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As a business or social media manager, you may find yourself turning to Youtube for guidance and inspiration. While Youtube can be an excellent source of knowledge, it’s important to remember that there is a fine line between learning and too much time spent consuming without producing. Let’s dive into why this is so important and how to combat the all-too-common pitfall of spending too much time learning on Youtube and not producing content.

Online Consumption vs. Creation

The difference between online consumption and creation is key when talking about learning on Youtube. Content consumption includes watching videos, reading blogs, or browsing through comment sections — any activity that involves taking in information without putting anything out there yourself. Content creation, on the other hand, requires you to actively participate in the process by creating something new or adding something meaningful to the conversation.

For example, while it may be beneficial to watch video tutorials on how to build a website from scratch, it won’t do much good if you don’t actually apply what you learn and create your own website. Sure, you might learn something here or there but until you take action and start creating your own content based off of what you have learned, your efforts will remain incomplete.

You Can't Believe Everything You (Learn) On The Internet

YouTube is one of the most useful websites for learning a new skill or two. It's also one of the most useless. As we've all been taught from a very young age (at least those of us that are younger millennials and Gen Z'ers), you can't believe everything you read on the Internet. Some creators put out some truly useful content but some are there just for the views and ratings. 

A helpful way you can distinguish useful information from useless is by double-checking what you learn. Do a quick Google search or look elsewhere on YouTube to see if other creators have mentioned the same thing. 

Actively Take Notes

One way to stay focused while learning is to tap into one of the most beneficial ways to retain knowledge: note taking. This allows you to jot down ideas as they come up so that you can refer back to them later when it comes time to produce content of your own. Not only does this help keep things organized in your head but it also helps ensure that what you are consuming sticks with you long after the video has ended.

Conclusion

Don't get us wrong, YouTube can be tremendously helpful for learning new skills and honing your craft. The problem has never been YouTube, itself, it's been the trap you sometimes find yourself in when consuming the content.

It’s easy to get lost in a world of endless Youtube videos; however, it is important not only consume content but also create based off of what we have learned from our research. Taking active notes can help keep us organized while we learn so that we can quickly refer back and use our newfound knowledge when producing our own content later on down the line. All in all, the most successful business owners are those who know how best utilize their time — both learning and producing — for maximum efficiency and success!