"The small steps you take will ultimately bring you great fortune."I have always been very shy and I don't typically put myself into the spotlight in any way, which is why I remained mostly anonymous for so long on my pages and why I didn't really do much with my YouTube channel. I've always felt like people won't care about what I have to say. Add in anxiety with talking to people I don't know or public speaking, and I have myself a recipe for holding myself back from doing the things I want to do.
I have had so many ideas for so many years, Scooby Panel being one of them, that I kept saying how fun it would be or how cool it would be to do, but I'd always talk myself out of it. I'd tell myself that no one is going to care about my opinion or I'll never find people that would actually want to talk about Scooby-Doo with me. I even went as far as to write down a ton of topics that I'd want to discuss with people, thinking that I'd never really do anything with them.
At the beginning of 2021, my husband convinced me that I should just start Scooby Panel, put myself out there, enjoy myself, and not worry about if anyone will care. So I reached out to a few Scooby friends (Wendy and Cameron) to see if they'd be interested in doing the panel, and they were super excited about it! As I reached out to other people, I was actually surprised how many of them were interested in doing the panel!
I had thought all these years that the idea probably wouldn't go over too well and it would take me way out of my comfort zone, and here I am getting people excited about being on the panel. It was really fulfilling for me because I finally put myself out there and I didn't fall flat on my face.
So how does the fortune from the cookie come in? The small steps I took - coming up with the idea, writing down topics, asking people in the Scooby community to be a part of it, actually recording episodes, and releasing those episodes - have brought me great joy and have helped me to be a bit more confident about my ideas. Plus, I have gotten to talk to some amazing people and even made some new friends in the Scooby community.
Today, not only is Scooby Panel a YouTube web series, it's also available as a podcast on platforms like Spotify, Apple Podcasts, Google Podcasts, Deezer, and more. And while I still get nervous before we record, I feel great that I have finally made my idea a reality!
If you have ideas, work at making them a reality. If I can do it, so can you!
Click here --> To listen to Scooby Panel as a podcast
Click here --> To watch Scooby Panel on YouTube
Click here --> To support Scooby Panel
Nikki, I have been following you on your Scooby Addicts journey for many years now, and I have always appreciated your love for Scooby, and your obvious desire to spread the joy that he brings to others. I'm so, so, SO glad that you took this leap with the Scooby Panels -- and not just because I get to have a ton of fun being on them with you and Cam. You have very quickly become someone that I consider to be a close friend, and I can't begin to describe how much I enjoy the privilege of talking with you, filming awesome videos, and honestly just being around someone who I share so many similar likes and traits with. It's refreshing to meet someone who just "gets" you! And that never would have happened if you hadn't taken a chance and put yourself out there. At the end of the day, I'm really still just a giddy Scooby Addicts fan. I can't wait to see what the future will hold for you -- but I know it's going to be groovy. 😊
ReplyDeleteWendy, I'm so happy that we have gotten to talk so much and share our Scooby journeys. I have really enjoyed the panels a lot and have kicked myself for not starting this sooner. I'm thankful that you and Cam want to be a part of them and that we have so much fun doing them. Thank you for following Scooby Addicts for so long and thank you for your wonderful contributions to the Scooby community. I also look at you as a friend and we really do have a lot of the same traits. It's too bad we don't all live closer to each other. I look forward to what is to come!
DeleteI really appreciate you opening up about your struggles, because I've definitely faced a lot of similar ones being a part of the Scooby fandom. Admittedly, I'm also very shy and don't really like putting myself in the spotlight, or sharing a lot about myself publicly. I definitely understand the feeling about thinking people won't really care about what you have to say, because I sometimes feel the same way about my own content. I've felt so many of the same things you said in your post, so it's great to know I'm not the only one who has struggled with this. Thank you so much for being such a dedicated presence in the fandom, and for being brave enough to open up about your personal struggles! :)
ReplyDeleteIt's hard for me to open up, but sometimes I get brave enough to do it lol. It can be hard to go through this stuff, especially when you feel like you are going through it alone or like no one else will understand. Thank you for reading my post. :)
DeleteAww dont feel bad we all get that feeling once in a while during out lives especially now what with everything going on annyways I know how you feel though and I want you to know that I appreciate you telling us how you feel through this blog post thanks for informing us on whats been happening with you lately
ReplyDeleteThank you for your kind words. It's nice to know we're not alone in how we feel. Thank you for reading this post :)
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