How Mamadou Turned a Layoff Into a Million View Channel  🔗 **Source:** [How Mamadou Turned a Layoff Into a Million View Channel](https://share.snipd.com/episode/a59f234b-79c3-4cb1-832f-bf5547ac3f24) ## Highlights - **How A Joke TikTok Sparked Casual Geographic** - Mamadou downloaded TikTok as a joke on April 15, 2020 and the next day he was laid off, which pushed him to make content while unemployed. - His first animal video about moose surprised him by going viral and became the seed for Casual Geographic. Transcript: Mamadou I downloaded Tik TOK, which I said I would never do. I was that person that made fun of Tik TOK, made fun of people that were on Tik, downloaded it as a joke, uh, April 15th, 2020. And I was laid off the very next day, completely unrelated, but all of a sudden, you know, I was, uh, bored, unemployed. I was in the house, like nothing better to do. And, um, yeah, me and my brother, we like put together like a TikTok, which was, uh, a because it took about like, what, three hours for a less than 10 second skit. So that tells you how like tech savvy I was at the time. But yeah, I was just making content like pretty much everybody else. I was making a situational comedic skit videos, just following trends like everybody because, you know, I didn't think people I didn't think there was a market for me talking about Animals the way that I am now. I didn't think people would care as much. But, you know, I ended up making one video and I still remember it. It was animals that are way bigger than you think, because I saw a video of a moose on the highway walking next to a car. And I like to think I know a lot about animals. And that freaked me out. I was already aware of moose. I was like, this might be something people might be interested in. I did that video. It did well. So, you know, I did the typical influencer TikTok thing of just taking something that works and driving it into the dirt. And yeah, it kind of snowballed from there. The video, I just assumed I would stop talking about it when the videos kind of fell off and never really did. I ended up building like a platform around it that became all of my content. ([Time 0:02:18](https://share.snipd.com/snip/59fe1f64-9592-4942-a96c-13cdc6b15b55)) - **Test Career Viability Across Platforms** - Validate a creator career by testing success across platforms; Mamadou felt it was viable once YouTube traction matched his TikTok momentum. - Use multiple platforms to confirm sustainable audience and revenue before treating creation as full-time work. Transcript: Mamadou And I was I had the circumstances kind of aligned for me to like really maximize what I was doing. You know, I was I was making like four to five videos a day. And that's not something I'd be able to do if I was like living on my own and had to support myself or if I had an additional job. So yeah, I was able to do that. But you know, once I was able to see like a similar success on YouTube, a platform that I did not feel secure enough to like just jump onto, uh, that's where I felt like, okay, this could Be like a viable, like a career for me. ([Time 0:07:56](https://share.snipd.com/snip/012f6d59-9062-430a-bb82-946a47f49150)) - **Set A Joblike Schedule For Scalable Production** - Build a sustainable production schedule and treat content creation like a job: Mamadou aims to be at his desk by 9 a.m. and runs an assembly-line workflow for multiple videos. - Plan 10–14 days per long-form video while also keeping time for short-form content to maintain reach. Transcript: Mamadou It could be anywhere from like probably 10 days or maybe a little more than two weeks for each video. And these days I have more of an assembly line kind of production where I'm essentially working on like maybe three videos at the same time, while also trying to find some time to like Get some short form content out there because, oh yeah, just like as advice to anybody starting out short form is like that, that is kind of what's in right now. Uh, tick tock, Instagram reels, Facebook, Facebook surprised me. That's something I wasn't even considering, but you know, there are so many people that impersonate me on Facebook to a lot of success that I was like, I might as well get in on this too, But yeah, short trying to like, make sure that I'm staying consistent with the short form. ([Time 0:13:07](https://share.snipd.com/snip/17e392a5-2f4c-4b09-82b0-cdec5f0694f0)) - **Why Simple Thumbnails Can Outperform Overedited Ones** - Mamadou keeps thumbnails intentionally simple because nature provides striking images and minimal design stands out against saturated, over-edited thumbnails. - He uses curiosity gaps in thumbnails and titles and A/B tests thumbnails to pick what drives clicks and watch time. Transcript: Mamadou Wish i could give you this like really uh in-depth reason as to why i do it but honestly like when I was on YouTube, like I did not know what I was doing. So it was literally just me putting like two pictures together or just two images that already appear in my video and just putting that as a thumbnail. And I mean, I always say that nature is so insane that it's better than any like any fiction you could create. So I don't really usually have to edit a thumbnail to look crazy. I can just find an actual image that showcases the animal doing something wild. Why does it work? I feel like, because kind of what you said, it kind of does go against the grain. It's kind of become normalized to have these hyper edited, almost professional grade thumbnails to the point where like the market seems saturated. So to have some, to have a thumbnail that's pretty as simplistic as mine is, seems more uh what's the word i don't want to say like honest but i guess it seems more genuine i guess um i don't Know if you know the creator of moist critical or yes he does the same thing i think all his thumbnails are literally just a screenshot from some point of his video but i mean it does become His style and it's different from a lot of other people you see it you immediately identify you click on it so i like to think my thumbnails do something similar and obviously sometimes I play around with thumbnails i definitely use the a b tests and for those that are like um that don't know what that is uh basically youtube has a feature where if you have like multiple Thumbnail uh concepts you can essentially post all of them and it'll test them and it'll show you what kind of what is it? I guess what kind of click through rate as well as the watch time each thumbnail generates for the video. And then after whatever period of time, it selects the one that performs the highest and that becomes your thumbnail. So I started doing that recently. But for the most part, I do try to keep it pretty simple with my thumbnails. ([Time 0:22:40](https://share.snipd.com/snip/6f40a16b-6177-4b55-aa23-7a5a01b331ef)) - **Make Title Writing Your Final Hooking Step** - Treat title writing as both the first and last step: brainstorm many options, use preview tools, then finalize a title that creates a strong curiosity gap. - Think like a viewer and test thumbnails+titles in context to avoid deadlocking on a weak hook. Transcript: Mamadou I'll write a whole bunch of ideas down. I'll try to figure out what like would be the most eye catching on my end. I even use this tool called what's it called? I think it's thumbs.tv, something like that, where you can essentially, you can put whatever thumbnail that you're planning on using, you can put the title and it'll show you what your Thumbnail and title looks like in different forms too, whether it's on your phone, whether it's on somebody's main page on a YouTube homepage. So I try to do that and I see, okay, I try to put myself in like the headspace of the viewer and think, what would I like be most likely to click on? And there have been times where I thought I had a good idea, thought I had a good thumbnail, put it on there. And I was like, that doesn't really hit the way I thought. So yeah, it's actually something I do think about a lot because again, ultimately it's a, it's not, that's not the content, but it is how you get people into the door. That's how you get people to like click on the video. And that kind of is like the most important thing because no click, view no nothing so exactly that i'd say that's the ends up being the first and last step and also it ends up being where I get deadlocked the most because you have so many options and sometimes you just think man this you spend all this time in a video and the title and thumbnail could just make or break it But you know these days i kind of just have fun with the titles um as as you've obviously seen and those are the titles that usually do the best, too. ([Time 0:27:06](https://share.snipd.com/snip/792fa99d-1efd-4e1e-8f8f-dbcb0dcddf2a)) - **Keep Shorts Separate To Protect Long Form Value** - Mamadou separates short-form and long-form intentionally: he keeps YouTube for video essays and reserves TikTok/Instagram for shorts to protect his long-form upload cadence. - He worries over-exposure via shorts could reduce urgency for long-form releases. Transcript: Travis But you haven't uploaded in four years any shorts on this main channel. Why? Mamadou Honestly, I feel like I as I've like grown on YouTube, I kind of create this separation between like the short form content that I do on TikTok, Instagram, Facebook and the long form content That I do on YouTube, where YouTube is strictly for like kind of video essays, kind of like these short form, these shorter documentaries. And I don't know. I mean, I get it would make a lot of sense for me to put shorts on there, which is because I always tell people that are like starting out like shorts are like the cheat code to the channel Growth. But I feel like I don't know. I don't like really changing too much of a formula that's been proven to work. So, you know, I don't really maybe that's something that I do in the future or maybe I like make a separate channel and put my shorts there. But for the most part, I kind of want to keep my long form where my long form is at. And then the shorts are and then the shorts are like where they are. And also and this isn't even the reason I did it. But like, I just thought of this quote. I think I think Denzel said it to Michael B. Jordan. He essentially was telling him to kind of limit his own self exposure to like people. And his logic was, well, if they see you Monday through Friday, why would they pay money to see you again on Saturday? And I guess that kind of works here too, where if you're constantly seeing like, uh, my shorts are and everything, um, maybe you're not as likely, maybe you don't have that same sense Of urgency when you see that I've uploaded. And I think that works on my channel where I have an upload schedule of about every other week or at the very least twice a month. ([Time 0:28:46](https://share.snipd.com/snip/1ba1dd2b-787f-4e12-a7ad-457a002c3c54)) - **Write Scripts By Talking Them Out Loud First** - Mamadou scripts by speaking first then writing: he talks sections out loud, refines the phrasing, then converts it into a written script. - This talk-first method preserves natural voice and rhythm and allows audibles during recording. Transcript: Mamadou And I think what works is that I kind of do it in reverse where people write what they're going to say. I say it out loud and then I kind of just write it, which is why the scripts end up taking me so long because it's like me. ([Time 0:33:11](https://share.snipd.com/snip/693b7293-bc06-4b51-a62e-9133e38e85ee)) - **Use Stock Libraries To Avoid Copyright Risk** - Avoid unlicensed clips and build a library of stock footage subscriptions to prevent copyright strikes. - Mamadou uses multiple services (Storyblocks, iStock, Pond5, Shutterstock, Getty, Science Photo Library, Newsflare) to source compliant B-roll. Transcript: Mamadou There have been a couple of times where I thought what I was doing was transformative. But then, you know, you receive a copy strike and then you kind of have to adjust that way. So these days I have a lot of stock footage subscriptions. I have Storyblocks, iStock, Pond5, Shutterstock, Gettys. Obviously, everyone has Gettys. I also have Science Photo Library. And recently I have Newsflare. So anybody that's keeping track, that's about like seven. I oscillate between all of those. It actually makes it a lot easier because you can have a bunch of tabs with all these sites open and kind of just funnel through and see what kind of clips make the most sense to use. And, uh, these days I have an editor and, um, a lot of times they'll help me source clips as well. Uh, I do have to do, admittedly, I do have to do a better job of like, cause for the most part, even though I have an editor, I'm still usually the one, uh, supplying like maybe 90% of like The clips. ([Time 0:35:04](https://share.snipd.com/snip/60632df8-c2e9-46b8-a593-660d39f23a10)) - **Hand Off Editing Gradually Without Losing Control** - Gradually delegate editing but keep creative control by supplying scripts, timestamps, and clip links; trust editors to fill blanks over time. - Mamadou uses a Google Doc with script and hyperlinked clip suggestions while onboarding a new editor. Transcript: Mamadou The thing. I have to keep telling myself that letting go is even completely letting go because at the end of the day bro like uh i'm still i'm still it's still my words it's still uh i'm still like showing You teaching you about the animals through kind of my lens um and i'm still gonna be i still supply most of the uh or i'm still like uh basically i have a google doc where i like have the script And i kind of hyperlink uh here's where i want this stock. Here's where I want that stock. So on some level, I could be a little bit more malleable where I leave certain blanks in and I'm like, okay, at this point, I kind of trust you to fill in the blanks. And I feel like I'm kind of getting there with this newer editor that I'm with. I feel like I've been with him since about since January of this year. So still relatively new in the process. But I think that is important to kind of like kind of like take your hands off a little bit, especially especially if I want to make the jump that I want to in the future where I'm kind of doing More stuff like out in the field. Those have been some of my favorite videos, regardless of performance, being able to actually go out there and be able to physically show things that are happening instead of like, You know, being from behind this green screen. ([Time 0:37:03](https://share.snipd.com/snip/0dd9208a-474a-43ec-a2ca-1c8b1c9f1c84)) - **Avoid AI When It Threatens Your Creative Soul** - Avoid heavy use of AI in creative research or scripts if you want to preserve authenticity and credibility. - Mamadou rejects AI tools because he fears they would remove the soul of his work and open him to accusations of inauthenticity. Transcript: Travis Do you use any, uh, do they help you with research? Cause they can save a lot of time for research if nothing else. Mamadou They can, but honestly, yeah, that's something I just avoid. God just completely, honestly. Um, no, I'm not the really the type of person that's going to like, uh, kind of lecture people against using AI, but I do feel like if I'm going to keep talking, uh, trying to spread this Message of conservation while also like, uh, using AI that's, you know, it's kind of this juxtaposition that doesn't really like kind of leaves people with a bad taste in your mouth. I feel like there have been times where I've accidentally like included AI in my videos or, you know, with my previous editor, he kind of used AI and I was kind of like, what are you doing? Yeah, it's kind of, that's not. But in terms of like the video making process, I feel like I'm pretty old fashioned. I don't like typing things up. I like writing. I like the I like the pencil and the notepad. And again, it's stuff that I would be researching kind of like on my own. Obviously, it's kind of like, I like I do treat it as a career as a job. So there is like a sense of obligation to getting things right. But I don't know, I feel like AI, if I were to do that, it would kind of take the soul out of it a little bit. And that's when it would really start to feel like a job. So even if you kind of ignore the ethics, the possible ethics of using AI, uh, I don't really like it in terms of like, um, like just within, uh, as, as a creative, you know, and plus if I'm Using AI as research, you know, if somebody accuses me of my scripts being AI, what would really be my defense? You know? So, right. Yeah. And that, that's like, that's probably the, that's probably the one comment that I'd probably like really get to me. Like if somebody says, yo, was this the script made by AI? And I'm like, how dare you? Yeah. Right. Right. So yeah. Try. I don't use, I try not to use it in my process like at all. ([Time 0:39:25](https://share.snipd.com/snip/efc0d1ca-a49d-4842-bfed-6fbad3d4790e)) - **Field Video Raised Donations After A Flood** - Mamadou visited Elephant Nature Park in Chiang Mai and posted a video that later helped raise donations after an unexpected flood. - That field video produced tangible conservation impact and gave Mamadou a sense of fulfillment beyond views. Transcript: Mamadou And I was able to one just showcase how I really think that's like the best elephant sanctuary on Earth. I can't sing their praises enough. But also like the timing was so crazy. I went there September of 2024 and they had a really bad flood the very next month, like in October. And that's an area that's like used to that kind of thing. So this was like like an anomaly. They lost a couple elephants, which was obviously tragic. But because I was able to put that video out, I think maybe a month later, you're able to generate like a lot of donations for this place during a time where they really needed it. And they were super grateful. And honestly, that felt really good. ([Time 0:41:55](https://share.snipd.com/snip/7ef965c2-2b41-4097-8cf4-488bc89e73e9))