If you're a software developer, chances are you'll be learning constantly. There is a famous quote that says,

“Forget about the kids, fathers are still learning”.

This couldn't be more true in the case of coding. You constantly need to learn, develop, and upgrade your skills. And what is a better way to do that other than starting your own YouTube channel and making videos related to the Computer Programming field?

In this article, I'll explain all the benefits of having a software-related YouTube channel.

It Helps You Learn Things More Efficiently

The first point on our list is that creating videos (like writing tutorials) can help you learn things quicker and more efficiently.

Let’s take an example of some topic, like Recursion. You can read about it in a book, or in a tutorial on the internet. That’s simple, but you might forget what you learned later.

But when you make a video on that topic, you are teaching it. And to teach certain topics, you'll need to research them quite a bit.

If you are about to teach Recursion to a bunch of people, you will watch videos and learn about it in depth. This helps you make sure that you don't leave anything out about that topic.

Then you will create some code examples so people can code along with you at home, and add an explanation about what’s happening in the code in your own voice.

This will boost your learning curve by 200%, or even more. After all, you know what they say – to really know something, try teaching it.

It Can Help You Get a Well-Paying Developer Job

Now, let’s say you are searching for a React or Angular job. You've applied for them through job posting sites. The recruiter contacted you saying they want to move forward with your application, and scheduled an interview tomorrow.

The interview starts. The interviewer asked you to give your introduction. You say I am Nishant, from XYZ Place, looking for an ABC job, and all the other things. The recruiter is looking at your résumé and your portfolio while you are introducing yourself. They see that you have a Youtube Channel, so they ask you about it.

You then tell them about your channel and the sorts of topics you teach there. You explain that you make the tutorial videos, and do all the other things that you do. This will likely impress the recruiter. So what do you think they will do next?

Well, they'll likely email you informing you that they're going to transfer you to the next round of the interview. Who do you think will be happy now after seeing his email? You will!

But the catch is, your videos should be related to pure software development. Focus on topics around coding, programming languages, tools and frameworks. This will broaden your own knowledge and show that you can work efficiently with these tools.

It Can Help Grow Your Network and Online Presence

Making videos also enables you to build and grow your network. You can have a LinkedIn account where you can share posts about the topics you've covered in your videos, or playlists in some language like JavaScript or tool like React.

Sooner or later people will start to notice this and they will start following you. You will connect with recruiters from big companies, and that can help you one day.

You will also see other people on Youtube doing the same, and you will follow them. You will see what those other people are doing and it will be an inspiration for you.

The same is true on Twitter as well. Let's say you contribute videos on freeCodeCamp's channel. They publish it on their website as a transcript, and share it on social media channels like Twitter and Linkedin. People following freeCodeCamp will notice this and that too can help grow your network. People will share it, like it, retweet it, and so on.

It Helps Improve Your Soft Skills like Communication and Confidence

So if you make videos, it can really help improve the following skills:

  1. Communication: If you are making videos, you have to speak. You have to tell the audience what's going on. And day by day, it will help you speak more clearly, eloquently, and engagingly. And communication skills are a pretty good skill to have out there.
  2. Confidence: You are making videos on some topic, say Recursion in JavaScript, or Promises even. You may find it hard to explain the topic at first go – but if you keep doing it, you will improve over time. The better you get at explaining things, the more confident you will get about your teaching abilities.
  3. Multi-tasking: Creating videos is not easy. You need to manage the time you put in. You will record videos on your own, then edit them on your own, and post them to Youtube. And all of these parts of the process require effort. If you are managing all this, your multi-tasking skills will improve.

I have been creating videos on my channel for a year. I mainly deal with tutorial-based and conceptual topics. Make sure to check out my channel Cybernatico. It has helped me a lot in improving my confidence and communication skills.

And if your soft skills are good, they will also help you in other things in the world as well, like public speaking, or mentoring others, or facing any enemy.

You can Use Your Channel to Generate a Side Income

Creating videos on Youtube can help generate some side income as well. It will take effort at first, but nothing good comes out for free.

You will need to get monetized first. There are two steps to get monetized on youtube – two thresholds you need to pass:

  1. You need 1000 subscribers.
  2. You need 4000 watch hours. One watch hour is equal to the one real hour.

That alone is not simple, and you'll need to get their first (to get monetized). It can take years or maybe more. But you'll need consistency.

YouTube income generation works like this: you will be paid approximately a dollar per view, if the person saw ads on your video. You will need an Adsense account that will pay you for ads in your video (after YouTube monetizes your channel).

The income you get at first won't be much, but eventually it will grow. All you need to do is to create quality content with consistency.

You can then use that side income to buy things you've always wanted, like a car, a Helicopter, or even an Airplane. :)

But remember, it will take effort. It won’t be easy.

It will bring a smile to your face

So you are making videos, and suppose someone sees it. They might comment something like this,

Oh my God, I just saw your video on XYZ topic. I have been struggling with this and couldn’t find any solution that helped me, but this video helped me sure. Thank you for the video. Love from America.

Now, what will be your thoughts after reading this comment? I am sure you will smile and your heart will bloom.

Wrapping Up

And those are some reasons why you should have a software YouTube channel if you are a developer.

Don’t worry that your content might be repetitive. What I explained in my video or what you explained in your video can be very different. A person learning the topic may not benefit from my video, but they may benefit from yours, because of how we explain things.

There can be thousands of creators, but there will be millions of people who are learning. And creators can learn from each other as well.

So that’s it. Make sure to check out my video on the topic Content Creation for Developers — Why Developers Should Have a Youtube Channel

Thanks for reading this blog. Happy Learning and Creating.