Meet Tyler Mcculloch

We recently connected with Tyler Mcculloch and have shared our conversation below.

Tyler, thank you so much for taking the time to share your lessons learned with us and we’re sure your wisdom will help many. So, one question that comes up often and that we’re hoping you can shed some light on is keeping creativity alive over long stretches – how do you keep your creativity alive?

I’m a videographer that helps other businesses tell their stories. I make marketing videos and promotional videos that help sell products or services. I have a fresh opportunity everyday to be creative, but it can be easy to fall into a formulaic approach to creating marketing videos. Here’s what works- follow the script. I have had to consciously work on approaching each new project with a fresh set of eyes. How can I relate to the audience who’s going to be seeing this advertisement for the first time. What’s going to connect with them? Being able to empathize with an individual who falls into a “target market” about what they feel, what they want, and what will resonate with them is my super power. Knowing that people everywhere crave connection and want to feel something- it helps me remember that what worked for one project might not work for the next. That we’re working on connecting with PEOPLE not customers. There are real individuals behind the screen and behind the marketing analytics. Understanding the goal, and understanding how to connect with other humans helps me stay creative when I’m producing videos for businesses.

Great, so let’s take a few minutes and cover your story. What should folks know about you and what you do?

I run a video production service called Cardinal Red Productions. I work with businesses and entrepreneurs all over the world. I specialize in corporate storytelling and helping businesses connect with their audience. What’s unique about what I do vs any other video guy in the world- is the approach I take to every single video. Whether it’s a 30 second social media blurb, or a 6 minute mini-documentary about your company overview, I want the video to connect with your audience. People crave connection and they can tell when you’re reading from a teleprompter or running lines of a script. They want to hear from actual people who are behind the actual companies. They want to be apart of something. And that’s what I help businesses convey. My website is www.cardinalredproductions.com and I have an educational YouTube channel coming soon (launching early 2025) where I educate business owners about how to utilize video in their marketing strategies.

Looking back, what do you think were the three qualities, skills, or areas of knowledge that were most impactful in your journey? What advice do you have for folks who are early in their journey in terms of how they can best develop or improve on these?

One of the most impactful things hit me when I was still working for someone else, there was a quote I saw that said “There are people less qualified than you, doing the things you want to do, simply because they decided to believe in themselves.” Going off and starting my own business took risk, and I sometimes still deal with imposter syndrome when I see people creating images that are more beautiful than mine. But I learned early on that successful people will figure out a way to be successful when they believe in themselves first. I might not be the most technically skilled video guy in the entire world. There are people who know their way around my own camera better than I do, or who can edit with more technical skill than I can.. but I know I provide immense value with the skills that I do have.. and I can always work and improve to develop more technical skills. I can’t let any of that stop me from moving forward. Nobody knows everything. Believe in yourself and you can do anything.

Going along with that same idea- always having a mindset that you don’t know everything is crucial. I never want to be the smartest person in the room. Coming in with an open mind and not having to prove that you know anything helps the entire room get smarter together. Way back when I was first getting started I wanted to prove that I knew what I was talking about and I was afraid of “I don’t know.” and I would even pretend to know things I didn’t actually know- which always ended poorly. Come into the room with curiosity and an open mind.

And one of my last important skills I would recommend is to understand your own ability and how you work. How do you work most efficiently. Sometimes I would try to force myself to work because of a deadline and spend hours at my desk not really accomplishing much.. when I needed to step back and take some time to rest or relax. Then I could come back with the correct mindset, a fresh set of eyes, and a new creative outlook to really complete a project at 100% because I was READY too.. not because I NEEDED to. Understand how you work and what your process is, and know that you might need to take a nap instead of try to over-work yourself.

Do you think it’s better to go all in on our strengths or to try to be more well-rounded by investing effort on improving areas you aren’t as strong in?

I believe that there’s nobody on earth who’s REALLY good at EVERYTHING. Nobody. There’s people who are really good at LOTS of things. But nobody is really good at everything. When it comes to wanting to accomplish big things, whether it’s in your personal life, your business, your relationships, or whatever it is.. your strengths are what sets you apart. The things that you can identify as your superpower is what got you where you already are, and focusing on and improving those strengths will take you even further. I think often we think back to our grade school days- where you got an extra tutor and got extra help in order to bring your grade in your worst subject from a D up to a B. And that’s what we think continues to happen in life. But that’s the polar opposite of how most things work. In business for example- I’m getting pretty high marks in video production, marketing, editing, scriptwriting, etc.. while I’m a complete failure at accounting. I could hire a tutor and spend lots of extra time working on my accounting skills- but it’s not going to improve my business the same as it would if I just out-sourced my accounting. What if I spent that same amount of time, energy, and effort on improving the things that ARE my strengths.. what would that do for my business? Do you think my revenue will go up if I improve my accounting skills from a D- to a B+? Maybe a bit. But what if I took my video production skills from an A to an A++? In that same vein- nobody has 100% arrived. Nobody knows everything about everything. If you can improve what you’re already good at, you’ll create more value from that strength. Understand that you have weaknesses, and if they need to be addressed, by all means, address them. But spend more time focusing on your strengths and you’ll contribute more in your life.

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