Just Because You Can Make Money as a Creator Doesn’t Mean You Should
How to avoid the heavy expectations
Making money as a creator can be done.
You see it, we see it, everyone sees it.
But doesn’t mean everyone should do it. Or that you should do it.
Yes, many YouTubers make it big, but then there are a few that look like they’re doing well, yet are on the struggle bus.
More than likely, you won’t be the next IShowSpeed or even Zoella.
You’ll probably fall somewhere below that.
Take this YouTube creator.
Even with 100,000 followers, she made anywhere from $1000 to $6000 a month.
That’s not nothing.
But is it quit-your-job-rich? Not necessarily. (It depends on the job you have of course).
The Larger Issue At Hand
To me, there’s a larger issue at hand.
And it’s one of expectations.
Your stated or (most likely) unstated expectations that you have for your side hustle and what you want from your creations.
Expectations really do influence the level of satisfaction and enjoyment that you get out of your side hustle.
What Do You Expect from this Creator / Writing Life?
- To retire at 30?
- Make it big?
- Be famous?
- Make millions?
Those things aren’t always bad. But they won’t necessarily come easily or fast.
The journey could be quite boring. A journey of arduous days that seem like they’re going nowhere.
In fact, by focusing solely on those big-level goals, you may be giving up more than you think.
Like time.
And freedom.
Here’s what I mean…
Being a Hobbyist Creator is More Freeing with Fewer Expectations
Being a hobbyist creator — creative writer, video influencer, streamer, whatever — can be a reward in itself. And could actually be more freeing. How so?
When it’s a hobby, you can:
- experiment
- take chances
- try new things
- dive into a niche or go broad
- take a day off
You may not be able to produce as fast, but you’ll have less pressure. And specifically, less financial pressure.
Because when you’re creative pursuit like that is your job, you’re always looking for that next hack, cheap trick, or shortcut to keep the money flowing.
When you’re a hobbyist, you’re not beholden to the results. You can take a day off from it. You can try something new. Experiment, have fun, and do something different.
If it’s your full-time job, you’re tempted to keep doing the same thing because you know what works.
All Your Time Won’t Be Dedicated to “Creating”
There’s this idea that your work extends to the time that you allow it to. It’s called Parkinson’s Law.
If creating is your full-time job, you may think you have plenty of time, and you allow it to take up more time than you need.
The advantage of having time pressures — only allotted periods of time for your creative hobby — means that you’ll focus and buckle down. When you go all in, you lose that ability.
Take this example from writer Todd Brison:
Look at this line:
“It was already great, and more hours didn’t change what he could do.”
When you have the time, it may take longer to get things done. It’s not intuitive. That’s not necessarily what you would expect.
When your back is against a wall and there are only a few ways out, the constraints help you think of a creative solution. Another way of doing things that you may not have considered before.
When I was in college, I took a creative writing class for poetry. As a 20-year-old, I was pretty convinced that I didn’t need the constraints of a sonnet or iambic pentameter. In fact, that seemed so limiting to what I really wanted to say.
But then when you actually try to fit your creativity within the constraints, you have to think more. Be more careful with each word.
The words, the syllables, the letters are weightier in that context. They carry so much more importance than in my free verse musings.
It’s the same with working on your creative side hustle.
With the constraints, you’ll figure out a way to get it done. There’s no other way.
