s a tough one, so it’ll take 3 kicks to get it done. You ready?

#1: Kick Out Your Fear

Oh gods, the fear. It’s coming to get you.

Wait, what is?

What is it that you fear? Looking silly? Saying something wrong? Making your bad hair day a public event?

You know video can be edited just like writing, right? Yep. That time your webcam fell over: cut. That weird face you pulled: deleted. That moment when every word came out wrong: like it never happened.

Listen, just get some basic equipment together –a webcam, maybe a separate microphone—and make a video. You don’t ever have to show it to anybody if you don’t want to.

Whatever you fear, it isn’t here. You can edit out anything you don’t like, keep the best bits, and nobody will ever know about the rest.

Or, if you’re me, you can string together a few of your embarrassing video moments for fun and encourage more bloggers to give it a shot. Here you go:

 

#2: Kick Off Your Shoes

If you’re not comfortable physically, it’s even harder to feel comfortable in front of the camera. Put on your comfiest clothes, get a chair or wear slippers if you want, but make sure there’s nothing irritating you to make you fidget or frown.

Once you’re settled and physically feeling fine, kick off your mental shoes too. This isn’t an interrogation chamber. You’re just sitting and talking to people, showing your face like in any real-world conversation, maybe showing them some stuff on your computer too. The people you’re talking to won’t see it until later, so you can edit your video as much as you want. Relax!

#3: Kick Into Action

What’s stopping you from making a video today? What would you have to do to make that possible?

Here are some of the most common obstacles I hear about from freelance writers who want to make videos:

• “I don’t have a good enough camera or webcam.”

OK, buy one. If you can’t buy one, borrow one. If you can’t borrow one, ask yourself if the webcam you’ve got right now is at least good enough to practise with. Then get practising.

• “I don’t know what to say.”

You’re a writer. Start there. Write it out just as if it were a blog post or an article. Then read it aloud in front of the camera. The first time you do this, it’s likely to be a bit stilted, but if you run through it a few times you’ll start to speak more naturally.

• “I don’t know how to edit a video.”

There are plenty of free video editing options, and they come with user guides that show you how to do the essentials. If you’re using a computer to read this, you may already have a basic video editor installed that comes with your operating system software. Or you can upload your video to YouTube—set it to Private if you don’t want anyone else to see it yet—and edit it with the built-in editor there. These tools are designed to make it easy on you!

• “I look too old/young/skinny/fat/whatever to make videos.”

The people you make your videos for won’t be watching them because of how you look. They’ll watch because of what you say. This isn’t a beauty contest, so don’t let your message go to waste. Make the video, watch it back, and if the message is good then it’s all good.

• “I get nervous.”

Confidence comes from action. Start practising now and you’ll be confident soon. But if you let this drift away, you’ll never gain the confidence to do it. The sooner you give it your first try, the better.

More clients than ever are interested in hiring writers who can create short videos too. Don’t let stage fright or a lack of fancy equipment stop you from making extra money with video—this is an opportunity to tap into a whole new market.

All you have to do is relax, practise, and keep it simple.

Action!

Sophie Lizard, the founder of Be a Freelance Blogger, is here to fuel your freelance blogging success. She's fascinated by both brain science and rocket surgery, but most of all by words. Talk to her!