How long should my videos be?

The Diagnosis

Length is an output, not an input. The real question is how many seconds of meaningful content you actually have — because a video should end the moment its density would drop, and not one breath later. Padding toward a target runtime (for watch-time math or 'the algorithm likes long videos') always backfires: the padded stretch is where holds die, and lost holds cost more than added length pays. So work backwards: cut everything that delivers nothing, see what runtime remains, and let that be the length. Then let your own data referee — if depth craters at a consistent runtime across videos, your audience is telling you their ceiling for your current density; raise the density or respect the ceiling. Long-form isn't a strategy. Long-form that stays dense is.