Have a SUBJECT. When planning your video focus on what the video is going to be about and how you can craft your story around that subject.

For example: Great subjects are People, Events, New Equipment or Gear, Locations, Characters (pets, vehicles, etc), really anything that makes sense to you in that moment to subject your video around.

Have a STRUCTURE. The idea here is to support your Shoot to Edit by having a plan to follow when looking to create a video around your chosen subject. I find it best to work in a sequential format and have dialed down my structure down to the following.

For example: A good example of a story structure is documenting a certain problem, then considering potential solutions to the problem, then determining the best solution to address the problem, then documenting the solution in action, then analyzing the effects of the solution to the problem, then perceiving any future outcomes and long term effects of having the current solution set in place. Did it properly address the problem and fix it for all of the stakeholders involved? What are any off shoots or unforeseen effects of the current solution? This is a little intense but it is a great example of a story structure to follow.

*Pro Tip: The structure I use is a classic essay style of Intro, Body, Conclusion. I introduce the scene and story to the viewer, I then lead into the heart of the story and present the main subject (what it is, why it's featured, any examples or explanations to cement the story), I then let my video come to it's natural conclusion with some sort of final outcome or closing opinion.

Try to think of it as something as natural as a sunrise to sunset. How does your story flow? This is your structure. The structure of your video can be whatever you want it to be, you just need to find a system that works for you and a process that you can keep consistent, which we'll touch on later.