This year, we're leaving a few habits behind. If you want your content to actually work in 2027, here are three things to cut immediately.
1. The Polite Intro
If your video starts with "Hey guys, so today I wanted to talk about..." — stop. We're leaving the polite intro in 2026. Next year, we're making content that hits harder than Anthony Joshua.
Nobody has time for "hey everyone, welcome back to my channel, hope you're having a great Tuesday." By the time you finish saying "Tuesday," your viewer has already watched three cat videos and a woman building a pool in the forest with her bare hands.
The intro is dead. Your hook is the only thing that matters now. An intro is all about you, and sorry to be harsh, but nobody cares. Just get to the point.
Starting a video with "hey guys" is like a surgeon asking a trauma patient about their weekend. Nobody cares, doc. Stop the bleeding and get to work.
If you don't give people a reason to stay in the first two to three seconds, the algorithm buries your video deeper than a pothole that just busted your shocks and got you a ticket for an unsafe vehicle.
2. The Fake Engagement Opener
We're also leaving "a lot of you have been asking..." in 2026. Stop answering questions nobody actually asked. We know your DMs are drier than a bag of stale Crix.
You're out here starting a video with "I've been flooded with questions," when the only notification you got all morning was your phone company reminding you your bill is overdue. You're not overflowing with requests. You're talking to yourself like a man outside a rum shop at 2 AM — loud, alone, and everybody else just walking past you.
If you have something to say, just say it. You don't need to force-ripe your influence by pretending you have a fan club. When you fake your engagement, you don't look like a celebrity. You look insecure.
The goal isn't to sugarcoat anything to protect your feelings — it's to protect your reach. Master the hook, deliver the value, and get out. Stop begging for attention. Start commanding it, by respecting the viewer's time.
3. The Ten-Minute Story For A Ten-Second Point
Last one. We're leaving the "ten-minute story just to make a ten-second point" in 2026. Watching someone ramble without any idea where the story is heading is exhausting. You're just testing people's patience until they scroll past you.
I used to ramble for ten minutes thinking I was being deep, when really I was just being boring. My views dropped fast. The lesson: if you don't grab someone in the first few seconds, you lose them. No amount of story in the middle brings them back.
"A hook is simply the down payment on someone's attention. You can't expect a payout of engagement if you haven't invested in a strong opening."
That's it. Three habits, gone. Go film something worth watching.
Think you could've explained this better? Prove it.
Stitch this on TikTok — @kirkpadmore — and let's let the internet decide who's more obnoxious. Same handle on YouTube, Facebook, and Instagram.
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