Hooray, I'm in pain

Audio replies and video blogging became part of my everyday life after problems with my hands made it difficult to write as much as before. In August 2011, I talked about the working habits I’d changed.

Audio replies and video blogging instead of more text

I’d written books, emails and posts for many years. I found I could no longer sit writing all day, even though I could do plenty of other things.

That was one reason I started making videos. Without that challenge, I might never have chosen to speak to readers that way.

Shortcuts and recorded replies

I show a program where short letter combinations could insert a longer text. It saved me typing the same greetings and explanations again.

I also demonstrate recording a reply as an audio file and sending a link to it. The recipient could then hear me speak instead of reading a long email.

For me, it felt both faster and more personal. The program names, technology and figures about my use of audio replies come from the 2011 recording.

A change I wanted to keep

I thought the new ways of working had value in themselves. Even if I could write just as much again, I’d want to carry on with videos, shortcuts and audio.

The story is about how I organised my work. My speculation in the video about medication and alternative treatments is not evidence of effectiveness or a recommendation to change a treatment.

Also read about other ways of communicating in 2011.

An office with children’s drawings and hands that said stop

I’m sitting in my office with the children’s drawings around me. I think they’re lovely, probably also because my own children made them. There’s a bit of everything here and quite a lot of mess, but I like it.

About two years ago, I wrote a new version of my book about e-commerce, e-pusher. That’s when I developed problems with my hands because I was writing too much. On top of the books, I’d spent years answering emails, writing on Twitter and posting thousands of replies on Amino. I mention around 7,000 Amino posts in the video. That was a lot of work for my fingers.

A couple of days before recording, I sent a newsletter saying things were improving. I got a hell of a lot of lovely replies. People congratulated me and offered free acupuncture, hand massages and herbal remedies. Others suggested different methods. It was overwhelming how kind people were.

I also got emails from people with similar problems: What had I done? So I wanted to explain what I actually meant by things getting better.

I could still do plenty of things, but not write all day

I hadn’t become vastly better at typing. On the other hand, I wasn’t going around with painful hands in my daily life. I could hammer in a nail, climb trees with the kids, sail my boat and lift heavy things. But sitting down and writing all day as I used to was simply impossible.

My own explanation was that I’d overworked my body. So I wanted to change what I did with my hands. I didn’t want to just ignore the pain and carry on working. I was afraid that would make the problems worse. And I didn’t like the idea of suppressing the pain and continuing with the same strain.

In the video, I also speculate about acupuncture, homeopathy, herbs and chiropractic. If I were forced to write every day, I could imagine trying other things. Those are my thoughts from 2011. The choice I discuss most is resting my hands and changing how I worked.

The videos came out of a limitation

It was a bloody challenge for me. I like writing books, blog posts and newsletters. But I began thinking: Could this inspire me to do something else with my life?

That’s why, about two years earlier, I started making video blog posts. Instead of sitting and writing to you, I could talk to you. At that point, I’d made around 260 videos, which had been watched almost 600,000 times, according to the figures I give in the recording.

Without the problems with my hands, I might never have made those videos. Then you might never have seen me that way, and we might never have become acquainted. A limitation had led me to a different way of communicating.

Two letters could become a whole explanation

I also found a macro program so I could avoid writing the same texts over and over. When I typed LS, the program inserted the longer text explaining that the recipient was getting an audio reply. Then I could add the person’s name.

DBH became "Best wishes, Martin". I also had a shortcut for an English sign-off, "Cheers Martin Thorborg". Those were texts I wrote once and could then call up with just a few letters. In the video, I show how I use it while replying to someone who’s written about problems with their arm.

How I sent my audio replies in 2011

On my Mac, I used RecordPad to record the reply. I spoke into the microphone and answered the person directly. When I was done, the audio file went into Dropbox. I right-clicked the file, chose to copy the link and pasted it into the email.

Then the recipient could click and hear me speaking. In the recording, I estimate that I answered 60–70 percent of my emails with an MP3 file. It saved me a lot of typing, and I actually found it faster.

There was another benefit too: The reply became more personal. Many of the entrepreneurs I coached and helped got audio replies, and they were delighted with them. They could hear me instead of just reading a text.

I’d never have thought of that solution if I’d simply been able to carry on as before. I hadn’t seen anyone else doing it that way myself, but later heard about people who’d started after seeing me. It was great to inspire others. Innovation can come from desperation. I also thought I ought to make an app for it, but didn’t have the time. Perhaps one day.

I wanted to keep the new habits

Even if some super-witch turned up with pills and massages and made my hands better again, I’d keep these methods. I enjoy making videos. The shortcuts save time, and videos and audio replies make me feel closer to other people.

That’s the point of my slightly provocative headline. I’m happy about the solutions I found because I had to do something differently. Try taking a deep breath when something in your everyday life is a challenge. Could you use it to move forward and find a different way of doing things?

My invitation to Aminotastic back then

At the end of the video, I invite people to Aminotastic on 10 September 2011 in the Danish Broadcasting Corporation’s concert hall, after Iværk & Vækst. I was giving a talk alongside Thomas Rosenstand, Mikkel deMib and a mystery guest we’d announce later.

We expected several hundred entrepreneurs to attend. Back then, a ticket cost DKK 299 for Amino Plus members and DKK 100 more for everyone else. Food and four talks were included. I also said the event would cost Amino money and a hell of a lot of work, however many people came. That wasn’t where we made our fortune. But I was looking forward to a great evening and meeting people.

PS: I completely forgot to put this post on my blog, so those following me on YouTube got a head start 🙂