Transcript
Speaker: The clock of peace.
Speaker: What's up and welcome to the To Conquer Peace podcast.
Speaker: I'm your host, D'Angelo.
Speaker: On this podcast, we explore ways for creatives to overcome creative block.
Speaker: This season is dedicated to the gift of information and how that could lead to releasing the stigma of something being too big or unobtainable.
Speaker: I'm going to say this every time, but today I have a special guest and I really mean it this time, y'all, in the room.
Speaker: She is many things, a mother, a wife, a manager, an agent, an author, a food anthropologist, a content creator,
Speaker: And my sister-in-law, ladies and gentlemen, Danita.
Speaker: What's up?
Speaker: Hi.
Speaker: How are you?
Speaker: I'm good.
Speaker: It was funny typing out all the things that you do.
Speaker: I'm like, that's crazy.
Speaker: Thank you.
Speaker: Thank you for having me.
Speaker: Thank you for doing this.
Speaker: I'm excited about the episodes.
Speaker: I think it's going to be really interesting.
Speaker: Yeah.
Speaker: I agree.
Speaker: And it's kind of self therapeutic too.
Speaker: I enjoy offering this resource to everyone.
Speaker: So in addition to all the things that I just named about Danita, she has also amassed 100,000 followers on TikTok when I checked a couple of days ago over the years.
Speaker: First of all, Dee, with all the things that you have your hands in, what sparked the decision to do content on TikTok?
Speaker: Um, it was, it was, I joined because our kids were on there because your nephews were on there.
Speaker: Um, they, um, didn't have social media and then they, you know, talked about it.
Speaker: They wanted to do it, blah, blah, blah.
Speaker: So, okay, fine.
Speaker: No worries.
Speaker: If you're going to be on TikTok, then I'm going to be on TikTok just because it was a new app and I didn't know anything about it.
Speaker: Um, but it seemed really age appropriate, you know, really, really.
Speaker: more age appropriate than like they don't want to be on Facebook they don't want to be on Instagram at the time so that's why I got on to you know to stalk their pages and to make sure nonsense wasn't happening on the internet with them at their very young age at the time and then
Speaker: TikTok being the place that it is, you know, it's a really interesting place, but it's also a great place to find your people.
Speaker: Like it can be really specific who your people are and I guarantee you'll find them on TikTok.
Speaker: That's awesome.
Speaker: I actually didn't know that.
Speaker: I didn't know it began just from as one of the many titles that I've given you or that you live in, a mother, just kind of just trying to make sure that be aware of what they were consuming.
Speaker: in what you were consuming, you kind of found your own niche, it sounds like.
Speaker: And what was that niche?
Speaker: How would you describe it?
Speaker: Gosh, that's so interesting because a part of me feels like I kind of fell into it.
Speaker: And the other part of me feels like I've been doing it my whole life.
Speaker: So I found myself, this was like, I want to say, and I am not good with dates.
Speaker: So please don't get me started about when I joined TikTok, because I don't know.
Speaker: But I feel like the pandemic was probably either gearing up or we were, or we were,
Speaker: full-blown with the pandemic.
Speaker: But I was talking to some people on TikTok, like in the comments and watching videos and things on, and just hearing people kind of just feeling like lost and sort of like really struggling with like normal things, air quotes.
Speaker: So I felt like, well, this is something that I can kind of speak to because
Speaker: I'm the kind of person that likes like an evening pep talk.
Speaker: Like I'm going to give myself a pep talk and say, hey girl, you done good.
Speaker: And so I kind of started doing that and that was resonating with some people.
Speaker: And I was really making the video that I needed to hear.
Speaker: And someone, a large, a really large creator with like a million plus followers did a TikTok follower, people you should follow.
Speaker: And there were no creators of color in their recommendations.
Speaker: This is a white creator.
Speaker: And they make content around gentle, some people call it gentle parenting, being gentle with yourself, that kind of thing.
Speaker: But they were doing like, it's, who was her name?
Speaker: Golly, why did her name just jump out of my head?
Speaker: Casey Davis.
Speaker: That's what it was.
Speaker: And she, so people, she said, you know, I recognize that has happened.
Speaker: And some people tagged me and said, have you heard about Danita Platt?
Speaker: She does gentle content as well.
Speaker: And this was like the little pep talks that I was doing and sort of that kind of thing about, you know, taking care of your, your space, your home, your environment, that sort of thing.
Speaker: And not like raking yourself over the clothes about that.
Speaker: Yeah.
Speaker: And I responded to her video.
Speaker: That's kind of how that got kicked off.
Speaker: But I have a degree in home economics.
Speaker: So that's why I say I feel like it's something I've been doing this whole time.
Speaker: And that's interesting.
Speaker: I think that when I've talked to people who do content and they talk about surviving the process or the grind of it all, it does seem like the people that make it are the people that
Speaker: Well, there are people that are following trends, but then there are also the people that are doing things for themselves or that already connected to who they were.
Speaker: So, you know, in some ways it was fun because they were already in that world.
Speaker: Yes.
Speaker: Yeah, I agree.
Speaker: It's it's.
Speaker: I think it's one of those things where I think I do think if you're having fun, then move right along and.
Speaker: for me, if I do a trend is honestly because I found it entertaining.
Speaker: I was entertained, it was fun, you know, and I have videos like that, but the bulk of my videos are not, they're not trends.
Speaker: I mean, they really are videos that one I needed to hear or I'm answering questions, that kind of thing.
Speaker: I know home economics is something you just spoke on, what being some of your past work experiences, what were some of the other things that you were already doing before this?
Speaker: Like I said, my degree is in home economics.
Speaker: I minored in business.
Speaker: I taught home economics when I graduated from college.
Speaker: And I've kind of gone back and forth between cosmetology and like that side of things and home economics or mental health services for families, sort of like resourcing families and people.
Speaker: So those have been sort of my jobs.
Speaker: And then I stopped working because we started, well, our youngest son, Michael, you know, your nephew, had a medical crisis.
Speaker: He was diagnosed with epilepsy.
Speaker: We needed to pull him out of school until the seizures got under control.
Speaker: And so we started homeschooling.
Speaker: He and his brother, you know, he and Gabriel.
Speaker: Gabriel was just kind of coasting through.
Speaker: So we pulled both of them out and homeschooled them and just happened to homeschool them all the way through graduation.
Speaker: That was not the plan.
Speaker: It just, every year we just kept homeschooling and looked up and it was 12th grade.
Speaker: So that has, well, you know, and then of course they have kept me very busy since they both have businesses.
Speaker: Michael has the baking business that he's done since he was 11 and Gabriel started his multimedia business when he was 13.
Speaker: And they have kept me absolutely inundated, as you know.
Speaker: I've seen that firsthand, the level of inundation.
Speaker: So, okay.
Speaker: And I ask you this because I think when I have seen your TikToks, it always feels like part of your life.
Speaker: You know what I mean?
Speaker: It's not like you stopped and you went to TikTok and that's like everything, right?
Speaker: Because one, it's a process to gain a following.
Speaker: Two, you have to live life in some ways to not just follow trends.
Speaker: You have to live life to have content for inspiration.
Speaker: I thought you had so many different interesting niche categories that were a part of your life.
Speaker: One, some from just a lens of like, for lack of a better description, stay-at-home wife.
Speaker: I remember there was a phase where you were doing like home care, like techniques and stuff like that.
Speaker: How did you figure out what resonated with people?
Speaker: Or was that even your perspective when it came to...
Speaker: your content?
Speaker: Yeah, and I think that's so interesting because I hear people say that, you know, you need to find out what resonates with your audience and then make those videos.
Speaker: I don't think that that's not true, but that is not the driving force of why I make content.
Speaker: Not because I make content because I care about my audience.
Speaker: I care about whoever is going to
Speaker: going to run across, you know, me on the internet.
Speaker: Excuse me.
Speaker: But it isn't, this is what I think resonates with you.
Speaker: And so I'm going to give you that.
Speaker: It is much more, I don't think I am so special and so unique that no one else is having an experience similar to mine.
Speaker: And as a result, I am making videos for the other Danitas out there who are like me, scattered.
Speaker: I say a lot of time, my people,
Speaker: scattered people are my people all over the place people those are my people um and so i i don't think that i'm the only scattered person running around saying i think there's something inside of me that i really want to give the world and i think i can do that even though i'm scattered so i do talk about gentle care tasks um i talk about that through the lens of like being neurodivergent um having
Speaker: other kinds of external and internal obstacles to the everyday tasks that have to be done because the stuff of life gets in the way of that thing on the inside that you're like dying to give the world.
Speaker: I know that struggle of being like, I'm never going to give the world this thing in me because the laundry, the house, the dishes, my responsibilities to my family, to myself, even as a single person,
Speaker: You know, those responsibilities just overwhelm me.
Speaker: Eat up my whole day.
Speaker: Then I look up and I haven't really given the thing.
Speaker: I've done all this other work, but I haven't done my work.
Speaker: And so that's really the crux of what I talk about on TikTok and what I try to encourage people about.
Speaker: Those are the personal battles and obstacles.
Speaker: And then the greater systemic battles and obstacles of systems that,
Speaker: and larger things that we are facing that get in the way of us giving the world what's in us as well.
Speaker: So I do talk about intersectionality a lot because that's one of the major things that gets in the way.
Speaker: One of what people understand about taking care of themselves.
Speaker: And I found this very interesting vein of educating people about the impact
Speaker: and the intersectionality of care tasks and still be able to show up, you know, to give the world within you.
Speaker: So that's, and that's, so you said a lot of good things real quick.
Speaker: If you could define that before I access other questions, define what the intersectionality of what's the phrase you just use?
Speaker: Of care tasks.
Speaker: Yeah.
Speaker: What does that mean?
Speaker: Sure.
Speaker: So when I say that I'm talking about, um,
Speaker: I will give sort of my trajectory in making content about gentle care tasks because that's where it started.
Speaker: If I'm making content about gentle care tasks and we're having this conversation about cooking or conversation about something else that you have to do, care tasks are things that don't stop in order to take care of your life.
Speaker: So if we take cooking, for example, as a care task, something you have to do, and we're talking about that in a larger framework, right?
Speaker: A lot of times there'll be people who say things like, oh, well, let's talk about cleaning.
Speaker: That's an easier one.
Speaker: There'll be people who say things like, you know, if you're not a good, you're not a good wife if your house is not clean.
Speaker: And a lot of times it comes towards women, right?
Speaker: it comes towards because of how society is set up.
Speaker: Well, the other layer of that is that there are ideas and foolishness in that thought process because the country was founded at its genesis on care tasks being the responsibility of enslaved Africans and enslaved African-Americans.
Speaker: So,
Speaker: If we're going to talk about having a different perspective on care tasks where we want people to be able to thrive in their homes, not have to live up to these societal standards that say things have to be like this.
Speaker: My home of origin taught me to do things like this, but that doesn't work for me.
Speaker: And I'm still struggling and I still don't feel like I'm getting the job done.
Speaker: If we're going to push back against those ideas, then we have to also address the white supremacy that is in those ideas that's attached to it simply because throughout the world, when one group enslaves or oppresses another group, they assign that group their care tasks.
Speaker: That is just the nature of care tasks.
Speaker: They are assigned to the oppressed group and the group in power
Speaker: no longer has to facilitate those tasks.
Speaker: So in order to dismantle that, you have to address the inherent bias that is in those tasks, our ideas about them, and how we idealize those tasks.
Speaker: Yeah, and I think you do, I mean, we're talking about some complicated concepts that it's TikTok and you have a limited amount of time to maybe talk about these ideas in bite sizes.
Speaker: But I think that you do a really good job of
Speaker: of looking at situations or issues or things that are inherited, ideas, and unpacking that and peeling the lens back and challenging those things, or even just venting your frustrations in a way that I think it appears that really resonates with a lot of people, which is dope.
Speaker: And you also spoke about something that I think really captures the heart of why we're talking about what we're talking about.
Speaker: You talked about
Speaker: having an aspect of you in you that you want to give out to the world, but there's a little bit of, I mean, I don't know.
Speaker: I don't want to put words in your mouth, but maybe there's things like fear or insecurities or imposter syndrome, like a lot of things that a lot of people get pigeonholed by that prevents them from moving.
Speaker: Was there a point of that in your journey with your content creation?
Speaker: And then if so, how did you overcome and work through that?
Speaker: So I'm an introvert down in my soul.
Speaker: I really am.
Speaker: And absolutely, there is the sense of, you know, speaking into the void and putting something out there that maybe you're not necessarily completely sure of, or you don't know all the steps, or you don't even know half the steps.
Speaker: And so there's these things that are in the way of doing that.
Speaker: And I'll tell you that I am compelled.
Speaker: I don't know how else to put it.
Speaker: I am compelled to make the video.
Speaker: I really am.
Speaker: It is not because I wake up in the morning going, gosh, you know what I want to do my day to day?
Speaker: I want to be on TikTok.
Speaker: That's what I want to do.
Speaker: And it's not because I have a problem with TikTok or any social media outlet.
Speaker: It's just that being on TikTok and especially talking about the things that I talk about, it can create a discourse and a conversation that has to be managed.
Speaker: And I have to, because I have a very engaged community on TikTok, which I'm really grateful for, because it creates, I think,
Speaker: a sensible, genuine connection as much as you can, obviously, through social media.
Speaker: But it also means I have to manage the comment section.
Speaker: You know, I have rules about my comment section.
Speaker: There's not going to be any foolishness in there as much as I can be involved in it.
Speaker: So I say all that to say the back end of posting a video can be a lot of engagement for me as an introvert.
Speaker: And...
Speaker: I don't wake up going, gosh, I just, I want to be on TikTok.
Speaker: What am I going to say?
Speaker: What ends up happening is something happens.
Speaker: I read something.
Speaker: I hear something.
Speaker: I'm following something that's going on.
Speaker: And as I sit and think about it and chew on it, I am compelled to make the video because there's a piece that
Speaker: I genuinely believe could be helpful to people who are struggling with something.
Speaker: And for me, I'm so aware of how I have struggled that when I think about, can I do something to maybe help someone who is struggling?
Speaker: That's what drives me to cut the camera on, quite honestly.
Speaker: That is what drives me.
Speaker: The person who's like, I remember when I felt like that.
Speaker: I honestly do.
Speaker: And I don't know what to do.
Speaker: and I might have a solution for that person, I'm gonna cut the camera and I'm gonna run my mouth.
Speaker: No, I love that.
Speaker: I think that that's powerful in a couple senses, right?
Speaker: Like one, again, it goes back to the motivation behind the content that you make.
Speaker: The content that you make is part of who you are, it's part of your journey.
Speaker: And also, you know, one thing that we might not be able to go into detail on, but you are someone that has been in our entire family
Speaker: has been more explicit about like really sitting and outlining what and why, what you want to do within the world and how you want to do it, what's your voice, what's your lens, like almost like how a nonprofit or a business would sit down and make a vision statement and a mission for their life.
Speaker: So I'd imagine that that was just a natural step because you already had already defined that for yourself.
Speaker: I think...
Speaker: I think it's sort of hand in hand because I will say that in creating content and paying attention to the things that really light me up, the things that do compel me to cut the camera on, that do compel me to sit and do all the research in order to be able to give people a lot of information and walk them through a process, you know, in the amount of time that you have to make a video, I have gathered language about myself.
Speaker: So I did go into it knowing there's something in me that I want to give the world.
Speaker: I'm sure of that.
Speaker: And I went into it with that.
Speaker: I remember going through seasons of my life where every so often I would just call one of my friends and be like, what am I going to do with my life?
Speaker: I know I'm working.
Speaker: I know I'm blah, blah, blah.
Speaker: But what am I going to do with my life?
Speaker: I'm a fully grown adult.
Speaker: And I'm like, what am I going to do when I grow up?
Speaker: Having that question.
Speaker: So I did go into it with that curiosity and that desire, but it was part of developing and honing and kind of like whittling down that very large thought process into something a lot more streamlined is that making videos helped me gather language for why this is not letting me sleep.
Speaker: Like this is keeping me up at night.
Speaker: Why is that?
Speaker: and investigating that helped me gather language so I can better articulate it for other people.
Speaker: No, that's awesome.
Speaker: I mean, that's important too.
Speaker: And, you know, my assumption is people that are listening to this are interested in engaging in TikTok and, you know, getting a following and blah, blah, blah.
Speaker: And, you know, we're talking about the mindset involved there, but it also sounds like, especially in your beginning stages, there was a level of play involved and curiosity that
Speaker: Yeah, absolutely.
Speaker: And so it's a process.
Speaker: Yes, absolutely.
Speaker: Absolutely a process.
Speaker: And because the thing behind it was I knew that there's something that there's something that I want to give.
Speaker: I don't know necessarily how I'm going to do that, but I know there are other people who are having an experience like mine and I might be able to help those people.
Speaker: That's good.
Speaker: Okay, so you spoke a little bit about this.
Speaker: You spoke a little bit about some of the challenges and frustrations of content creating TikTok, specifically content creation.
Speaker: And being an introvert, one, also just the nature of the content you do, you get a variety of opinions that might be triggering or who knows.
Speaker: And you have developed rules for your comments.
Speaker: Are there other like frustrations along in the process that you feel like people should know about when it comes to creating content on TikTok?
Speaker: Um, I am, I know that there are creators who get really, get really, um, really upset about like being shadow banned.
Speaker: I don't, and this is not because I know something.
Speaker: It is legitimately because I don't know.
Speaker: I don't know if shadow banning is a real thing or not a real thing, but I do know that there are creators who are like,
Speaker: I have this many people in my video, this many people following me, my video was only seen by 20 folks today.
Speaker: What in the world?
Speaker: And I know that that can be a point of frustration, especially when people feel like, you know, it took me time to do this.
Speaker: It took effort.
Speaker: It took energy, you know, all of the resources necessary to be able to give people something, you know, that is a quality that you feel good about.
Speaker: Yeah.
Speaker: I know that that can be a frustration.
Speaker: It's not a frustration that I face very often because somehow, some way, I have developed a TikTok community of folks who will look for my content.
Speaker: So whereas in the beginning, when I first started posting videos on TikTok and I was doing that nighttime pep talk,
Speaker: I was like, you know what?
Speaker: I'm gonna post three videos a day on TikTok and just see what happens.
Speaker: It was quite honestly that I'm posting videos and see what happens.
Speaker: I don't know.
Speaker: And I was doing like the nighttime pep talk and then maybe like, I don't know, just saying hello to folks.
Speaker: Like it was all over the place, but I was honestly just doing it because I was curious to see what would happen with the algorithm because the TikTok algorithm is so, algorithm is so responsive.
Speaker: So if you tap not interested,
Speaker: enough, like you tap it three or four times, that content is going to come out of your for you page.
Speaker: So the algorithm was so responsive that I was like, I just want to see what happens.
Speaker: I was just entertained by it and curious by it.
Speaker: But now I have a TikTok following who, like I said, will look for my content.
Speaker: And also I make much longer videos than most people do.
Speaker: And so I have people who watch my videos will sit and watch them.
Speaker: They'll pull out a piece of paper and like take notes.
Speaker: Um, and I only know that because, you know, I get feedback of people who will stitch me or they'll, they'll tag me in a video and say, I come back, I have saved this video and I come back and I watch it every month to like, to get me straight.
Speaker: You know, I've had people who have made videos and said like, really, really like things that just drive me to tears, quite honestly.
Speaker: about the things that they have said in terms of the impact.
Speaker: So I say all of that to say, I don't stress very much about who is seeing my video or how far it's getting, because I know the kind of content I make is for specific people.
Speaker: And I am confident that those people are going to find me and that they're going to get that content.
Speaker: I would say probably my greatest frustration is that
Speaker: my own knowledge of how to navigate the conversation around race, around white supremacy, around anti-blackness, to be able to navigate that conversation in on the internet, you know, and how much of a challenge that can be.
Speaker: But I had conversations with folks in real life to say, what do I do?
Speaker: How do I handle this?
Speaker: Because I am not a DEI person.
Speaker: I'm not that person.
Speaker: I'm not, like, that's not, I can't do that.
Speaker: And so it was really setting that boundary of saying the comment section is not the place to work out you being triggered by something that was said.
Speaker: So you need to, I say it all the time, take it to the journal, work it through with people in your real world, in your real life, write out your big feelings.
Speaker: But my comment section is not the place for that.
Speaker: And that seems to help.
Speaker: people who have genuine questions to be able to ask them and answer them and for people not to start arguing going back and forth in my comment section.
Speaker: So that was the greatest challenge and my greatest anxiety about being on TikTok with the content I found myself making.
Speaker: Yeah, that's awesome.
Speaker: I don't think I even ever thought about the idea of having rules and managing the discord of your comments because as important as the content you make, if you've gotten people to engage,
Speaker: comment section is kind of that second content because that's where people start to engage with you and so that's really awesome yeah yeah thank you it was a layer that i didn't see coming and you're right it is that second place and the comment sections comment sections can get very very very hurtful um and i just don't want anyone to feel that way you know i sign off my video saying take care of each other because i legitimately mean that and i don't ever want my comment section to be a place of nonsense for people
Speaker: don't have to agree i'm not saying everybody has to be kumbaya but you don't get to you don't get to get there and and really cut up so yeah that's awesome okay so one more question about this and then we'll get kind of processing uh with our questions but
Speaker: So there was a phase where you were probably specifically with this example of frustration.
Speaker: Maybe you were posting videos and your comments are not in the direction that you wanted to.
Speaker: And that's frustrating, right?
Speaker: But you still had to make your content.
Speaker: How did you persevere through the process of that frustration?
Speaker: I would say I did not let...
Speaker: the tyranny of the urgent drive me to make a video if I was not able to do that, if I was not ready or able to do that.
Speaker: And that is one of the things that TikTok specifically, you have to really be paying attention to making, you have to be paying attention to what the algorithm is telling you
Speaker: Yeah, what the algorithm is telling you.
Speaker: And I say that because if you're having a frustration that's getting in the way of what you're trying to accomplish, then the first question that I ask myself is, why am I trying to accomplish this?
Speaker: Like, I'm very frustrated by this.
Speaker: Why am I trying to do this?
Speaker: And I found myself realizing that the algorithm will send me videos that the algorithm knows is going to trigger me.
Speaker: And then...
Speaker: expect for me to stitch that video or reply to it.
Speaker: Right?
Speaker: And so now I'm an emotional.
Speaker: I'm all, you know, worked up in the lather and everything.
Speaker: The algorithm has gone on about his business and it's gotten the video that it wanted.
Speaker: Right?
Speaker: But is that the video I wanted to make?
Speaker: No, it really isn't.
Speaker: And I kind of looked up and realized, man, this is a hole I can fall down in of reacting to other people's
Speaker: you know, rage farming kind of content.
Speaker: So realizing that I want to be a creator, not a reactor, reduced a lot of frustration for me.
Speaker: And I'm also the kind of person who will make a video, leave it in my drafts, and then look at it two days later and say, do I still want to be saying that?
Speaker: So in all of that, I'm
Speaker: I think slowing down when I'm frustrated and not reacting out of that frustration to either say I'm taking the app off my phone, like a reaction of like running away from it or reaction of running towards it, but slowing down and saying, am I doing what I want to do and what I, what I set out to do?
Speaker: Cause I might not be, if I set out to make a video to encourage people to set up their,
Speaker: care tasks in a way that works for the people in their home who are autistic and have ADHD.
Speaker: If that is the video that I set out to make, am I actually making that video or am I making a different video?
Speaker: Oh, I'm making a different video.
Speaker: Okay, let me stop.
Speaker: You make the video I set out to make.
Speaker: And that is what has helped me navigate the frustration.
Speaker: Yeah, that's awesome.
Speaker: And I think that in some sense that'll
Speaker: have found a little bit of their niche and connected with who they want to be on the platform.
Speaker: So I think that's really dope.
Speaker: what's up guys i hope you're enjoying the podcast thank you for listening thus far i want to give us a little bit of a mental break we're halfway through the episode uh just a couple of thoughts real quick and then i'm gonna give you about 15 seconds to get your mind right if you have any questions any thoughts anything that you would love to hear please
Speaker: jump on YouTube.
Speaker: This is also a video podcast.
Speaker: I would love that to be our space for Discord.
Speaker: I'll be on there responding, replying to comments, anything like that.
Speaker: I would love to have that as a space for community for all of us.
Speaker: But in the meantime, take a second, take a breath, and we'll be right back.
Speaker: So there was a season where you
Speaker: It sounds like in the beginning you were doing three videos a day or a night or something like that, just kind of experimenting.
Speaker: Was there a phase where certain videos just weren't connecting with people or was not really getting, nothing was happening?
Speaker: Or was it kind of like as soon as you got into it, it was popping?
Speaker: No, there was definitely a phase where videos weren't connecting with anybody.
Speaker: And quite honestly, I wasn't making them to connect with anybody.
Speaker: I was making them because I was entertained.
Speaker: You know what I mean?
Speaker: It was just fun.
Speaker: And I wanted to see what would happen with the algorithm.
Speaker: And I hear people talk about sometimes like,
Speaker: I was actually just having this conversation with a friend who was going to be starting their TikTok account.
Speaker: They're excited about it, but they're trying to figure out, what do I do?
Speaker: What do I do?
Speaker: How do I... Like, I have this thing I want to say, and I think it's so dope, and I really, really want to say it, but what do I do, Danita?
Speaker: How do I... And I was just like, quite honestly, you can't give people anything other than who you are.
Speaker: Like, anything else...
Speaker: is not yours to give them because it's not true.
Speaker: Right?
Speaker: So we go to orange trees to get oranges.
Speaker: And if someone goes to an orange tree looking for strawberries, who has the issue here?
Speaker: Who has the problem?
Speaker: Not the tree.
Speaker: You're in the wrong place, sweet.
Speaker: You need to go over there where the strawberries are.
Speaker: I have oranges to give because I am an orange tree, not because I'm a fruit tree and decided I'm giving oranges today.
Speaker: That would explain why you showed up looking for strawberries because yesterday I was giving you strawberries, but that's not really even possible.
Speaker: If I'm an orange tree, I'm gonna give oranges.
Speaker: I have to know I'm an orange tree and just give what I have knowing that those will be oranges.
Speaker: But if I think I'm a fruit tree and I'm giving out strawberries and I'm giving out apples and I'm giving out oranges, then yeah, I'm gonna be confused and the audience is gonna be confused.
Speaker: But if I give people just who I am, they're gonna get oranges.
Speaker: Cause I'm on the street.
Speaker: You know what I mean?
Speaker: Yes.
Speaker: So yeah.
Speaker: Niching and all that.
Speaker: I think it happens automatically when you give people who you are and that doesn't have to be beautiful or put together.
Speaker: I'm on Tik TOK in my bonnet.
Speaker: I'm on Tik TOK sometimes, you know, full face of makeup or one, like I'm on here with you right now with my glasses and you know what I mean?
Speaker: Like it just has to be who you are.
Speaker: Just,
Speaker: and it's true sense.
Speaker: And I think that resonates with people.
Speaker: And you find your niche, you are your niche.
Speaker: You find it because you just being who you are.
Speaker: Yeah, no, that's good.
Speaker: I think that that's an important nugget that hopefully everyone can take away from it.
Speaker: In a most ideal circumstance, we've already kind of talked about this, in your beginning phases where you are kind of playing and operating in curiosity.
Speaker: In some ways, it's the process of connecting with you.
Speaker: you know, and, and, and, and that is how you maybe persevere through the, Oh, nobody watched this or whatever, whatever, you know, hopefully that's not even the game you're playing.
Speaker: Although at the end of the day, if you're investing in something, you want results, but maybe part of persevering through that is that you're already doing it for yourself.
Speaker: You're doing it because you care about it.
Speaker: You probably would do it for free, like, because that's just something you're interested in.
Speaker: And then usually when you have that type of passion and,
Speaker: interest in something, everything else tends to fall into place right after.
Speaker: Yeah.
Speaker: Yeah.
Speaker: And I think, I think, I think your people will find you and you'll get, you know, you'll, you'll get the views.
Speaker: I was looking at my numbers yesterday on some videos that I just did.
Speaker: And one of them want to say maybe has like 10,000 views on this one video.
Speaker: And the other video has like, I don't know, maybe 2000 views.
Speaker: And, but the video with the 2000 views, the video with the 10,000 views is a repost of something I did two years ago.
Speaker: And the video of 2,000 views is a video that I did fresh content.
Speaker: But the video with the 2,000 views has engagement and comments from people who are like taking the thought a little bit further.
Speaker: And I love that.
Speaker: Like give me 2,000 views with folks who are like chewing on it and progressing the idea.
Speaker: I'm here for that.
Speaker: I'm fine.
Speaker: The 10,000 views, yay.
Speaker: Phenomenal, right?
Speaker: That's great.
Speaker: But I also, I see value, a different kind of value in the lower views with the engagement that encourages like new thought.
Speaker: You know what I mean?
Speaker: Right.
Speaker: So, yeah.
Speaker: I love that.
Speaker: I love the idea of, it's not always how people will talk about approaching TikTok.
Speaker: So.
Speaker: you know, I mean, that's reflective of who you are and the depth you want to provide to people.
Speaker: And I think that people resonate with that.
Speaker: And you tend to draw in those types of people as well.
Speaker: So like you said, you'll find your people.
Speaker: So you said something interesting.
Speaker: This is like a little bit more processy, but you spoke about in the beginning, deciding to do three day, three a day or three at night or something like that.
Speaker: Let's talk about a little bit of
Speaker: that algorithm of TikTok, which is all ever evolving, right?
Speaker: But how would you recommend someone starting out in their play curiosity season and they're just starting out with creating a TikTok?
Speaker: I would say to be on the platform as a consumer first.
Speaker: Be on there as a consumer and curate your for you page.
Speaker: Use the not interested button.
Speaker: Like use it like
Speaker: If you're getting videos that you're watching, you're like, that was wild.
Speaker: Did I enjoy that?
Speaker: No, but that was crazy.
Speaker: I watched the whole thing.
Speaker: I watched it twice.
Speaker: I didn't enjoy it, but I watched it because that was wild, right?
Speaker: The algorithm doesn't know why you watched it.
Speaker: It just knows you watched it twice, right?
Speaker: So I saw a TikTok video today of a guy who was like, like,
Speaker: watching football and like got mad and like crashed the TV and like pulled it off the wall and broke it.
Speaker: I watched that video three times.
Speaker: I didn't enjoy it.
Speaker: I was just so flabbergasted at what I was looking at.
Speaker: Right.
Speaker: But the algorithm doesn't know that.
Speaker: So I needed to go back and push not interested to, to curate my for you page because that's going to bring me closer to
Speaker: to people who are like me and people who are like me are gonna have similar struggles to me.
Speaker: They're gonna have, we're gonna have a shared experience.
Speaker: My job as a content creator in many respects, I actually woke up thinking about this today.
Speaker: My job as a content creator is to like help people see our shared experience.
Speaker: It's to look at all of the draws and pull out the shared experience and say, we're having a shared experience.
Speaker: because a sense of belonging is what people are looking for is what I want.
Speaker: You know, I want to belong to a community and I think most people do.
Speaker: So the process first is finding your people and you find your people by pushing that not interested button and curating the, the, the real videos that bring you joy, the videos that light you up, the videos that make your eyes go up and over, right?
Speaker: Up and over to the side.
Speaker: Cause you're wondering about them.
Speaker: That's what you want on your for you page.
Speaker: And then,
Speaker: you're going to naturally like, you're going to like it.
Speaker: And you might comment, you might not, but these are the people that the algorithm sees resonate for you.
Speaker: Not just you react to, because resonating and reacting are two different things, the resonating part.
Speaker: And then you start making your content because the algorithm is going to push your content to those people, the people you have, you have a sense of shared experience with.
Speaker: And your job then is to just,
Speaker: talk about you all shared experience and how you are solving a unique problem that you see as you're facing your day to day life, you know, and that's going to resonate with those folks.
Speaker: So it sounds like, yeah, there's a practicalness in that because you're also already in the process of starting to find your, who's going to keep you in the room or your voice just by how you're engaging with things and giving TikTok feedback
Speaker: will naturally get you access to the people that are here to think about the things that you care about.
Speaker: And that will naturally gravitate to what you're creating content because, you know.
Speaker: Any community you're in, you'll find it on TikTok.
Speaker: That's not like a TikTok commercial, but any community.
Speaker: It's just real.
Speaker: And then, okay, so the three was kind of, you just pulled that out the hat.
Speaker: Like there was no real reason behind that.
Speaker: I think I was scrolling TikTok and one of those like, oh, you know,
Speaker: I make content.
Speaker: I'm a social media manager.
Speaker: I make content about making content.
Speaker: You know, make three TikTok videos a day, blah, blah, blah.
Speaker: Right.
Speaker: That's probably where I got that idea from, quite honestly.
Speaker: And I was like, oh, three TikTok videos a day.
Speaker: I can do that.
Speaker: Let me try it.
Speaker: I just want to see what happens with the algorithm.
Speaker: I just want to see what they say.
Speaker: So and that I mean, maybe I did it for two weeks.
Speaker: You know what I mean?
Speaker: It wasn't like, oh, I did a six month, three videos a day, you know, 6 a.m., 9, you know, it was nothing like that.
Speaker: It was me goofing off three times a day.
Speaker: Okay.
Speaker: And then is there a moment, so that makes a lot of sense to me, and I would imagine now you're at the point where you probably engage in, you know, you move from a place of inspiration organically, but would there be a time or period where you're like, oh, it's been too long, I need to get on here and post something, or
Speaker: has that not even occurred no absolutely that is the case um so i i am i don't even know what to say i don't know i want to use the word grateful um but i am absolutely i don't have to post every day i'm very very glad of that um but i do
Speaker: I try to stay in a place of if I believe that I have something that other people need, then I need to just stay in front of these people.
Speaker: And so I do have to get on there and see what folk are up to, check in, go to like, and I really pay attention to my comments because I don't want, I don't like that feeling of like, I saw a video that really resonated with me.
Speaker: I took the time as an introvert to write a comment
Speaker: and the creator like didn't even heart it.
Speaker: And I'm not saying the creator owes me anything.
Speaker: I'm saying if you have a video that only has a little bit of comments on it, I feel like, and you really were pouring your heart out as the creator, I feel like, aren't you wondering if people, if that resonated with people?
Speaker: And I'm commenting to say that did resonate with me.
Speaker: I see you, right?
Speaker: then like a heart.
Speaker: So I try to be in my comment section, but that doesn't mean that I'm in it as soon as I post.
Speaker: So I'll post.
Speaker: I try to keep up with it a little bit, but I have a life.
Speaker: I might not get back to your comment for two weeks, but I'm going to go back into older videos and be like, oh, I missed this one.
Speaker: I'm going to heart it.
Speaker: I'm going to reply.
Speaker: I had to think about this and I'm famous also for being like, well, not famous, but
Speaker: I will say, I read your comment and I am chewing on this.
Speaker: Give me some time to come back, you know, that kind of thing.
Speaker: So I say all that to say, I do engage because I do think I have a community there.
Speaker: So I don't go days and days and days without doing anything, but I don't feel and have not found that I have to post every day at this time or else.
Speaker: I have not found that.
Speaker: That's cool.
Speaker: And I think that it's also,
Speaker: that can open up the idea of different, what engagement really looks like.
Speaker: It's not always just posting a video.
Speaker: It could be just circling back and finding comments to respond to.
Speaker: And I don't know if everybody thinks about it in that way.
Speaker: So that's really good practical step as well.
Speaker: So thanks for sharing that.
Speaker: Okay, so a few more questions for you, then I'll let you get out of here.
Speaker: We are both introverts in, you know, a 45 minute conversation certainly tests our boundaries.
Speaker: No, actually we can.
Speaker: Yeah, no, no, no.
Speaker: Like the one-on-ones, we're good, right?
Speaker: Yeah.
Speaker: No, I'm actually really enjoying this too.
Speaker: It's fun to learn from you.
Speaker: All right.
Speaker: So has there been any financial rewards or money made from TikTok at this point?
Speaker: That's so interesting.
Speaker: So yes, there has.
Speaker: It is nothing.
Speaker: I'm not doing it the way other people are doing it because other people out here, I don't know.
Speaker: I don't know.
Speaker: It's not happening like that on my end.
Speaker: But, and, so I've got some speaking engagements that were paid for and got flewed out and all that.
Speaker: And I do participate in the TikTok beta creator program.
Speaker: It buys me lunch, buys me lunch on occasion.
Speaker: And I would say more than anything,
Speaker: TikTok has sort of also because I have I keep all my intersectionality stuff in a playlist.
Speaker: So it makes it, I think, easy for people to kind of say, oh, I saw this video that was wild.
Speaker: I want to know more.
Speaker: They can go to the playlist and being able to streamline my subject matter through the playlists.
Speaker: lets people know what to call on me for so i've i just actually um did an interview um and a journalist is writing an article she just sent me the um the fact checking like part of it and all that so that sort of thing has definitely been the case um i would not say tick tock video equals cash for me but
Speaker: TikTok equals other conversations, other places.
Speaker: It's a place for me to say, oh yeah, I made a TikTok about that.
Speaker: I'll send it to you.
Speaker: You understand what I'm saying?
Speaker: So two or three degrees separated from cash, but not, you know, it's like that.
Speaker: No, that makes sense.
Speaker: And I think that's good.
Speaker: It's, uh, I mean, I think that's realistic because everyone is, is, um,
Speaker: Everyone's different.
Speaker: You're building an audience in a way that I think is almost truly like a community as much as the internet could ever be.
Speaker: And so I can definitely see how, one, that's a resource too, the I'm not alone resource in this.
Speaker: And then two, yeah, like people are seeing that, people are reaching out because they want you to speak.
Speaker: And I think that's really cool.
Speaker: And it's a reminder of all the different ways TikTok opens doors for people.
Speaker: Yeah.
Speaker: I've done a couple brand things, but I'm also careful about the amount of ads and that kind of thing.
Speaker: But also at the same time, I have my Venmo and my Cash App.
Speaker: You know, if you hear something that resonates with you, I appreciate you buying me a cup of coffee.
Speaker: I appreciate you.
Speaker: And certainly in that regard, I would say TikTok to cash has been that.
Speaker: Okay.
Speaker: Specifically like that.
Speaker: But that has, I'm also, I just, because I think there's a fine line between ads and just constantly trying to sell you stuff.
Speaker: And also I have a legitimate product.
Speaker: I think it's a great product and I think you'd enjoy it.
Speaker: And here's how much it costs.
Speaker: Like there's nothing wrong with that.
Speaker: So.
Speaker: Yeah.
Speaker: There sounds like there's a push and pull that you're, and it makes sense too, because your brand for lack of a better way of describing it is authenticity and, and authenticness.
Speaker: So in some sense, the commercialism of, of some of this that would be involved, you know, it was like, you're like, how do I fit that into what I'm doing and who I want to be?
Speaker: that I think that is something that has to be tackled and considered.
Speaker: Because at the end of the day, if we're investing something, getting money for it, that's also nice as well.
Speaker: So I get it.
Speaker: I get that.
Speaker: So that makes a lot of sense.
Speaker: Thanks for sharing that, because that's personal.
Speaker: But I know that people are wanting to do content creation.
Speaker: That's something that they're always going to be curious about.
Speaker: Just an interesting point that I'm starting a sub stack to try to address this part of it.
Speaker: for myself as a creator, what is, you know, like I said, I have a product, you know, blah, blah, blah, that whole exchange.
Speaker: But interestingly enough, I saw a creator the other day who has taken something that is culturally important to another culture and taken that thing and put it behind a paywall on Substack.
Speaker: And so that's the other side of it where I'm like,
Speaker: that's crazy because you're trying to get paid as a creator for something that isn't yours to charge for, but you've put it behind a paywall.
Speaker: So that's, you know, that's, that's sort of, like you said, like trying to be genuine, you know what I mean?
Speaker: And what I would call honest about, about the, the commercialization or capitalization of your, your intellectual property online.
Speaker: Yeah.
Speaker: Okay.
Speaker: Is there anything else that you, as we round third,
Speaker: and head home on this episode of our podcast.
Speaker: Is there anything else that you would like to share, offer to people?
Speaker: I think that I would say make the content, like, and, and like turn down the thought of the part of your brain that says, that says it has to be, you know,
Speaker: phenomenal and absolutely everything it's going to be before I can put it out there and also be okay with being in a process because I really think people resonate with you being in a process with you being like here's where I am I think this is where I want to go here's why and I'm trying here's what trying look like today
Speaker: It looked like me doing this, this, and this, you know, and I struggled and I'm going to bed now because I got an attitude or it was great and it worked out or someth ing in the middle.
Speaker: You know what I mean?
Speaker: Like I think people really, really resonate with that and with the sort of,
Speaker: grittiness of that um especially when they know your desire is to is to create something that you can be proud of and that can be useful to others i think if you if you're wondering what do i do cut the camera on cut the camera on and start running your mouth like you know um
Speaker: Maybe give yourself a time limit so you don't carry on.
Speaker: But otherwise, you know, just give people what's in you.
Speaker: And I think let them be there for the process of it.
Speaker: Yeah.
Speaker: I love that.
Speaker: I love that.
Speaker: And if there's anything, I mean, that's like a mic drop moment in my view.
Speaker: But if you guys are taking anything from this, it sounds like to me the beauty and the opportunity in this process is to kind of go on an exploration of finding your voice and also
Speaker: probably finding out that you're not the only one who has these things that you're thinking and sharing and you get to engage with people in that.
Speaker: I think that that is actually sounds like a very rewarding process.
Speaker: So that's awesome.
Speaker: Thank you for sharing that with you.
Speaker: Sure.
Speaker: Yes.
Speaker: Of course.
Speaker: No problem.
Speaker: So, um, yeah, I hope you guys enjoyed this episode.
Speaker: Uh, Dania, thank you so much for taking some time out of your crazy busy schedule to sit and chat and offer resources to people.
Speaker: Um, I'm excited to release this to everyone.
Speaker: One.
Speaker: And two, we have a lot more really dope people who have expertise in podcasting, starting your own nonprofit.
Speaker: So if you guys have enjoyed this, please like, subscribe, follow, blah, blah, blah, blah.
Speaker: If you have any questions for Danita, hit me up on social media.
Speaker: I would love to spread it along or follow her on TikTok.
Speaker: Where can they find you on TikTok?
Speaker: You can find me at Danita Platt on TikTok.
Speaker: Perfect, perfect, perfect.
Speaker: So, yes, hope you guys enjoyed it.
Speaker: We'll see you guys next time.
Speaker: Thanks for joining us.
Speaker: Peace.
Speaker: Peace.
Speaker: Peace.
