After Monday’s live stream, I figured it was safe to upload a video to YouTube. After all, the Internet connection was “Excellent,” according to the stream. But, it’s not going so well. Which means I need to do some adapting.

Don’t get me wrong, the downstream here at the Hampton Inn is surprisingly fast. It’s the upstream that is taking forever for a simple 11-minute video. I’ve literally been working on it for two hours, and it’s still not done.

Instead of just sitting around and waiting or getting sucked into watching videos, I need to keep productive. Besides, 2020 is still my “Year of Effort.”

Adapting to Hotel Internet

For most intents and purposes, the Internet here isn’t really all that bad. After all, I’m able to continue working for clients and my blogs. However, it does put a bit of a hindrance on adding new videos.

I really don’t want to do a YouTube live stream every day. I guess I have time when you think about it. But, I still have other things I need to do.

So, how am I adapting to the long upload times?

Blog During the Upload

First of all, I suppose I can write my blog posts while the video is uploading to YouTube. All I really need to do is keep WordPress open in another browser window and let the upload do its thing.

This means I’ll have to record and edit the videos before I do anything else. The hardest part is remembering that I am going to do things backward while at the hotel.

Work on Writing Projects

Waiting for the upload to finish gives me plenty of time to work on my writing projects. And I’m not just talking about blogging. I am still working on VII in Wattpad, which I made huge strides doing this week.

The time it takes to upload a video to YouTube, I can easily write more than 1,000 words for the storyline. I would just need to change my schedule a bit as I try to work on projects at specific times.

Still, with how long it takes to get a video up on YouTube from the hotel, it’ll be worth the effort.

Plan Out Blog and Channel Changes

One of the many things that are on my plate for April is revamping the blogs and coming up with a good strategy for the YouTube channels. Personally, I love using notepads and Project notebooks – complete with pen!

This will free up my computer to finish doing its thing while I am still productive coming up with ideas on how to improve. In fact, I’ve already been writing things down that I want to test while waiting for this current video to finish.

Yes, I’m a bit of a dork when it comes to collecting notebooks. Since I packed all of mine up last week, I had to go to Target to get a couple more.

Interact with Others on Social Media

One of the most important aspects of marketing yourself is interacting on social media. Ever since I’ve been more active and joining conversations, my follower numbers exploded.

While I’m waiting, I can always get on and leave a few comments here and there. Of course, I don’t just add my two cents to anything. I am the type of person who’ll only comment if I have something of value to add.

That is unless I’m sharing a meme or a funny moment.

And it’s always good to socialize with those who support you as a creator. Granted, I’m not a big celebrity with throngs of people following me. But part of adapting to the world is to join in on the conversation.

You’ll never know who you’ll meet.

Schedule Exercise and Walks

Since moving into the hotel, I’ve added more steps than I have in a very long time. Without an open pool, I’ll spend about 15 minutes walking around the hotel. I might as well schedule those walks to coincide with upload times.

Of course, that really didn’t help much today. I walked while the video was rendering and still had to wait. Then again, I could always lay out the yoga mat and get in a good exercise.

To be honest, I’ve actually been doing really good food-wise this past week. In reality, I’ve lost four pounds since moving into the hotel. I’m excited to see what I look like by the end of April.

Pour Over Data and Make a New Spreadsheet

So, I am a bit of a freak when it comes to spreadsheets. I love collecting data and creating forecasts for just about everything. In fact, I can tell you when I’ll hit a specific weight with a reasonable amount of accuracy.

One thing I can do as part of my adapting to slow Internet is going over some of that data and coming up with new video or blog strategies. This kind of goes along the lines with one of the points I made earlier.

The difference here, though, is that I can easily spend hours creating spreadsheets in LibreOffice. I just need to remember why I’m making those files to begin with.

Detailing My Mindomo Mind Map

I’m a big fan of using Mindomo for mind mapping purposes. It’s how I set up a lot of the things I want to streamline. Since I use them for the blogs as well as YouTube channels, it will give me a visual of what I want to see done.

It’s a great way to plan out future content, website designs, arrange video categories and so much more. I suppose you can say that you’re only limited by your imagination. And mind mapping helps you explore that aspect.

Adapting is Part of Life

There’s no doubt; I have a lot on my plate. And doing nothing while waiting an hour for a video to upload is not a good use of my time. By adapting and changing my daily routine a bit, I can stay productive and get back on track.

The hardest part is making sure I stay the course and not get sidetracked with random things.