I can think of at least one person here that most likely has experience with what I'm talking about here but happy to hear thoughts from anybody who's into making stuff online :)
I make a few YouTube videos every now and then (the channel itself is irrelevant to this discussion, I don't mean to self advertise!), and like many people I have this fantasy of eventually supporting myself completely by doing so. I know I'm probably a very biased judge of my own quality but I feel like I do a decent job with my videos, though they can also be a huge time investment (30+ hours a video) so it's hard to really keep a consistent schedule.
How do you form that initial commitment and get work done? How do you keep yourself away from burnout? If I am getting burnt out, does that mean I'm just making the wrong kind of content?
Maybe it's a discussion that can be applied to more things in my life that I just haven't had time to figure out yet.
Content Creator Commitment
Re: Content Creator Commitment
With the caveat that I'm not in this space and quite frankly I have no interest in getting into it, I would say the following:
1. One of the biggest realisations I've had with YouTube is just how many genuinely high quality content creators there are out there who get shocking low view counts yet keep going. Of course, sometimes one of them is lucky enough to 'blow up' and become a big deal. But the point I'm making is, that whilst quality absolutely does matter (get an excellent microphone if you didn't already, it makes a huge difference), fundamentally you have to accept that even if you're making genuinely excellent content, there's a very real chance you'll never make a penny from it. It's also entirely possible that you'll make something, a little bit, but not enough for it to become a full time job. What's important is to be okay with that. Make videos because you're genuinely passionate about making videos about things, and people who share your enthusiasm will likely love it.
2. Don't worry too much about a schedule. Make videos when it interests you, and when you have something interesting to share. At this stage, having a few good quality videos is much, much better than having many, many low quality videos, and it also dramatically reduces the risk of burn-out.
I would also recommend having some other pursuits beyond just making videos. I was never into making videos but I had "similar" pursuits that fell flat, and one of the biggest mistakes I made was not knowing when to stop. I was "reasonably" good at what I was doing (though never great), and whilst I had the technical details nailed I fell flat on the bigger picture. If I had diversified earlier it wouldn't've hurt so much. If you're young and finances aren't a problem it's definitely worthwhile to give things a go and I would encourage it, but definitely keep your options open.
You're on the MattKC forum so I'll give an example - Matt makes great videos and clearly we all enjoy them, but the man is clearly a talented programmer / engineer. If YouTube shut down tomorrow he'd have absolutely no trouble getting work in those fields. Strive to be like that - be in a position where you can make videos because you enjoy it, but where you also would have plenty of opportunities if you end up doing something else. You'll make better videos when you're not stressed about making it "big" or not.
1. One of the biggest realisations I've had with YouTube is just how many genuinely high quality content creators there are out there who get shocking low view counts yet keep going. Of course, sometimes one of them is lucky enough to 'blow up' and become a big deal. But the point I'm making is, that whilst quality absolutely does matter (get an excellent microphone if you didn't already, it makes a huge difference), fundamentally you have to accept that even if you're making genuinely excellent content, there's a very real chance you'll never make a penny from it. It's also entirely possible that you'll make something, a little bit, but not enough for it to become a full time job. What's important is to be okay with that. Make videos because you're genuinely passionate about making videos about things, and people who share your enthusiasm will likely love it.
2. Don't worry too much about a schedule. Make videos when it interests you, and when you have something interesting to share. At this stage, having a few good quality videos is much, much better than having many, many low quality videos, and it also dramatically reduces the risk of burn-out.
I would also recommend having some other pursuits beyond just making videos. I was never into making videos but I had "similar" pursuits that fell flat, and one of the biggest mistakes I made was not knowing when to stop. I was "reasonably" good at what I was doing (though never great), and whilst I had the technical details nailed I fell flat on the bigger picture. If I had diversified earlier it wouldn't've hurt so much. If you're young and finances aren't a problem it's definitely worthwhile to give things a go and I would encourage it, but definitely keep your options open.
You're on the MattKC forum so I'll give an example - Matt makes great videos and clearly we all enjoy them, but the man is clearly a talented programmer / engineer. If YouTube shut down tomorrow he'd have absolutely no trouble getting work in those fields. Strive to be like that - be in a position where you can make videos because you enjoy it, but where you also would have plenty of opportunities if you end up doing something else. You'll make better videos when you're not stressed about making it "big" or not.
Re: Content Creator Commitment
No worries, still absolutely appreciated!
This is a really good perspective even though it might be the painful truth... I'll have to consider what else I really want to do, like you said it's easier if I have time right now. I don't really have a good backup plan otherwise.
i am not the guy in my profile picture (Unfortunately)