Overview

Introduction Page 3

1 Find Popular Problems Page 4

2 Use Reddit to Research Page 9

3 The Outlier Rule Page 17

4 Study Your Suggested Follows Page 20

5 Use AI Like MKBHD Page 22

6 Ask Your Audience Page 25

7 Look Off YouTube Page 28

8 The Napkin Test Page 32

Overview 2
 Introduction
The big question I love to ask creators during my interviews is: “Where do
you find your best ideas?”

After all, if you can’t find great ideas for your content, everything else falls apart.

I’ve asked that question to MrBeast, Marques Brownlee, and many top
creators over the years — and heard some fascinating answers.

In this book, I compiled their best

answers, tips, and tactics — along
with what I learned working inside
YouTube and Instagram for 8 years
— so you improve your creative
process. Immediately.

That way, you’ll find better ideas

for your next post whether it’s on
YouTube, Instagram, TikTok, X or
LinkedIn.

No fluff. No BS. Just proven tips.

Let’s dive in, shall we?

introduction 3
 TIP 1

Find Popular
Problems
Pop quiz: what do these videos have in common?

Find Popular Problems 4

They each solve “popular problems,” which are problems lots of people
struggle with and search for. Such as:

How to balance life and meal prep?

I don’t know what to wear
How do I buy a watch?
How do I start coding?

Great entrepreneurs build products to solve problems. Same for creators.

Except your product is your content.

In other words, great creators make content to solve problems.

For example, my video Ex-

YouTube Employee Exposes How
To Grow YouTube Channel by
studying the biggest problems
people face when trying to start
a YouTube channel.

When to comes to finding popular problems, there are 2 methods:

The YouTube Incognito Method

The Quora Method

Find Popular Problems 5

Method 1: YouTube Incognito

YouTube knows you too well. Their autofill predicts your search. And that’s
not ideal when researching new ideas with mass appeal.

Using Incognito Mode on Google Chrome gets around this. That way, when
searching “how to...(fill in blank)”, your results aren’t swayed by your past
search or watch history.

Instead, it just shows you the most common searches and popular problems
in your niche.

Here’s an example from my niche:

Find Popular Problems 6

Method 2: Quora
Most people know Quora as the site to ask oddly specific questions. But it
can also be a powerful way to find problems if you do the following:

1 Type in your niche (cooking, fashion, etc.)

2 Sort by “Questions”
3 Sort by “All Time”
4 Find most active questions
5 Make content that answers those questions

Here’s what that looks like in practice:

Find Popular Problems 7

Just like that, you have a list of top questions in your niche that you can
make content about.

PRO TIP: The top question isn’t always the best

for a video. But the most active will have the most
discussion, which means more content for your video.

Find Popular Problems 8

 TIP 2

Use Reddit
to Research
Before we dive in, here’s a story from when I worked at Instagram and visited
BuzzFeed’s offices.

The BuzzFeed team told us about how they got billions of views by
researching their ideas on Reddit.

Wednesday Next
Monday Tuesday Month

They had this hilarious saying: if a post was on Reddit on Monday, then it’d
be on Buzzfeed by Tuesday, then re-shared on social media by Wednesday....
and then by next month, it’d end up on Facebook 😂

Use Reddit to Research 9

Sometimes, great content doesn’t even make it off Reddit, which means there
are so many untapped ideas ready for you to use.

Best of all, Reddit is organized by subreddits, which are communities who

upvote content they’re already interested in.

From r/CookingForBeginners to r/LearnProgramming to r/Graphic_Design —

there is a subreddit for every niche.

Here’s the process to find posts your peers already like:

1 Go to Reddit and search keywords related to your niche

2 Select the subreddits with the most members

3 Within each subreddit, filter by “Top” and “All Time” to catch up

on best posts overall

4 Check back every week and filter by “This Week” to see best
recent posts

5 Once you find a post you like, share it on your socials by reacting,
re-packaging, or re-explaining it (more on that below)

Here’s an example of a top post in a subreddit for marketers:

Use Reddit to Research 10

But here’s the thing. Don’t just want to take the post from Reddit and slap it
on your socials.

It’s important to either react, re-package, or re-explain it:

React: share your expertise or reaction on a piece of content

Re-package: take a deeper dive into the broader topic
Re-explain: clarify something complex

For example, let’s use this post that got 3.7K upvotes:

Use Reddit to Research 11

Reacting is as simple as analyzing the post for your audience — show them
why it matters and what they can learn from it.

When I reacted to this post, that’s exactly what I did (see example on
next page).

I wrote about why it worked and why it fit into a bigger trend that it’s often
better to be less polished to stick out on social media.

Use Reddit to Research 12

The second method is re-packaging which means converting it to a
different format entirely. Like from a written post to a video.

For example, you could make a video essay on why good advertising works
(like the video below) where this Reddit post is just one of many examples
you analyze.

Use Reddit to Research 13

Re-explaining works primarily for written content. It means simplifying a
piece of content or making it clearer.

For example, here’s a post about NFTs (remember when that was a thing?):

“Non-fungible tokens or NFTs are cryptographic assets on blockchain

with unique identification codes and metadata that distinguish them
from each other. Unlike cryptocurrencies, they cannot be traded or
exchanged at equivalency.

It’s downright boring. Here’s how I re-explained it:

Use Reddit to Research 14

 “Buying a Non-Fungible Token (NFT) is like buying a Rolex for today’s
generation. In the digital world, NFT’s convey your status and
community like Rolexes do in the real world.”

How did I re-write that? I used a free tool called HemingwayApp.com. Just
paste your text and it automatically scores it by grade level and color codes
sentences that are hard to read.

The goal? Aim for an 8th grade reading level. Studies show that’s what most
people prefer to read. Especially on social media.

Here’s the before (Grade 14) and after (Grade 8):

Use Reddit to Research 15

Another tip is to remember the 3 C’s. Be Clear, Confident, and Concise in
your writing for social media.

Use this cheatsheet below:

Clear Confident Concise

Translate business Delete words that

Follow these rules to
jargon into simple undermine your
simplify your writing:
words. Such as: authority. Such as:

Less than 25 words

“Sometimes”
Leverage → Use in a sentence.
“Possibly”
Optimize → Perfect Less than 3 sentences
“I think”
Cognizant → Aware in a paragraph.
“Usually’
Commence → Begin Avoid double
“Maybe”
Numerous → Many descriptions (“The
“It seems” room was clean and
Sufficient →Enough tidy” → “The room
”It might”
was clean.”)

Alright, quick recap: source ideas on Reddit, then either React with your
expertise, Re-package by putting it in a larger context, or Re-explain by
clarifying the original content.

Use Reddit to Research 16

 TIP 3

The Outlier Rule

Another pop quiz: what do these 3 videos have in common? Besides the topic,
of course.

They were each massive outliers for their channels.

The Outlier Rule 17

That means the videos brought in far more views than the channel
normally gets.

For Kiun and Jay, their outliers brought in over 10x the views of their
subscriber base.

Why does this matter? It matters because a much bigger audience — one
that doesn’t usually watch these creators — decided to watch this video.

In other words, the video did something right.

So study the thumbnail, title, and concept because there is a reason these
went viral. Analyze how the videos are structured, scripted, and edited. And
adapt it for your videos.

Now you may be thinking…how do I find these outliers? Here’s the step-by-
step process:

The Outlier Rule 18

 1 Open YouTube

2 Search 1-3 words related

to your idea

3 Sort by “View count”

4 Sort by “Anytime”

5 Click on top videos

6 Check subscriber count

7 Make a list of videos where views are at least 5X the channel’s

subscriber count

From there, you’ll have a much stronger starting point to adapt ideas that are
already proven versus starting from scratch like most creators.

The Outlier Rule 19

 TIP 4

Study Your
Suggested Follows
You might think you know your niche — but Instagram knows it for a fact.
There’s a sneaky way to figure out exactly what other accounts it groups
you with.

Here’s what I learned when I worked at Instagram:

1 Go to friend’s account or create a 2nd Instagram account

2 Search for your main Instagram account

3 Follow yourself (or unfollow then follow again)

4 Look for that tray of suggested accounts that pops up

5 Click on those accounts to study their hits and flops

Below, I’ve included visuals of what that looks like.

Study Your Suggested Follows 20

Those suggested follows are the accounts Instagram’s algorithm groups you
with. You have the most overlap in followers.

Knowing your suggested accounts is really powerful because their posts

tend to resonate with your audience. A lot.

So study your suggested accounts. Look at their best and worst performing
posts. Comment on them if you feel comfortable.

In no time, you’ll find trends and formats to apply to your next posts and
bring even more like-minded followers over to you.

Study Your Suggested Follows 21

 TIP 5

Use AI
Like MKBHD
Everyone is talking about the future of AI but…what’s the best way to use
it today?

Most AI tools generate bland ideas.

But when I interviewed Marques Brownlee (MKBHD), he said something

genius.

He said he asks ChatGPT to “give me sequels” to his past videos if they

performed well.

Or he asks ChatGPT to “give me

the opposite” of his best videos
or others from his peers.

That’s how these videos

came about:

Use AI Like MKBHD 22

The difference with Marques’ prompt is he’s not starting the AI off at level 0.

He has a video that performed well, and he’s asking the AI how to build off its
success.

Here’s my results asking ChatGPT for “sequels” to one of my videos,

Ex -YouTube Employee Exposes How To Grow YouTube Channel.

Use AI Like MKBHD 23

It’s the same idea with asking for the opposite point of view. By starting
ChatGPT off with Marques’ perspective (getting the AI above level 0), it’s
much more suited to help you ideate.

Use AI Like MKBHD 24

 TIP 6

Ask Your Audience

You’d be surprised how many creators never do this.

Nobody knows your audience better than, well, your audience. With
LinkedIn, X, Instagram, and YouTube’s poll features, it’s easier than ever to
get their input.

Before most uploads, I poll my audience on thumbnail and title ideas.

Ask Your Audience 25

 PRO TIP: this isn’t just great for choosing ideas. It’s
also great for marketing them as these posts tend to
perform really well.

Another way I source ideas is by asking my audience: “Who should I

interview next?”

Or, “what do you guys want to see more of? Interviews, Explainers, or
Studio Tours?”

Ask Your Audience 26

If you make gaming videos, ask your audience what they’ve been playing
lately. If you make cooking content, ask what problems they’re having in the
kitchen.

For every niche, the questions you ask will be slightly different.

You can even ask how often they check a certain platform, if they watch
videos with sound on or off, and more. All of this helps dial in your
future posts.

Bottom line: the more invested your audience is in your process, the more
invested they’ll be in the outcome.

Ask Your Audience 27

 TIP 7

Look Off YouTube

To Win On YouTube
Studying other creators on social media is important. But don’t dismiss
Hollywood because it’s “too traditional.”

If YouTube is the only place you look for inspiration, you’re missing decades
of knowledge that could set you apart.

Don’t just take it from me. During my interview with MrBeast, he revealed
this thumbnail for his recent video was actually inspired by watching Apple
TV’s show Severance.

Look Off YouTube To Win On YouTube 28

Jimmy’s thumbnail designer watched the show and saw the overhead shot
(top left). He mocked up the thumbnail, and refined it until they had the final
version (bottom right).

That video now has over 300 million views.

Since then, I look at TV shows, billboards, and movie posters completely

differently.

In fact, I’m not embarrassed to say this thumbnail I made was inspired by a
Spy Kids billboard I saw while driving. I literally made a U-turn, pulled over,
and took this photo.

But it makes sense — on every Hollywood set, there’s a Director of

Photography whose entire job is to create stunning shots. There’s graphic
designers who spend their careers making billboards and posters to catch
your attention in a nanosecond.

Look Off YouTube To Win On YouTube 29

It goes beyond thumbnails too. You can apply this to video formats, your
scripting, and so much more.

Airrack’s I Trapped 25 Strangers in a Box is a recreation of the CBS reality

show Big Brother which first aired in 2000.

Hollywood YouTube

Big Brother Airrack’s “I trapped 25

Strangers in a Box”

The Sidemen’s Tinder in Real Life is a very similar concept to MTV’s dating
show Next from 2005.

Hollywood YouTube

Next Sidemen’s “Tinder in Real Life”

Look Off YouTube To Win On YouTube 30

Even my street interviews were inspired by Jay Leno’s “Jay Walking” sketches:

Hollywood YouTube

Jay Leno’s “Jay Walking” Creators vs Celebs

Bottom line: study traditional media — past and present — because there is so
much you can apply to YouTube to stand out.

Look Off YouTube To Win On YouTube 31

 TIP 8

The Napkin Test

Now that you know how to find ideas, the question remains: which ideas
do you make into a video? Versus keep as a written post for LinkedIn, X,
or Threads?

After all, making a video is much harder. So why spend the time and money
on it if you don’t have to?

Cleo Abram (2M subscribers) has a genius answer to that question.

Especially because she’s made “boring” topics go viral, whether it’s her
videos about oceans or space.

The Napkin Test 32

During our interview, Cleo shared how she decides when an idea is worth
making into a video.

“When I need to show something on my phone and pause it and be

like...‘You see this?’ That’s a good video,” Abram said. “Otherwise it
should just be an essay because that’s much easier to write.”

It’s a process called The Napkin Test.

Imagine explaining your video idea to a friend. Do you have to:

Draw anything on a napkin to prove your point?

Pull out your phone to show them a photo?
Repeat words like “this” or “that” to point to anything?

If yes, your idea has enough visuals to be a video.

If no, your idea is better off as a text post. Post it on X, your newsletter, or
turn it into an article.

That way, you’ll save a ton of time.

The Napkin Test 33

 One More Thing
There’s more I couldn’t fit in this book so here’s a few extra resources:

Insider Accelerator: join my paid accelerator program where I roast

your content, show you how to improve it, and host workshops to save
you years of mistakes (www.Insider.school)

Discord Community: join 5,000 creators who are helping each other
grow, giving feedback on videos, and answering your questions (Discord.
gg/Created)

Newsletter: join my weekly newsletter where I breakdown the latest

creator news and tips (www.Created.news)

Excited to see what you create next.

Reach out if I can ever be helpful: Jon@Youshaei.com.

Jon Youshaei
One More Thing 34