DIETSCHY: In certain industries, you know
I'm in the tech space. And it's a little bit harder to find women role models in this space.
And so I think it's super important to shed light on women who are out there getting it, who are
amazing role models for girls coming up in school to look at them
and see that it's even a possibility because I think that's why
representation is so important not just for women, but you know
especially minority women to see that it's it's possible, right?
If you see it, you can believe it. You can set your course to that.
[upbeat inspirational music]
My name is Sarah Dietschy. I'm a YouTuber based in New York City,
and I make videos about tech and creativity.
I got my start when I was in middle school and we had these
projects where we could make videos, we could make music videos, and I was obsessed with music!
I play guitar for over 10 years now, and I was just really
obsessed with the production of music, and then my dad had a Canon T3i.
And so I used his T3i to make a lot of
music videos, and I had no idea what I was doing in regards to filming,
but it was, it was really cool to get into iMovie
and really learn how to edit, and then in school they had Final Cut Pro, which was so cool.
So I was able to use that for free in my A for V class.
So it really started at an early age in middle school through random school projects and being in a band.
It wasn't until 2015 that I really started
being consistent with it and focusing more on building an audience.
I mean my first hundred subscribers were from...
It was half guitar people because they were interested in guitar gear because that's the only video I posted.
And then half of them, you know, talking about only 100 subscribers,
so 50 of them, were from a Taylor Swift concert video that I posted that got like
30,000 views
Um... And so really that initial audience, I wasn't even thinking about building an audience
But once I saw kind of some views coming in from things that didn't even matter,
I was like, "okay."
"What if I take this seriously and what if I use this platform as a way to
story tell and and prove that I can shoot and edit?"
"And then maybe I could get some jobs?"
And then I got into wedding films and I would post wedding films on my YouTube channel.
So it was one of those things that I wasn't appealing to the masses,
but it was always a tool to be like maybe two people that need a wedding film watch this and hire me.
And it wasn't until 2015 that I even recognized that people were being YouTubers!
That was still such a foreign term when I first, when I posted my first video in 2011, it really wasn't a thing.
And when I discovered, "oh people are YouTubers this is... interesting!"
That's when I started developing more of an audience and really, you know...
Like talking to people on Twitter, and it was more of a relationship which was really fun.
And I built that hundred subscribers from the Taylor Swift video.
Ha!
Concert video. I wasn't even in it!
To, you know, eventually 4,000 subscribers of a really cool audience that
cares, you know, cared about creativity.
And I was doing these creative docu-series and then unboxings with cameras,
and I was really sharing my love for tech, and they were resonating with it.
And it wasn't until I made a viral video at 4,000 subscribers
that I gained over a 100,000 in a month,
to now, today, where I have over 550,000 subscribers, so...
[music]
Some of the coolest feedback I get is when I go to these
conferences and a lot of dads will actually come up to me and be like,
"Oh my gosh, I found your channel!
and I showed it to my young daughters, and now they love you guys!"
Because, uh, I think cameras and laptops and tech is...
still, you know, primarily maybe guys are into it, and then they see a woman doing it.
And then they...
you know message, they share the channel to
whether it's their wife or daughters.
And it's always so cool to hear that because I think a lot of it has to do with
you know, once you see it,
you can be inspired by those people,
and you yourself can go and maybe make videos about tech or maybe go into an engineering field!
I mean, that's a big part of my story, even though I'm not an electrical engineer. I'm a college dropout. Sorry guys!
[laughs] Dropped out to be a YouTuber!
That's a big part of my story. I studied engineering for three and a half years,
and it was crazy because I was literally like one of two women and all of my classes.
So I've seen it definitely in many different industries and I think it's--whether it's...
engineering, STEM fields,
whether it's production and video,
I think these are such powerful industries to be in because you can really change the world, I think,
through telling stories, through building that bridge, or building that piece of technology.
It's cool that you know, I think a lot of girls now have more women role models in these fields!
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[music]
My mom was just like the best mom ever, was always there,
and she really helped cultivate a lot of my creativity in
you know, sports, music, and then video.
And she really helped that, and then my grandma was just like a
freakin badass woman at the age of 18. Like moved out of her house on her own
because there you know she kind of grew up in not the most productive environment.
And basically paid her way through Medical School and became a doctor
in, you know, the 1940s. It's not like that was exactly easy for a woman to do so.
It's cool to have, you know, women in my life doing two completely different things
like stay-at-home mom and also like badass doctor the, the you know...
You, you would seem that those are like polar opposites, but they're both such like powerful roles.
And I feel like I can attribute a lot of who I am to that.
In terms of what's next, I think YouTubers are always thinking of YouTube as a
stepping stone to something else,
but for me, I found some really good peace and not oh, I think I've arrived right?
I mean, I really enjoy YouTube. I really enjoy social
I love that I get to interact with the people who follow me every day on Twitter
And so I think it's the next step for me personally is figuring out...
How, as someone who is so involved of every step of the creative process,
how do you delegate? How do you build a team around you that...
you know is maybe better than you at some things. It's scary!
Right? Because you you think that you're the only person can edit that video the way,
the way it is. And, you know, on some levels, that's true.
I think that's why people
got to my channel in the first place because they liked certain styles of things. But, um...
I think as a
non-operationals person, figuring out that has been the biggest challenge for sure
in building a team that can help grow.
And beyond that, you know, I'm super passionate about
how we make things.
If I can help build a tool that maybe takes out some of the mundane work of what I do everyday,
I found that extremely interesting, and I think going into 2020 that's going to be a big part of my life.
So not just creating content, but helping creators create content.
[laughs]
[music]
Some advice I give to a younger woman who is maybe in the tech field,
maybe they feel a little lonely,
a little you know...
You look around, and you don't see as many people that you can relate to maybe, which I can totally relate to.
If you are doing something that you love.
In my experience, you, you find a way to just push through, you find the good support system,
whoever that is, whether it's family, friends, people in class.
It's, uh... I think it really comes down to
when I was doing an electrical engineering major, all of those problems that you know might come up, they
they were a little tougher because I wasn't super passionate about engineering.
It was kind of a drag, but
once I really found my third passion in life, you know--
it was sports, music, and then video.
When you're doing something where you can just have tunnel vision
and you can very clearly see what you're striving for?
You're gonna find a way, you know, and so I think that's the most important thing is
when you're young, experiment.
Like, do everything that you're interested in whether it's music, math, and science
writing, you know, being something that I think is really hard to be nowadays
is like a successful writer and journalism and storytelling through words.
But, when you're young.
I mean that is the time to do anything and everything. I'm a big advocate for sleep.
I sleep eight hours a night, but when you're young screw it.
Just do everything you possibly can because if you can figure that out
You know at the age of 12, 16, 18, 20, you're gonna be set up for success
[music]