Most TV mounts require that you find two studs to drill into. This direction is for that setup. The trick is how to make sure the holes you drill are perfectly level.
The first step is to find the studs. Go to an area of the wall that you know for certain will be somewhere behind your TV. It doesn't necessarily have to be where you plan the mounting bracket to go. Now grab a stud finder and use it to find the studs behind your TV. I like to triple check by drilling small pilot holes near where the stud finder says the stud should be. I space each pilot hole about 1/4 inch apart. If the drill bit goes through the drywall into empty space, then I know I'm not at a stud. I move over another 1/4 inch until the drywall hits wood and doesn't go all the way through. Then I keep moving 1/4 inch still likely continuing to hit the stud until I hit the 1 3/4 inch (7 holes) at which point I should be back to drywall. Now I know exactly where the stud is and can find the halfway point. This is critical when mounting a TV because if you drill too far to one side or the other of the stud, it could cause it to splinter. Later on, when you go to tighten the mounting screws, you'll here the wood splinter and not feel the screw get tighter, that's when you know you've messed up and will need to find an entirely new spot on the stud to start over again. Avoid this mistake if you can.
Next figure out where the mounting bracket will be positioned on the wall and where the mount screws should go into the studs. Do this by knowing exactly where the mount will connect to the back of the TV. Then work backwards with the dimensions to make sure your TV frame will end up exactly where on the wall you want it. Draw a line where the top of the mount will go so you have a point of orientation. Grab a level and put in on the top of the bracket, place the top of the bracket on that line and mark you wall where the screws that go into the studs should go.
Now pick one of the screws and drill a hole through the drywall into the stud. Try to keep the drill bit perfectly level left and right and up and down. Now for the trick, grab a second drill bit of the same size and put that drill bit partially into the hole you just drilled. Grab a large level and balance it on the resting drill bit in the wall. This should allow you to pivot to the other side and mark exactly where level is. While still holding the level, start to drill the second hole only through the drywall. Since the level is sitting on the top of the first drill bit, if you drill into the drywall with the second drill bit and the level is still level, you are golden. If not, you can shift the drywall hole as needed until you are perfectly level. Then you can remove your level and drill all the way into the stud.
Triple check to make sure you are level by putting both drill bits partially into the holes on each stud and put the level back on to confirm. Now before mounting the bracket, make sure there aren't any other holes you need to drill (especially those that require a drywall anchor). You want to avoid putting the mountain screws into the studs and then having to undue it and redo it. First because it is more work for you and second because it makes loosen the stud holes and can cause them to potentially strip or split the wood.
With all your holes now drilled (and drywall anchors inserted), you can now mount the bracket using the mounting screws. Check one last time to make sure the bracket itself is level. If you followed the steps above, it should be perfectly level. And be sure to try this technique when mounting picture frames too. You may not need to find studs to do that, but it still helps find the perfectly level spot when you balance the level using your first hole.
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