How to Succeed at MrBeast Production Handbook

Source: https://drive.google.com/file/d/1YaG9xpu-WQKBPUi8yQ4HaDYQLUSa7Y3J/view

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HOWTO
SUCCEEDIN
MRBEAST
PRODUCTION

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HI
Hi,I’mJimmy(MrBeast)andastheteamisgrowinglarger,Inolongerget
tospendasmuchtimewitheveryoneasIusedto.Thefirstdozenemployees
hadunfilteredandunlimitedaccesstometolearnasmuchastheycouldabout
myvisionandwhatIwanted.Sadly,youdon’thavethatluxury.So,Ithoughtit
wouldbeusefultotrytobraindumpasmuchasIcanintothissillylittlebookto
givenewpeopletohelpbringthemuptospeedoneverythingwe’velearnedover
thepastdecadewiththischannel.We’vebeenthroughalotandchancesare
mostoftheproblemsyoufacewe’vedealtwith.SoIgenuinelybelieveifyou
attentlyreadandunderstandtheknowledgehereyouwillbemuchbettersetup
forsuccess.So,ifyoureadthisbookandpassaquizI’llgiveyou$1,000.Sorry
inadvanceforalltherunonsentencesandgrammarissues,I’mayoutubernot
anauthorhaha.
Thisisnotarulebook.
Ineedtokickthisthingoffbysayingthepurposeofthisisnottogiveyoua
bunchofrulestofollow.OntopofthatIwantnothinginheretobetakenliterally.
Whatwedoiscomplexandchangesbasedonthesituation.Ineedyoutorepeat
thisinyourheadthreetimes:“IwillapplyeverythingIreadwithagrainofsalt.”
Thisisnotaninclusivelistofeverything,Ihopethisinspiresyouwithquestions
andtocometoustolearnmore.

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Prelude(idkwhatthismeans)
Icouldmakeaseparatebookforcreative,aseparatebookforproduction,
aseparatebookforeditors,etc.butIthinkthat’dbedumb.Everythingwedo
hereisinterconnectedandthemoreyouunderstandaboutwhatothersaredoing
andtryingtoaccomplish,thebettersetupforsuccessyouwillbe.Sothiswillbe
informationaboutallpartsofMrBeastproductionsandIadviseeveryonetoread
itinitsentirety.AgoodexampleofthisisJamesWarren.Heunderstandsevery
singlepartofthiscompanyatadeeplevelandasaresultcanmakedecisions
fasterthananyoneelse.Thestuffyouwillbereadingaboutheknowslikethe
backofhishand.I’veseenateamof5peopleworkonaprojectforaweekjust
togiveupandJamessolveitin30minutes.Isaythisnottoflexforhimbutto
showthepowerthatcomeswhenyouunderstandeverythinginthisbookdeeply.
Themoreyouknowaboutwhywedothingsandwhatwearetryingto
accomplish,thebetteroffyouwillbe.Solet'sstartoffwithsomebasicstuff.
Whatisyourgoalhere?
YourgoalhereistomakethebestYOUTUBEvideospossible.That’sthe
numberonegoalofthisproductioncompany.It’snottomakethebestproduced
videos.Nottomakethefunniestvideos.Nottomakethebestlookingvideos.Not
thehighestqualityvideos..It’stomakethebestYOUTUBEvideospossible.
Everythingwewantwillcomeifwestriveforthat.Soundsobviousbutafter6
monthsintheweedsalotofpeopletendtoforgetwhatweareactuallytryingto
achievehere.
Idchowtraditionalmediadoesthings
PardonthebluntnessbutthisisnotHollywoodandIdonotwanttobe
Hollywood.Andifthatsentenceisaturnofftoyouthenyou’reprobablyatthe

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wrongjob.Igenuinelymeanthat.YoutubeisthefutureandIbelievewithevery
fiberofmybodyit’sgoingtokeepgrowingyearoveryearandin5yearsYoutube
willbebiggerthananyonewillhaveeverimaginedandIwantthischanneltobe
atthetop.WhichiswhyIsaywearenotHollywood.99%ofmoviesortvshows
wouldfloponYoutube.Ontopofthatthey'dbewildlyunprofitable,haveno
flexibility,andlongleadtimesthatcan’tadapttotrends.Wearn’theretomakea
smallmovieonceortwiceayear,Iwanttomakeoneaweeklol.Whichiswhy
youneedtobenimbleandproducecontentOURway,notthewayyouwere
taughtbefore.IfyouwantthehighestprobabilityofsuccessIbegyoutolearn
whywedowhatwedoatadeeplevelbeforeyoutryto“fix”anything.We’ve
donecountlessvideosandinvestedhundredsofthousandsofhourscollectively
buildinghowwedothings.Iknowit’snotperfectbutwehaveareasonforhow
wedomoststuffandit’sprobablyadecentone.
TheAmountofhoursyouworkisirrelevant
Beforeyougetmad,recallthestoryaboutJamessolvingaproblemin30
minutesateamof5couldn’tinaweek.Inthatexampledoesitreallymatterhow
manyhourstheyworked?Obviouslywewantgrindersthatputinthehoursand
loveyouguystodeaththatdo.Butattheendofthedayyouwillbejudgedon
results,nothours.Wearearesultsbasedcompany.Getshitdoneandmovethe
goalpost!
Ionlywant“APlayers”
AsItypethisIrealizeitmaynotbethewisesttocategorizeeveryoneinto
3bucketsbutthisishowIbelieveweshouldlookateveryoneapartofthe
productionteam.You’reeitheranA-Player,B-Player,orC-Player.Thereisonly
roominthiscompanyforA-Players.A-Playersareobsessive,learnfrom
mistakes,coachable,intelligent,don’tmakeexcuses,believeinYoutube,seethe
valueofthiscompany,andarethebestinthegoddamnworldattheirjob.
B-PlayersarenewpeoplethatneedtobetrainedintoA-Players,andC-Players
arejustaverageemployees.Theydon’tsuckbuttheyarn’texceptionalatwhat
theydo.Theyjustexist,dowhatever,andgetapaycheck.Theyarn’tobsessive

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andlearning.C-Playersarepoisonousandshouldbetransitionedtoadifferent
companyIMMEDIATELY.(It’sokaywegiveeveryoneseverance,they’llbefine).
Chapter1:WhatmakesaYoutubevideoviral?
Ispentbasically5yearsofmylifelockedinaroomstudyingviralityon
Youtube.Somedaysmeandsomeothernerdswouldspend20hoursstraight
studyingthemostminorthing:likeisthereacorrelationbetweenbetterlightingat
thestartofthevideoandlessviewerdropoff(thereis,havegoodlightingatthe
startofthevideohaha)orothertinythingslikethat.Andtheresultofthose
probably20,000to30,000hoursofstudyingisI’dsayIhaveagoodgraspon
whatmakesYoutubevideosdowell.Thethreemetricsyouguysneedtocare
aboutisClickThruRate(CTR),AverageViewDuration(AVD),andAverageView
Percentage(AVP).Makesureyouknowthoseabbreviationsbecausethat'show
mostpeoplewillrefertothem.Upfirstwe’lltalkaboutCTR.Thisisimportantno
matterwhatdepartmentyouworkin.CTRisbasicallyhowmanypeopleseeour
thumbnailintheirfeedsdividedbyhowmanythatclickit.If100,000,000people
seeourthumbnailand10,000,000clickonitthenthatmeans10%clickedand
wehavea10%ctr.Thisiswhatdictateswhatwedoforvideos.“ISpent50
HoursInMyFrontYard”islameandyouwouldn’tclickit.Butyouwould
hypotheticallyclick“ISpent50HoursInKetchup”.Botharerelativelysimilarin
time/effortbuttheketchuponeiseasily100xmoreviral.Animageofsomeone
sittinginketchupinabathtubisexponentiallymoreinterestingthansomeone
sittingintheirfrontyard.Titlesareequallyasimportantforgettingsomeoneto
click.AsimplewaytoupthatCTRevenmorewouldbetotitleit“ISurvived”
insteadof“ISpent”.Thatwouldaddmoreintrigueandmakeitfeelmore
extreme.Ingeneralthemoreextremethebetter.“IDon’tLikeBananas”won’t
performthesameas“BananasAreTheWorstFoodOnEarth”.Nowifyou’rein
productionorcreativeyoumightbewondering,whydoesthetitleandthumbnail
mattertome?Expectationsiswhy.Thetitleandthumbnailonthevideosyouwill
beproducingsettheexpectationsfortheviewerforyourvideo.Imagineyou
clickedonavideotitled“World’sLargestBouncyCastle”andthethumbnailhada
giantyellowbouncycastlebesideabunchofhugebuildings.Thenwhenthe
videoplaysit'snotayellowbouncycastle,it'sred.It’salsonottheworld’s
largest.It’salsoinafieldwithnobuildingslikethethumbnail.You’dfeellikeyou
wereliedtoandclickoffbecausethevideodidnotmeettheexpectationsofthe
title/thumbnail.THISISWHYYOUMUSTKNOWTHETITLEAND
THUMBNAILSOFTHEVIDEOSYOUAREMAKING!Howcanyouknowhowto

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startyourvideoifyoudon’tevenknowwhatexpectationstheviewershaveof
you?
Nowlet'sjumpovertothesecondmetricthatmatters.AVD.Thisishow
longonaveragepeoplewatchagivenvideo.ThecoolthingaboutYoutubeis
theygiveussuperdetailedgraphsforeveryvideothatshowtheexactsecond
weloseavieweroneverysinglevideo.
Seethatbluelineintheimageabove?Thatrepresentstheattentionspanofthe
60millionpeoplethatclickedonthisvideo.It’scrazybutwecanseeexactly
wheneverysinglepersonwhoclickedonthisvideoclicksoff.Aswithalmost
everyvideoonYoutube,thefirstminutehasthemostloss(golook).Thisiswhy
wefreakoutsomuchaboutthefirstminuteandgosoaboveandbeyondto

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makeitthebestwefreakincan.Onthisparticularvideowelost21million
viewersinthefirstminuteofthevideo(whichsurprisinglycomparedtoother
channelsisaboveaverage)andcouldhavebeenmuchworse.Let’ssaythestart
ofthevideowasn’twell-lit,Ididn’tmatchtheexpectationsoftheclickbait,Ididn’t
preplanwhatI’dsay,andwedidn’tfrontloadsomeinterestingstuffforthefirst
minuteofcontent,wewouldhavelostmuchlessthen21millionpeople.Because
itwouldn’thaveevengot21millionviewslol.Butiftheviewswerehypothetically
fixedtheninsteadofstillhaving39millionviewersatthe1minutemarkitwould
bemorelike20millionviewers.Thefirstminuteofeachvideoisthemost
importantminuteofeachvideo.
Afterthefirstminuteofcontentyouwillhavewhatwecallminutes1thru3.
Thisiswhereyouhavetotransitionfromhypetoexecution(generally).Stop
tellingpeoplewhattheywillbewatchingandstartshowingthem.Anexampleof
a1thru3minutetacticwewoulduseiscrazyprogression.Let’ssaywehave10
minutevideoaboutaguysurvivingweeksinthewoods.Insteadofmakingthe
first3minutesofthevideoabouthisfirstdaythenprogressingfromtherelikea
logicalfilmmakerwould.We’dtriedtocovermultipledaysinthefirst3minutesof
thevideosotheviewerisnowsuperinvestedinthestory.They’veseenthisman
survivemultipledaysinthewoodsandemotionallynowwanttoseehowmuch
furtherhecango.Wealsowanttodosomethingaroundthe3minutemark
calleda3minutere-engagement.Are-engagementcanbedescribedascontent
thatishighlyinterestedthatfitsthestoryandmakespeoplegenuinely
impressed.Anotherwaytolookatthisisit’sasegmentthat“onlyMrBeastcando
this”.It’simportanttore-engagethevieweraroundthistimebecausetheycould
getboredofthestoryandclickoff.Thesere-engagementsareusuallyspectacles
andsometimesneedlotsoftimeandmoneytoperfect.Agoodexampleofa
re-engagementiswhenKarlwasputinchargeofwatchingJoshinthe“$10,000
EveryDayYouSurvivePrison”video.
Followingthefirstminute,thenminutes1thru3,isobviouslywhatwecall
minute3throughminute6andisthenextmostimportantpartofthevideo.This
iswhereyouplanoutallthemostexcitingandinterestingcontentthatisalso
verysimple.Thisincludeslotsofquickscenechangesandhighlystimulating
simplecontentthatreflectsthestory.Thegoalistomakethemfallinlovewith

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thestory,thepeopleinthevideoandtheoverallvideoitself.Ifwecangetthem
towatchthefirsthalfofthevideothere’saveryhighchancethey’llwatchtothe
end.Usuallyatthe6minutemarkwewillincludeanotherre-engagementthatis
highlyinterestingbutneedsalittlemoreexplanationandwillpushthestoryinthe
backhalfofthevideo.
Andlastly,wehavewhatwecallbackhalfcontent.Ihavetobecareful
writingthisbecauseIdon’twantyoutoeverforasecondthinkIamokaywith
contentbeingsubpar.Manyvideoshavebeenkilledbecausethebackhalf
contentwasasslol.Butingeneralonceyouhavesomeonefor6minutesthey
aresuperinvestedinthestoryandprobablyinwhatIcalla“lull”.Theyare
watchingthevideowithoutevenrealizingtheyarewatchingavideo.Typicallythe
notasgoodcontentwouldbeinthebackhalfofthevideo.Don’teversignalthe
endofthevideounlessit’stobuildhypefortheprizeorpayoffattheendofthe
video.Thisisalsowherelongexplanationbitscanliveandifsomething
unexpectedhappensorthingsdon’tgotoplanthatcanbeturnedintocontent.
Theaboveparagraphsarewhyyou’llhearusaskwhatminutemarkinthe
videothatyouareworkingonis.Whetheritisproduction,creative,oreditingyou
mustalwaysknowwhatminutemarkthecontentyouareworkingonis.Ifyou
don’tthenyou’renotdoingitright.Ijustwhippedoutacalculatorandthe
combinedsecondsofcontentofourlast100videosis81,801seconds.Which
dividedby100meanstheaveragemrbeastvideois818secondsor13minutes
and37seconds.Someareshorter(likewhenwedoarealtimeshootor
somethingmoreemotionalanddon’twantitdraggedout)andsomearelonger
(giantspectacleslikegivingawayanislandasanexample)but13minutesisthe
averageandyouareexpectedtoknowwhenproducingwhichminuteofthat13
minutesyouareworkingon.
Andsincewe’reonthetopicofretentiongraphshereisacoolvisual

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Thelastofthe3trackablemetricsthatmatterstoviralityisAVPandtbh
thisdoesn’tmatterasmuchtoyou.Usuallythelengthofthevideowillbe
decidedbymeorTyler.Ijustneedyoutomakepeoplewatchaslongas
possible.
AnothernontrackablethingaboutviralityI’dlikeyoutoknowiswhatwe
callthe“wowfactor”andit’sdefinitelythemostsubjective.Youcancheckallthe
aboveboxesforctrandavd,butthevideostilldoehforus.Anexampleofthe
“wowfactor”wouldbeour100daysinthecirclevideo.Weofferedsomeone
$500,000iftheycouldliveinacircleinafieldfor100daysandinsteadofstarting
withhishouseinthecirclethathewouldlivein,webringitinonacrane30
secondsintothevideo.Why?BecausewhothefuckelseonYoutubecandothat
lol.Thefactthatweliftedahouseonacranedidn’taddanythingtothetitleand
thumbnail.Itobviouslyhookedtheviewersandhelpedretentionbutthereare
millionsofwayswecouldhavedonethateasier.It’sarguablyfromadata
standpointillogicalandawasteoftimebuttheimpressionitleavesontheviewer
isinvaluableforus.Anytimewedosomethingthatnoothercreatorcando,that
seperatesusintheirmindandmakesourvideosmorespecialtothem.It
changeshowtheyseeusanditdoesmakethemwatchmorevideosandengage

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morewiththebrand.Youcan’ttrackthe“wowfactor”butIcandescribeit.
Anythingthatnootheryoutubercando.Andit’simportantweneverloseour
wow.
CHAPTER2:CreatingContent
ForthisnextpartIwanttowriteaboutactuallycreatingcontent.I’mnot
goingtotalkaboutanyproductionsysteminparticularbecausethewaywerun
thisproductionchangesalmosteveryyearhaha.IjustwanttopassonthingsI
seenewpeopletypicallyfailatandingeneralwhatIwant.Ourvideosarehard
andifyoutookthedifficultyofourvideosandtrendlineditovertime,you’dsee
theyareonlygettingharder.ThisiswhyIwantthebestintheworldandpeople
whoareobsessed.Ifyou’renotgrowing,eventuallythedifficultiesofthevideos
willoutgrowyou.Whetheritbeproduction,creative,camera,oreditingIwant
youtobeobsessedwithYoutube.GetridofNetflixandHuluandwatchtonsof
Youtube,itwillwithoutadoubtinmymindmakeyoumoresuccessfulhere.The
moreinvestedyouareinourworldonYoutubethemoreyou’llunderstand
trends,howwecanstandoutandbemoreoriginal,whatwecoulddobetter,etc.
YoushouldalsoreallytrytowatcheveryMrBeastvideoonallthechannels.
(soundsobviousbuti’veaskedmultiplepeoplethisweekwhattheythought
aboutlastweek’sgamingvideoandnotasinglepersonhadseenit).
OntopoflearningfromwatchingYoutubeI'dloveforyoutoread“The
Goal”ifyouhaven’talready.Iusedtomakeeveryonereadit.Iknowbottlenecks
areobviousanditwillsoundlikeI’mtalkingto10yearoldssometimesbutjust
notknowingandunderstandingsomethingassimpleasbottleneckshasfucked
tonsofvideos.Youallshoulddeeplyunderstandtheworkstreamfromwhena
videohitsthecalendartowhenitisfilmed.Idon’thavethebesttrackrecordof
makingthevideofilmingcalendarsuperfaroutandstickingwithit.Let’ssay
you’reinproductionandavideoyou’reassignedtoisputup45daysout.Alotof
thingsneedtohappenbeforeyoucanstartworkingonit.Thebigthingswould
probablybeyouneedathumbnailsketchandcreativeonyourteamtowritethe
video.DONOTjustgotothemandsay“Ineedcreative,letmeknowwhenit’s
done”and“Ineedathumbnail,letmeknowwhenit’sdone”.Thisiswhatmost

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peopledoandit’soneofthereasonswhywefailsomuch.Iwantyoutolook
themintheeyesandtellthemtheyarethebottleneckandtakeitastepfurther
andexplainwhytheyarethebottlenecksoyoubothareonthesamepage.
“Tyler,youaremybottleneck.Ihave45daystomakethisvideohappenandI
cannotbegintoworkonituntilIknowwhatthecontentsofthevideois.Ineed
youtoconfirmyouunderstandthisisimportantandweneedtosetadateon
whenthecreativewillbedone.”Nowthispersonwhoalsohastonsofshitgoing
onisawareofhowimportantthisdiscussionisandyouguyscanprioit
accordingly.Nowlet’ssayTylerandyouagreeitwillbedonein5days.YOU
DON’TGETTOSETAREMINDERFOR5DAYSANDNOTTALKTOHIMFOR
5DAYS!EverysingledayyoumustcheckinonTylerandmakesureheisstillon
tracktohitthetargetdate.Iwantlessexcusesinthiscompany.Takeownership
anddon’tgiveyourprojectachancetofail.Dumpingyourbottleneckon
someoneandthenjustwalkingawayuntilit’sdoneislazyanditgivesroomfor
errorandIwantyoutohaveamindsetthatGodhimselfcouldn’tstopyoufrom
makingthisvideoontime.Check.In.Daily.Leave.No.Room.For.Error.
ForthisnextpartIjustwanttobraindumpaboutrandomthingsandexplain
whywedo/saycertainthings.Ifyouunderstandallofthisthenyou’llbeinagood
spot.LIkeseriously,thesearecheatcodesandyoushouldtakethemtoheart.
Videoeverything
Ireallywantustoseeproducingasateamjob,notasolothing.Whichis
whyit’simportantyouvideoeverythingcritical(andalsoanythingyouthink
peoplewouldaskabout).Let’ssayyougotoscoutasetforavideoinamonth
whiletherestofyourteamisworkingonthisweek’svideo.Mostpeoplejustgoto
scouttheset,maybegrabaphoto,andwalkaroundandtrytograbagood
mentalmodelofit.Thenaweeklaterwhenyou’reback,thisvideoisnowTyler’s
mainfocusandhestartsaskingquestionsabouttheset,andyoucan’tquite
recall.Thequestionsgetmoreandmoredetailedandallyouhavetogooffofis
what'sinyourmind.Therestofyourproductionteamalsoneedstostart
planningbitsbuttheydon’tknowwhatitlookslikeandit’sashitshow.Thisis
whywesayvideoeverything.Whichismoreimportant,thatonepersonhasa
goodmentalgripofsomethingorthattheirentireteamof10peoplehaveagood

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mentalgriponsomething?Obviouslytheteam.Andtheeasiestwaytobringyour
teamuptothesamepageistofreakenvideoeverythingandstoreitwherethey
canconstantlyreferenceit.Alotofproblemscanbesolvedifwejustvideosets
andaskforvideoswhenorderingthings.EspeciallybecauseIpersonallyama
visualguyandIalwaysasktoseewhatthingslooklikesoevenformevideos
arevaluable.VideoEverything.
SAYTHENEGATIVES
Titlesaysitall.Don’tjusttellpeopleonyourteamormewhysomethingis
good.It’sinfinitelymorevaluabletotelluswhyit’snotgood.IFOUNDTHE
CASTLEWENEEDFORTHEVIDEO!Butit’sbookedallyear,overbudget,and
someonediedinitlastweek.
It’syourfault,trackthecontractor
IknowIalreadytalkedaboutthisbutifthereisonethingI'dreallyloveto
imposeonyoufromallthiswriting,it'sthatyoucan’tjustdumpandforgetyour
projects.Ican’tstandwhenpeopledumpandforgettheirprojectonacontractor
andthenthedaybeforetheshootblamethemwhenit’snotready.That’son
YOU,notthecontractor.Let’ssaywearebuildingtheworld’slargestwater
balloonandyouneedsomeonetomakeagiantwoodenstandforittositon.
MostpeopleherewouldjustcallsomeonelikeJBandhavehimdoitandtellhim
tobedonebyfilmingday.Instead,youshouldreallyhaveitdoneacertaintime
frameinadvance(youneedtouseyourownintelligencebasedontheprojectto
determinethat)incasesomethingisoffwecanmakechanges.Andyouneedto
thendecidewhetherornotit’sacriticalcomponent.Ifitis,youshouldalsobegin
workingonabackupandwhileworkingonabackupyoushouldcheckinwithJB
everysingleday.Askhimtosendvideoseverydaytospotproblemsearly,hell
maybetalktohimtwiceaday.Idon’tcarejustdon’tleaveroomforerror.No
excuses,stopleavingroomforerror.Checkindaily,receivevideos,andknow
weeksinadvanceifyou’refucked.Notdays.
Iamnotalwaysright

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Shocker,Iknow.I’myoungandI'llbethefirsttoadmitI'mnotperfect.I
promisenotasinglepersononthisplanetwantsustosucceedmorethanIdo
andnomatterhowmuchyouworkyou’llneverinvestmoretimeintothis
companythenIwill,butIcan’tpromisei’llalwaysberight.Havingsaidthat,there
arewaysyoucanhelpmeberightmoreoften.Forstartersyouneedto
understandtheworldI’minandhowmymindworks.Thisbookinparticularisfor
ourproductioncompany(whichbythewayisthemostimportantcompanyand
allowseverythingelsetosucceed,withoutthevideoseverythingelsedies)but
it’snotallIhavegoingon.IhavetobethemaintalentforeveryGamingvideo,
everyreactsvideo,everyphilanthropyvideo,everytiktok,instapost,andevery
mainchannelvideo.Whichisbasically3fulltimejobsallbyitself,littlethingslike
sendingvideostopeopleforbirthdays,attendingevents,networking,etc.alladd
upbecausei’mthefaceofthechannel.OntopofbeingthemaintalentIhaveto
workwitheachchanneltomakesurethecreativesarealwaysevolvingandnot
gettingstaleandingeneralbeavisionaryforthem.Basicallyrunning4channels
atahighlevelbetterthenanyoneelseintheworldcanrunone.Wealsohavea
BeastBurgerandFeastablesandIstillhavetosetthevisionandbethelead
creative.Ontopofthatwedubourchannelsinotherlanguagesandweruna
translationcompanythatworkswithotherchannelsaswell.Ialsomultipletimes
aweekhavetocallotheryoutubersandseewhattheyaretesting/doingsoIcan
alwaysstayuptodateandmakesurewearn’tmissinganything.Akayouneed
menetworkingalot.Whati’mtryingtosayisIhavetorun4channels,3
businesses,acharity,andnetwork/maintainourimageallatthesametime.So
whenyouneedsomethingfrommeyouhavetounderstandthati’mprobablynot
asknowledgeableaboutavideoasyou.Whateveryoudon’ttellme,Idon’t
know.Whengettingananswerfrommeit’sidealyoudotheresearchandcome
tomewithcontextandoptions.Insteadofsaying“Inacomingupvideoweare
givingawayacar,whatdoyouthinkofthislexusit’sonly$10,000”whichishow
99%ofquestionsareaskedtowardsme.Dothisinstead“Wehaveacomingup
wouldyourathervideo.Oneofthebitsatthe6to9minutemarkwewillbegiving
awayacar.Wearestillonbudgetandthebudgetforthiscaris$10,000.I
checkedwithPM.Itcouldgoupanother$5kifyoureallywanted.Isearchedall
ofNCforcoolasscarsaroundthatpricepointandhereare5ifoundthatIgot
preapprovedbycreativeallonbudget.Ialsogot5otherbackupoptionsthatare
less“cool”lookingandmoreavgifyou’regoingforthat.Hereisapictureofall10
cars,themilesonthecars,andalltheinformationyou'dwant.Whichofthese
carsdoyouthinkisbestorshouldIgetotheroptions?”Ifyouwanttolooklike

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you’redoingyourjobanddon’tcareaboutthesuccessofthevideo,askme
questionslikethefirstexample.Ifyouwanttotakeaccountabilityandmakeyour
videoshappenwithahigherprobabilityofsuccess,dothesecondoption.(This
doesn’tjustapplytome,itappliestoanyonehighupyouexpecttomakea
decision)
CriticalComponents
Criticalcomponentsarethethingsthatareessentialtoyourvideo.IfIwant
toput100peopleonanislandandgiveitawaytooneofthem,thensecuringan
islandisacriticalcomponent.Itdoesn’tmatterhowwellplannedthechallenges
ontheislandare,howgoodtheweatheris,etc.Withoutthatislandthereisno
video.Henceitisacriticalcomponent.AnotherexampleofaCriticalComponent
wouldbethetitleandthumbnail.Rememberthatbouncycastlestoryfrom
earlier?Howthethumbnailhadayellowbouncycastlebutthevideoaredone?
Thethumbnailsofthevideosyou’reproducingcanalsocreatecritical
components.Athirdexampleofacriticalcomponentwouldbeifthecreativeon
yourteampitchedmeavideoof10challengesandIsaid“Ilikethevideobut
mostlybecauseofchallenge3and7,i’dhatethevideowithoutthem”.Challenge
3and7arenowessentialtoyourvideoandthuscriticalcomponents.Critical
Componentscancomefromliterallyanywhereandoncesomethingyou’re
workingonislabeledassuch,youtreatitlikeyourbaby.WITHOUTWHAT
YOU’REWORKINGONWEDONOTHAVEAVIDEO!Protectitatallcosts,
checkinonit10xaday,obsessoverit,makeabackup,ifitrequiresshipping
paysomeonetopickitupanddriveit,don’ttruststandardshipping,andspeak
upthesecondanythinggoeswrong.Theliteralsecond.NevercoinflipaCritical
Component(thatmeansyou’recoinflipingthevideoakaamillionplusdollars)
andalwaysbringinmeorJamesearlierratherthanlater.
CommunicationLines
It’sveryimportantasacompanywemaintainpropercommunicationlines.
Onsetandoffset.Thereisalwayssomeoneresponsibleforeverythingonthe
videoandifmultiplepeopleareresponsibleforthesamething,thenthat’sa
problemandneedstobefixedimmediately.Ideallywhencommunicatingacross
departmentsyougoupandthenover.Ifyouskipandjustgobelowyou

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prizemustthencallandletthepeopleinchargeknow.Let’ssayyou’rea
productioncoordinatorandyoucallawriterandtellhimyouneedsomebits
aboutasandwichbeingcookedwithlava,seemsharmless.ExceptnowTyler
(headofcreative)hasnoideawhathiswriterisworkingonandworsedoesn’t
knowthat’sanoptionwhenhedirectsthevideo.Will(headofproduction)also
hasnoideathishasbeensetintomotionandwhenplanningandtrackingthe
progressofthevideodoesn’tknowtoaccountforthis.Wllilaterfindsoutaboutit
andassumestylerapprovedthebitandstartsplanningonhowtomakelavaand
thenwastes3daysmakinglavauntiltylercatcheswindandthentyleraskesher
whysheismakinglavaandshehasnoideaandeveryoneisconfused.Thisis
whathappenswhenyoudon’tfollowpropercommunicationlines.Ifwhenthisbit
wasrequestedtylerandaliwerecalledfirst,daysofbullshitwouldhavebeen
saved.Seemssimplebutithappensdozensoftimesaweekandcausestonsof
doubleandtriplework.
CreativitySavesMoney
Idon’tthinkitcomesasasurprisewhenIsaywedon’thaveunlimited
moneyhere.Wecan’thaveeveryvideoconstantlygoingoverbudgetbecause
themoneyhastocomefromsomewherebutyou’reinatoughspotbecauseI
constantlywantbetterandbettervideos.Alotofpeoplewhoworkherehave
definitelythoughtbefore“Ifjimmywantsustobeonbudgetwhydoeshekeep
askingustodosomanyexpensivethings”or“Iknowjimmywon’tlikethissoI
needtospendmoremoney”.Peoplealwaysassumemoneyistheanswerandif
wejustspendmoremoneywecangiveJimmywhathewants.Whichiswrong,
creativityistheanswer.HereisanexampleIuseallthetimewithourgaming
team.Theylovetogiveawaymoneyeveryvideo.But.Whichsoundscoolerto
youasaprizeforagamingvideo.$20,000orayear’ssupplyofdoritos?Tome
doritosissomuchfunnierandIthinkouraudiencewouldfinditfuckenhilarious.
Soletssaywedefineayear’ssupplyofdoritosby5packsofdoritosadayfor
365days.That’s1,825packsofdoritosandaquickgooglesearchshowsyou
canbuyapackofdoritosforlessthanadollarbutwecanroundupandjustsay
adollarperapackofdoritos.Ourprizeforthevideojustwentfrom$20,000
downto$1,825becausewedidn’tjustthrowmoneyattheproblemandweused
creativity.Thisappliestoeverythingeverysingleoneofyoudo.Whetheritbe
findingacraneforavideo,decidingprizes,pickinglocations,findingcritical

16. 16
components,ordoingthemostminisculething,usecreativitytosavemoney.
Becauseeverydollarwesaveallowsmetogiveyouguysmorestabilityandhire
morepeopletomakeyourlifeeasier.Ifyouwanttosucceedheresaythis10xin
yourhead“CreativitySavesMoney”
Alwayshaveabackupday
Noonewilleverhavea100%successratewhenitcomestofilmingour
videosontimeandonbudget.It’simpossible.Butyoustillcandocertainthings
toincreasetheprobabilityofsuccessandoneoftheeasiestbutmostoverlooked
ishavingabackupday.Whenyou’respendinghundredsofthousandsofdollars
securingaset,rentingatank,etc.makesureyouhavetheabilitytoextendthem
incasesomethinggoeswrong.(itmightnotevenbeyourvideo.Something
mightgowrongongamingandnowIneedtoslideyourvideoadaytomakeup
forit.)I’dalsoratherhaveahypothetical90%coollookingtankwithadope
ownerwhoismakinglifeeasieronus,lettingmedowhateverIwant,andthe
abilitytopayextratoaddaday.Thena100%coollookingtankbuttheowner
micromanageswhatwedo,andthereisnobackupday.Thisexampleisobvious,
justthrowingitouttheretoinspireyou.Alwayscheckwithcreativebeforeyoudo
somethinglikethisbutbackupdaysarenecessaryandideallyweworkwith
peoplethatseethevalueinusandloveussotheywillbeevenmoreflexible.
Don’ttakeanythingatfacevalue,alwaysdig
Oneofthecommonthemesyou’reprobablyseeingisaccountabilityand
thisdoublesdownonthat.Don’ttakeanythingatfacevalue,alwaysdig.Thisis
particularlyimportantwhendealingwithpeopleoutsidetheMrBeastProduction
team.Ifsomeonesayssomethingtoogoodtobetrue,findoutwhy.Ifit’sfishy,
investigate.Ifyouneed10,000pillowsbynextweekandyou’vecalled10pillow
companiesandnonehavemorethanafewhundredinstockbutthenthe11th
companymagicallyhas10,000pillows,investigate.Aretheydropshipping?Are
thepillowsshitty?Whythefuckdoesnoonewantyourpillows?Pushandget
answers.Whattendstohappenispeoplethinktheirjobisdonebyfindingthe
10kpillowsandjustorderthemonlyforustofindproblemswiththemwhenthe
arrivebutit’stooclosetothefilmingwindowtofixit.Donotoverlytrustpeople

17. 17
outsidethecompany.Investigateandverifywhattheysayoritisyourfaultifthey
don’tpullthrough.
Higherformofcommunication
IfyouspendanyamountoftimewithJamesyou’llhearhimbringuphigher
formsofcommunicationalot.Becauseit’simportantandsomehowvery
overlookedbymostpeople.Theworstthingyoucouldeverdowhenyouneed
somethingforyourcriticalcomponentisemailsomeoneatthecompany.The
bestistotalktotheminreallife.It’sveryimportantyouknowwhentocallpeople
forstuff,grabtheminreallife,andwhentotextthem.Thelowertheformof
communicationthemoremiscommunicationyouwillface.Asi’mtypingthisyou
havenoideaifi’mlaughing,smiling,happy,mad,orsad.Youcan’treadmybody
languageormyfaceandbecauseofthatit’snotguaranteedthatyou’ll
understandwhati’mconveying.Needmoretoiletpaperinthebathroom?Atext
isprobablyfine.Oneweekoutfromavideoandthethingyouareworkingout
justwentsouth?Minimumamultiwaycallwiththeheadsofthevideo.Ideally
grabtheminreallifeifyoucan.Themorecomplexwhatneedstobesaidis,the
highertheformofthecommunicationyoushoulduse.Callfirstthentextifthey
don’tanswer.
Sinceweareonthetopicofcommunication,writtencommunicationalso
doesnotconstitutecommunicationunlesstheyconfirmtheyreadit.
Ownyourmistakes
IhateexcusesandIdespisewithmyentiresoulwhenpeoplejusttryto
savefaceinsteadoflearnfromhowtheymessedup.Mistakesareokay!
GenuinelytheyareandIexpectyoutomakealot.That’sperfectlyfine.Every
veteranherehascostmeamilliondollarsatonepointoranother,andyoucan
goaskthemyourselfifIeverhelditovertheirheads.Thereasoni’mokaywith
fuckupsisbecauseIknowthat’showyoulearn.Iseeitasmeinvestinginyou
andyourbrain.(hencewhyIhave0toleranceforC-Playersandtheymustgo
immediately.ThosefuckupscouldbedonebyanA-Playerthatwillretainthe
informationlearned).Ijustbegyouthatyoulearnfromeverymistakeandtrynot
torepeatit,that’swhenitgetsannoying.I’veneverevereveroncefiredsomeone
onthespotformessingup,youhavenothingtobeafraidof.Ownshitsowecan
addresshowtofixitandthenmoveon.

18. 18
NothingComesBeforeYourPrios
Whenyou’rebeingassignedtasksyoushouldhavewhatwecallapriolist.
IfAlisaysyourpriosareto
1.)Getalamborginiunder$200k
2.)Getitwrappedinanimecharacters
3.)Makeacustomsteeringwheel
Thennothingonthisfreakinplanetisallowedtocomebetweenyouandgetting
thosepriosdone.Iftheotherteamasksforyourhelpandyouspendtwodays
helpingthemandfallbehindongettingyourlamborghinisecured,THAT’SYOUR
FAULT.Ifthestudioisburningdownandyoustopworkingtoputoutthefireand
don’tgetthelamborghini,THAT’SYOURFAULT.(jokeshaha)butseriouslydon’t
letanythingcomebeforeyourprios.
USECONSULTANTS
Consultantsareliterallycheatcodes.Needtomaketheworld'slargest
sliceofcake?Startoffbycallingthepersonwhomadethepreviousworld’s
largestsliceofcakelol.He’salreadydonecountlesstestsandcansaveyou
weeksworthofwork.IreallywanttodrillthispointhomebecauseI’mamassive
believerinconsultants.BecauseI'vespentalmostadecadeofmylifehyper
obsessingoveryoutube,Icanshowabrandnewcreatorhowtogofrom100
subscribersto10,000inamonth.Ontheirownitwouldtakethemyearstodoit.
Consultsareagiftfromgod,pleasetakeadvantageofthem.Ineverysingle
freakintaskassignedtoyou,alwaysalwaysalwaysaskyourselffirstifyoucan
findaconsultanttohelpyou.ThisissoimportantthatIamdemandingyou
repeatthisthreetimesinyourhead“Iwillalwayscheckforconsultantswheni’m
assignedatask”
MathScienceVisionApprovalsBudget
Everythingyouneedcanbesolvedbyoneofthese5thingsabove.Use
Math,Science,Vision,Approvals,orBudget.

19. 19
NODOESNOTMEANNO
WhendealingwithpeopleoutsideMrBeastProductionsnevertakeaNoat
facevalue.Ifweneedastoretobuyeverythinginsideofandyoucallthelocal
Dollartreeandthepersonthatanswerssays“No,youcan’tfilmhere”.That
literallydoesn’tmeanshit.Talktootheremployeesandseeifanyarefansorif
anyhavekidsthatarefans,trytalkingtotheirboss,theirbossesboss,haveme
dmthemontwitterandtrytheirsocialteam,etc.Ifafterallavenuesare
exhaustedyouareleftwithano,thatdoesn’tmeandon’ttrytheotherdollartrees
becausethemanagerofthosecouldbehugefansandwillingtobendtherules.
BasicallywhatI’mtryingtoconveyiswhatwecall“pushingthruno”.Don’tjust
stopbecauseonepersontoldyouno,stopwhenallconceivableoptionsare
exhausted.Thisisoneofmanytoolsthatwhencombineddramaticallyimprove
yourprobabilityofsuccesswhenproducinghere.
WorkonmultiplevideosEVERYDAY
Pleasedonotcomeinandonlyworkononevideoduringaworkday.
That’showyoufallbehindonfuturevideosandcreateanastycyclethati’m
tryingtostop.Ifyoudropeverythingandgoallinonavideofor3daysthenthat’s
3daysyourothervideoswillfallbehindandeventuallyyou’llhavetodropother
videostofocusonthosevideosanditwillsnowballintoyoucan’tdoanythingbut
focusonwhat’srightinfrontofyoubecauseyoumurderedanyleadtimeyou
had.Ifyoueveronlyworkononevideoduringaday,youfailedasaMrBeast
employeethatday.
Beabletoholdacamera
Obviouslyeveryonehastheirrolesinthecompanyandtbhifyoucan
consistentlyleadandproducevideosformewitha90%successrateidcifyou
pissinthesinkeverydayi’llstillloveyou.Buthavingsaidthatit’dbeniceifat
somepointyougottrainingonourstyleofholdingacamera.Whenwedoabig
shootnotlocalit’dbenicetonothavetobring10000000productionpeopleand
100000camerapeople.Ifforexamplethereareonlyafewscenesthatneeda
coupleextracameramenI’dloveforusnottohavetofly,house,transport,and
babymorecameramenwhenwecouldjusthaveafewpeoplefromproduction

20. 20
orcreativehelpforthoseoverflowscenesbecausetypicallythemore
cameramenwehavefilmingthelessimportanteachshotbecomes.
1outof10good.10outof10bad.
Youtubehasafeaturethatcomparesanewupload’sperformancetothe
previous9videosandtellsyouhowtheviewsrankinthefirsthour,twohours,
threehours,4hours,etc.Thisiswhatitlookslike

21. 21

22. 22
Soifyouhearsomeoneaskwhatavideowasoutof10,thisiswhattheyare
askingfor.

23. 23
Randomthingsyoushouldknow
I’malmostdonewiththischapterandthenwecanmoveontocreativebut
beforewedoIstillhavetonsofnotesaroundproducingcontentthatIcan’treally
breakintotheirownsectionssoIwanttorapidfirethemheresoyouatleast
hearthemoncebeforestartingyourjourney.
Donotleaveconsteatantswaitinginthesun(ideallywaitingingeneral)formore
than3hours.Squidgameitcostus$500,000andboysvsgirlsitgotalotof
peopleout.AskJamestoknowmore
SpectaclesarevideosthatonlytheMrBeastchannelcando.Not
everyvideoshouldbeaspectacleandwerealizethesevideosarehardbut
that’sthepoint.
Ihatehavingtonsofpeopleonset.Ifsomeoneisnecessary,then
that’sfinebutifnot,kickthemoffsetorgohavethemwatchfrombehinda
monitor.Createanenvironmentwherethecontestantsalsofeelnatural.
I’dratheryoubehonestwitheachotherthennicetoeachother.
Donottalkdowntotalentordoanythingtomakethemfeellikeshit.I
needthemtobehappyandingoodmoodsandthoseboysarespecialto
me.Ideallymosttalkswithtalent(Chris,Karl,Chandler,Nolan)gothrume,
Ali,orTylertoavoidconfusionamongstthem.
Melikesimple.Thesimplerthebetter(APPLYWITHAGRAINOF
SALT)
Wepivotalot,bereadytohaveeverythingflippedonitsheadata
moment'snoticelol
Iwantmoneyspenttobeshownoncameraideally.Ifyou’respending
over$10,000onsomethinganditwon’tbeshownoncamera,seriously
thinkaboutit.

24. 24
Workwithintensity
Pushoutwards,notinwards.
Pullallnightersweeksbeforetheshootsoyoudon’thavetodays
beforetheshoot.
Ifsomethinggoeswrongonshootalwayschecktoseeifitcanbe
madeintocontent.Atreefalloveronyourcarandbreaksthe100vaseswe
neededtogiveaway?THAT’SFUCKENHILARIOUSANDWESHOULD
MENTIONITINTHEVIDEOLOL
Feasibilityisworkingtoseeifthecriticalcomponentsofavideoare
actuallypossible.ExamplewouldbeifIwantedtoplayhideandseekinthe
world’slargestbuilding.Ifyoudidfeasibilityonthis,thatbasicallymeans
you’retryingtoseeifit’spossibletogetthatbuilding.Ifyoudothenwe
haveavideoanditshouldgointoproduction.Ifyoucan’tthenthat’swhyit
wasinfeasibilitysonooneelsewastedtime.
Neverdoanythingthatcouldmakeuslookbadfromaprperspective.
Weoftendorenderingsofsetstoseewhattheylooklikebeforehand,
whichisamazingandhelpsalotcausei’mveryvisualandgetsthewhole
teamonthesamepage.Whendoingtheserendersthough,Iwanttomake
sureyouknowthedifferencebetweena“PreVis”anda“Concept”.Please
donotrefertoarenderasa“PreVis”unlessthatisactuallywhatweplan
onbuilding.Ifit’sjustarenderforinspirationandisnotbuildinglocked,
callitaconcept.Thiswillgreatlyhelpwithconfusioninmyopinion.Many
peoplewavearoundaconceptbutcallitaPreVisandpeopleseeit
expectingthattobewhat’sbuiltonlytofindoutlaterthatwasaconcept
andtheactualsetismuchdifferent.
Chapter3:Creative

25. 25
Weareacreativefirstproductioncompany.Becausewhencreativeleads
thevisionoftheshoot,theproductisalwaysbetter.SoIthinkit’simportantyou
allunderstandcreative.Itiswhatdriveseverythingwedoandistheheartofour
content.Beingcreativeandunderstandingwhatmakesgoodcontentislikecheat
codeswheninproduction,camera,andobviouslyediting.Let’stakeproduction
forexample.Let’ssayyouaretaskedwithfindingusacastletoliveinfor50
hoursandwhiledoingresearchyoufindacastleandanumbertocallforthe
owner.Soyoudocall,andheanswers.Onlyproblemishesayshequitthe
castlerentingbusinesstopursuehisdreamofbuildinga100foottalllego
catapult.Youcanobviouslytellwherei’mgoingwiththis.Ideallyyou’drecognize
that’sbadassasfuckandtrytoconvincehimtoletususeitwhenwedofinda
castle.Thisisabadexamplebecauseit’ssoobviousbutifyou’redoingyourjob
rightyouwillbedoinganabsurdamountsofcallsanddatacollecting.While
tryingtocompleteyourpriosandprepareforthevideoyoushouldalwaysbeon
thelookoutfornewthingsyoucanbringtoyourcreativeteamtoinspirethem.
Becausejustlikeme,theydon’tknowwhattheydon’tknowandyoucan’tjust
say“i’minproductionandi’mnotverycreative”becausethat’sliterallythe
equivalentofsayingIsuckatwhatIdo.Youalsoneedtoapplythissame
mindsetwhenproblemsolvingbecausemanypeoplelosesightofthisstuffwhen
intheweeds.Ifaproblemappears,alwaysalwaysalwaysaskyourselfifyour
newplaniswhatsbestforcreative,notjusttheeasiestbandaid.
Whatisthegoalofourcontent?
Toexciteme.Thegoalofourcontentistoexciteme.Thatmaysound
weirdtosomeofyou,especiallyifyou’renewbuttomeit’swhat’smost
important.IfI'mnotexcitedtogetinfrontofthatcameraandfilmthevideo,it’s
justsimplynotgoingtohappen.I’mnotfakeandIwillbeauthentic,that’spartly
whythechanneldoessowell.Andifi’mnotexcitedbythevideo,we’refucked.
Luckily,I'dsayI'maprettypredictableguy.(atleastinthisregardhaha)What
excitesmeiswhatIbelievewillmaketheaudiencehappy.That’swhatitalways
hasbeenandalwayswillbe.I’mwillingtocounttoonehundredthousand,bury
myselfalive,orwalkamarathonintheworld’slargestpairsofshoesifImust.I
justwanttodowhatmakesmehappyandultimatelytheviewershappy.This
channelismybabyandI'vegivenupmylifeforit.I’msoemotionallyconnected
toitthatit’ssadlol.ButthisistheonethingIwillnevercompromiseon,Ihave0
issuesthrowingawayamultimilliondollarvideoifIdon’tthinkit’suptomy

26. 26
standardsandisgoodfortheaudience.Wemustalwaysbeimprovingand
innovating.Thecameraanglesneedtoalwaysgetbetter,thepacing,thestory,
thejokes,thecolor,thelighting,themusic,theprops,thepeople,ourframing,
ourideas,literallyeverythingmustalwaysbeimprovingandinnovating.Because
thatiswhatexcitesme.That’sliterallywhatIlivefor,toseethesevideosget
betterandbetterandultimatelymaketheviewershappy.
WhatMakesGoodContent
Thisiswherethingsgetsubjectiveandmybrainisprobablygoingtoturn
intomoosh.TheproblemwithwhatI’mwritinghereisthatgoodcontentis
limitless.Literallyanythingcanmakegoodcontent.Let’stakeababydollfor
example.Youcanseewhocanthrowitthefarthestwiththeirlefthandoutofa
groupof5people.Watchingthemthrowababydollwiththeirbadhandand
funnysoundeffectsisfuckenhilarious.Youcanalsogotheoppositerouteand
have1,000babydollsandseehowmanyittakesforsomeonetothrowitina
crib200feetaway.Oryoucanseehowmanybabydollsitwouldtaketobreaka
twobyfourinhalf.ThepointI'mtryingtoconveyhereisthatevensomethingas
simpleasababydollhasaninfiniteamountofwaysyoucanturnitintoamazing,
original,andfunnycontent.That’soneofthesecretweaponsofMrBeast
Productions,wearen'tstuckinanyoldwaysofthinkingandyoucanliterallyturn
anythingintocontent.Goodcontentcanbeanything,alwayshaveanopenmind
andneverstopinnovating.Havingsaidthat,thisisyoutubeandthereare
constraints.Youknowthevideocan’tbeaminutesoyou’reobviouslygoingto
needastorytoholdtheviewersandtherearerulestostorytelling.Ouraudience
ismassiveandbecauseofthatyouhavetobesimple,for50millionpeopleto
understandsomethingitmustbesimple.Contentcanbeanythingbutthereis
structureandrulesthatwemustmolditintothatIwanttoteachyouabout,
becauseviralitydoesn’tjusthappen.Everyframeofourvideoswillbeseenby
10sofmillionsofpeople.
Howtomeasurethesuccessofcontent
LikeIsaidatthestartofthisthemetricsyoucareaboutinregardsto
viralityareCTR,AVD,andAVP.Ifyouwanttoknowifthecontentsofavideoare
good,justlookattheAVDandAVPofavideoafterweuploadit.Becausebased

27. 27
onhowlongpeoplewatchandwhatpercentageofthevideotheywatched,you
canclearlyseeiftheyenjoyedit.Toshowthisinaction
belowistheretentiondatafortwoseparatevideosofalmostidenticallengthfrom
thechannel.(AllavdandavpdataIsharewillbefirstdaydatatomakeitapples
toapples,ifyoudon’tknowwhatthismeansthat’sokayit’smostlyincasemario
getshishandsonthishaha).Onevideohas120millionviewsandtheotheronly
45million.Lookattheseretentionnumbersandseeifyoucanpickwhichone
gottripletheviews.

28. 28
Theansweristhelowerimage.Peopleonaveragewatchedthisvideoaminute
and38secondslongerthantheothervideoofthesamelength!!OFCOURSEIT
GOTTRIPLETHEVIEWS,IT’SCLEARASDAYFORYOUTUBETHAT
PEOPLELIKEDTHISVIDEOMUCHMORE!Foryourvideostodowellyoumust
gettheirAVDandAVPashighaspossible.Thelongerpeoplewatch,thebettera
videowilldo.ThisiswhyI’msuchasticklerabouteverysinglesecondof

29. 29
content.Hookpeopleatthestartofthevideo,transitionthemtoanamazing
storythattheyareinvestedin,havenodullmoments,andthenhaveasatisfying
payoffattheendofthevideowithanabruptending.
Formats
Onewaytoboostretentiononavideoistohaveagoodformatforthe
videotofollow.Let’suseourpopular“lasttoleave”seriesasanexample.These
videoshavemanyreasonswhytheydowellbutoneinparticularisthepayoffat
theend.Youseeonceyoustartwatchingalasttoleave,yougetinvestedinthe
progressandthechallenge.Youreallywanttoseewholeavesthecirclelastand
winsthe$100,000.Luckilythewinnerisn’trevealeduntiltheendofthevideoso
aslongaswedon’tmakethevideoboringashellpeopleareverylikelytostick
arounduntiltheend.Strongpayoffsattheendofvideosboostretention.But
obviouslylasttoleaveisn’touronlyformat.AnotherexampleofaformatiswhatI
liketocallstairstepping.Agoodexampleofthisis“IBoughtTheWorld’sLargest
Firework”thisvideoopenswithusshowingallthefireworksandthenlightinga
$1firework,thena$10,then$50,then$375,then$1,000,then$10,000,thenwe
didsomecontent,then$40,000,$100,000,andthentheworldrecord.Asyouget
deeperinthevideothestakesgethigher.Thepayoffoftheworldrecordisatthe
endandIt’ssuchabeautifulformatthatallowsyoutodeviateifyouwantaslong
asthingsprogressivelygetcooler.Ifuckenlovestairstepping.Anotherformat
wouldbetheoneswhereIgetchasedlikebountyhunter,military,FBI.Justlike
thelasttoleavechallengesyoudon’tknowuntiltheendofthevideowhatthe
resultis.Willtheycatchme?WillIgetaway?Gottawatchuntiltheend.
Throughoutthehistoryofthischannelwe’vebeenthroughmanyformats.
Abigonebackinthedaywas“donatingtotwitchstreamers”andpeopleloved
them.I’dgointorandomstreamsanddonate$10ktoastreamertoseehow
they’dreact.Allinallwedidlike12ofthemandwhenIstoppedpeoplestill
beggedformoreandthat’sbecauselikeSteveJob’ssays,peopledon’tknow
whattheywant.Theviewermaythinktheywantaformatforever,buttheydon’t.
Theywantnewandfreshthings(thisisevidentbecauseeverychannelthat
rehashesformatsforyearsalwaysdies).ThisiswhyI’mconstantlyditching
formatsinexchangefornewones.Ideallytwovideosfromthesameformatare
notbacktoback,i’dlikemultipledifferentvideosinbetweenthemifpossible.

30. 30
Whoisouraudience?
Herearescreenshotsfromthebackend.(Europeisabig%butit’sbroken
upintocountriessoitdoesn’tseemlikeit)

31. 31
Ourcontentisconsumedbyeveryoneatthispoint.Kidswatchthevideoswith
theirmom,eventhoughourfemaleviewershipisonly30%.That'sstill9figure
viewsamonthfromwomen,andit’sworldwide(butnottoworldwide,50%+isstill
Americaandeurope.)Butdespitesayingallthat,atitscoreifIhadtodescribeit,
I'dsaytheaverageMrBeastviewerisateenagememerthatlikesvideogames.
YouShouldWatchOurVideos
Ifyou’regoingtobeworkingfortheBeastbrandyoushouldbeafanofthe
Beastbrand.Alotofveryvaluableknowledgecomeswithwatchingvast
amountsofourvideos.IfeelsillyforhavingtowritethisbutallthetimeItalkto

32. 32
newpeoplethathaveatmostseenlike5or6ofourvideosandit’smindblowing
thattheydon’tseeaproblemwiththatlol.AsIsaidearlierI’dloveforyouto
watchallthechannelsbutespeciallythemainchannelseeinghowyou’re
workingonit.Toget60%uptospeedI'dwatchourlast50ishvideos,ifyou’rea
monsterandreallywanttounderstandthehistoryofthecompanyandthe
innovationswe’vebeenthrough,I'drecommendyouwatcheveryvideobackuntil
youhitthe10millionsubscriberspecial.(anythingbeforethatisawasteoftime
inmyopinion)Ifyou’veseeneveryvideowe’vemadesince10milthenyouwill
havealotofcontextandinformationothersdon’tanditwillmakeyouthatmuch
muchmuchmorevaluable.
BrandDealsAreContent
Ifyouwatchalotofyoutubeyou’llprobablynoticethatwhensomeone
doesabranddealit’sboringandsoundslikethey’rereadingascript.Wetakea
differentapproachtobranddeals,weliketointegratethemintothecontentsoit
doesn’tnukeourretentionandboostsconversion.RememberthatItoldyouwe
couldseetheexactmomentwhenviewersclickoffourvideos?Hereisa
retentionchartforwhenweusedtodobranddealstheoldway.
Noticethecraterwherethebranddealis,thatmeanspeopleskippeditandalso
clickedoffthevideo.Nowhereisaretentionchartwithanewstylebranddealin
it.

33. 33
ThedipiswaylessdramaticandforthemostpartsomethingIcanlivewithto
helpfundthevideos.BRANDDEALSARECONTENT!Andwhentreatedas
suchboostsretention.Weneedtomaketheminentertaining.Also,funfact,the
lastCEOthatsponsoredavideosaidthatthereturnwas1.7xthereturntheyget
onaNFLchampionshipgamead.HesaidwithanNFLcommercialyougeta
giantspikeofcustomersdayoneandthenitdisappearsforeverafterthatwhere
asabranddealwithusyougetahugespikeforafewdaysandthenitsettles
downandthenarespikewhenweuploadagain(becauseaftertheywatchthe
newvideotheygobackandwatchthevideobeforeit)andevenafterthatour
videostypicallygetamillionviews+amonthforyears.Akatonsofresidual
customers.
UNDERSTANDCULTURE
Whatyouconsumeonsocialmedia,whenyouwatchyoutube,tv,the
gamesyouplay,etc.arewhatIliketocallyourinformationdiet.ChrisTyson(our
firstsubscriberandtheguyinthevideos)isawonderfulexampleofan
informationdietbeingusedtoperfection.Thedudeisfunnyasfuck.I’venever
metanyoneinmyentirelifethatcanmakepeoplelaughlikehecanandInever
understoodwhyhewassogoodatituntilIlivedwithhimforafewyears.The
dudewatchesanobsceneamountofcartoonsandstupidshit.Hiseyeballsexsist
toinhailcopiousamountsofjustgoofy,dumb,andbrainnumbingcontent.Andas
aresulthecanquotealmostanylinefromanyepisodeofspongebob.He’sable

34. 34
todrawfromsomuchstupidshitinhisheadasinspirationtomakejokesandbe
quirky.Asaresultheisfuckenhilarious.Butlet’simagineadifferentChris,let’s
sayinsteadofcartoonsandstupidshit,hisinformationdietwasstocksand
investingadvice.Andfor5yearsthat’sallheconsumed.Doyouthinkhe’dbe
justasfunnyashecurrentlyis?No.Heinmyopinionwouldn’tevenbe20%as
funny.Ifyou’reawriterordirectoryoureallyneedtomonitorandperfectyour
informationdiet.Ifyourdietisnotcorrect,youwon’thaveagoodpulseon
culture.Idon’twantyoutobeachris,infact,Ithinkthatwouldprobablydoyou
harm.Talentneedstoinhalecartoonssotheycanbefunny,writersneedto
inhaleinspiration.Let’ssaythereisapurplefruitinthemiddleofAustraliathat
wheneatenmakesyou2feettaller.Ifittrulydidexist,youwouldn’thaveknown
thatuntiljustrightnow.Butnowthatyouknowofit,youcandrawonitfor
inspirationforeverypieceofcontentyouwritegoingforward.That’sbeautiful,it
cannowsitinthebackofyourmindwaitingforthatonevideowhereitisneeded.
Itmighttake10videosoreven100buteventuallyyou’llbebrainstormingabit
andthinkoftherightonetousethefruitfor.Applythistoeverythingonthis
fuckenplanet.You.Can’t.Get.Inspired.By.Things.You.Don’t.Know.Exist.So
howdoyoulearnmoreaboutwhat'soutthereintheworld?Howdoyoustayup
todateonthelatestmemes?Howdoyouknowwhat’sgoingonwithcelebrities?
What’strendingonyoutube?Whatothercreatorsaredoing?What’spoppingon
tiktok?Yourinformationdiet.Consumethingsonadailybasisthathelpyouwrite
bettercontent.
It’sokayfortheboystobechildish
Iftalentwantstodrawadickonthewhiteboardinthevideoordo
somethingstupid,letthem.(assumingtheyknowalltherisksandarn’tmissing
contextonwhyit’snotsafe)Peoplelikewhenweareinournaturalelementof
stupidity.Reallydoeverythingyoucantoempowertheboyswhenfilmingand
helpthemmakecontent.Helpthembeidiots.
Wedon’tfakethings.
Makesuretoprepcontestantsandtrytocreateanenvironment
wheretheyfeelcomfortabletalking.

35. 35
Ifyouwroteabangerpieceofcontentbutitisa50/50chanceof
working,writeanotherpieceofcontent.Contentisunlimited,don'tbelazy.
Runyourcontentbyasmanypeopleaspossibleforinspirationon
howyoucouldmakeitevenbetter.
Iwantfamouspeopleinourvideos.
Don’teverputmeinasituationwhereIhavetolie,becauseIwon’t
anditwillscrewthevideo.
Nodullmomentsinvideos
Youcan’tfakeintensityinvideos
Thevideoendingsmustalwaysbeabrupttoprotectretention.
Thisisn’treallyacreativethingbutingeneralwhenonsetbe
attentiveandengaged.Filmingdaysarestressfulenough,beusefulplease.
Chapter4:YourCareer
Ifyou’vemadeitthisfaryouareprobablyatleastsemiinterestedinthis
beingyourcareer.SoIwantedtochataboutit.Becauseifyou'reambitiousand
wanttodedicateyourlifetowork,youpickedthebestcompanyinAmericatodo
itat.Ireallydon’tcaretohoardabunchofmoneyandIdeeplybelievein
rewardingthepeoplethathelpthisbusinessgetwhereitneedstobe.Butbefore
Igetintothat,let’stalkaboutthefuture.AsIwritethiswehave2teams,thatwill
growto4inthenextyear.(andpossibly8inthenext2yearsbutIcan’ttalk
aboutthatcausejameswillkillmehaha).Weneedmoreleadersinthecompany.
Weneedhardworking,obsessive,coachable,intelligent,grindersthatcanstep
upandtakesomeoftheseleadershipspotsoverthenext2years.Everysingle
departmenthasanopportunityforyoutogrowinandyou’reinluckbecausewe
don’tdoyearlyreviews.Wedowheneverthefuckyouwantreviews.Ifyouwant
tobecomeaproductionmanager,telljamesyourintentionandaskhimwhyyou

36. 36
suckandhowyoucanbecomebetter.Seriously.Hewillgiveyoualistofthings
thatyouneedtoimprovetobecomewhatweneedandifyouactuallylistenand
masterthosethings,wewillgiveyouashotattherole.(onlyproblemismost
peoplethinktheyarebetterthantheyreallyareanddon’ttakeseriouslywhenwe
givethemthingstoimproveandthenwonderwhytheynevermoveup).Thisisn’t
abureaucraticcorporatecompany.Youdon’thavetodosomethingfor5yearsto
getapromotion,Ihatethewordpromotion.Themoreresponsibility,riskyouhelp
usnavigate,andoverallbullshityoudealwith,themoreyoumake.Andifyou
wantmoreofthatwewillgladlyhelptrainyoutoreceiveithaha.Thereisinfinite
roomforyoutogrowhere.Thisisn’tasteppingstone,thisisyourfinal
destination.Wewillwinandwearegoingtobuildsomethingamazing.Iseea
worldwherethiscompanyisworthbillionsandoneday10sofbillions.Andthose
ofyouthathelpbuildthiswillberewarded.Iwantnothingmorethenforyoutogo
allin,obsessivealldayeveryday,andbecomesogoddamvaluablethis
companycan’toperatewithoutyou.AndinreturnforbecomingsovaluableI
hopetogiveyouincredibleexperiences,afunplacetowork,andofcourse,more
moneythenyoucouldeverdreamofmakingatanyothercompany.Nowread
thisalloveragainbecauseIguaranteeyoudidn’tretainenough.