Business & Clients
Write One Opinion As One, Two Or Four Beats For Social Media
From the FASTER syllabus: this article is taught in full in Social Media Accelerator, where beats are taught step by step →
In short: In FASTER's Social Media Accelerator, a beat is a change in emotion that moves a post on. One opinion can be written as a one beat post (a single sentence that goes from calm to very angry), a two beat post (a second change that pushes the first further) or a four beat post (a fuller journey that tends to earn saves and shares). Choosing how many beats to use means a trainer can post something quick on a busy day and something fuller at the weekend from the same idea, with no new idea needed. The course adds one edit: replace every stated feeling with something the person did.
The short version
A post holds attention when the feeling in it changes. Each change is called a beat. FASTER's Social Media Accelerator teaches that one opinion can be written as one beat, two beats or four, so the same idea makes a quick post on a busy Tuesday and a fuller one on Sunday. No new idea is needed for either.
Key Takeaways
- A beat is a change in emotion that moves a post on.
- One beat is quick and easy to make every day. Four beats takes the viewer somewhere and back, and tends to earn saves and shares.
- Start from the opinion you already have and write it at the length the day allows.
- Show the feeling through something the person did, and leave the label out.
What a beat is
The course gives a definition worth learning by heart: a beat is a change in emotion that moves a story on. When the feeling stays flat, the viewer has no reason to carry on. When it shifts, from calm to annoyed, from annoyed to furious, from furious to relieved, they follow the shift to find out where it lands.
Screenwriters have used the word for decades. In a film it is the smallest unit of a scene. A thirty second video or a five line caption needs the same thing, and the thing that changes is how the person telling it feels.
A simple test for any line: how does the person feel at the start of it, and how do they feel at the end? If the answer is the same, nothing moved.
One opinion, built up
The Accelerator builds the idea from a single sentence. The worked opinion is that VO2 max is not the most important part of running. Here is the one beat version:
When someone posted that VO2 max was the most important part of training for runners, without naming the case or the research, I went from calm to very angry, thinking that trainers might be confused after reading it.
That is one change of feeling and it is complete. A second beat pushes the first further, for example when the writer rereads the post and notices it was written in capitals, and goes from angry to furious. Four beats stretch the journey further still, which is what gives a viewer a reason to save it or send it on.
More beats are not automatically better. The skill is choosing the length that fits the day.
Show it and leave the label off
The first draft of nearly every emotional post says the feeling out loud. "I was so angry." That is a fine place to start, because it tells you what the beat is. The course then adds a two step edit. Write the post with as many "I felt" lines as you like, then go back and swap each one for something the person did.
In the VO2 max example, "I was very angry" became "I just spat out my green tea". Nobody has to be told the writer was angry, because they can see the tea. It also gives the post a joke to carry to the end, where the tea turns up again as a stain on a favourite pair of trousers.
Where this sits in the course
Beats is one module in a course that moves from your own voice and opinions, through character and sketches, to the platforms and how a viewer finds you. Every module ends with a practical task. For beats, the task is to write one opinion as a one, two and four beat post. The learning is visual and interactive, and you can listen, read, write your answers or dictate them.
The full course is the Social Media Accelerator.
Free tools alongside it
PT Manager is free with any FASTER course and opens the moment you sign up. Adding real clients unlocks once you pass a course. A post that earns attention needs somewhere for the new viewer to go next, and PT Manager can give them a page to book from.
FAQ
What is a beat in a social media post? A beat is a change in emotion that moves a post on. Each shift in feeling, such as calm to annoyed or annoyed to furious, is one beat.
How many beats should a post have? It depends on the day. One beat is quick and easy to make every day, and four beats takes the viewer somewhere and back, which tends to earn saves and shares.
How do you show a feeling instead of saying it? Replace every line that names the feeling with something the person did, such as spitting out a cup of tea, so the viewer sees the feeling and nobody has to be told.
Does finishing the course open PT Manager? Yes. PT Manager opens the moment you sign up with FASTER, and adding real clients unlocks once you pass a course.
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You just read one answer. The course is all of them.
Social Media Accelerator, where beats are taught step by step: every answer marked by a real tutor, with free return access for life. The price is on the page, payment plans at checkout, no sales calls.
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Frequently asked
What is a beat in a social media post?
A beat is a change in emotion that moves a post on. Each shift in feeling, such as calm to annoyed or annoyed to furious, is one beat.
How many beats should a post have?
It depends on the day. One beat is quick and easy to make every day, and four beats takes the viewer somewhere and back, which tends to earn saves and shares.
How do you show a feeling instead of saying it?
Replace every line that names the feeling with something the person did, such as spitting out a cup of tea, so the viewer sees the feeling and nobody has to be told.
Does finishing the course open PT Manager?
Yes. PT Manager opens the moment you sign up with FASTER, and adding real clients unlocks once you pass a course.
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