Authenticity Over Everything

I think the only way to sustainably pursue a career in social media is to have fun with it and post what you want. When you come from an authentic place and truly post about what you are passionate about, you radiate an energy that attracts others. This is an energy that is not present when you do something deliberately for fame and money. The people watching can feel it. So pursue only the things that came from your heart. If your heart's not in it, your content feels robotic and meaningless. As a viewer, it automatically makes me lose interest when I see someone who is only posting for clicks.

As a content creator, I think it makes life easier when you are not forcing yourself to upload something you don’t believe in. The chance of burning out goes down significantly. I’ve been posting on YouTube since 2012, and the only reason I am still around is that I worry more about having fun with it than making a living out of it. If I were to put my focus into creating the most viral content, I would hate being on this platform. I’ve learned that it is not worth it to stare at your analytics with deep obsession. It puts an unnecessary pressure and stress on your shoulders when you try to make the perfect video for the algorithm to pick up. It’s better to take things day by day and one video at a time. You have to build the confidence that your videos will attract its intended audience. Even if it takes a while. I’ve had videos I’ve upload years back and out of nowhere they start blowing up. So worry more about creating a catalog of videos for people to watch. That way, when you stumble upon virality, your new viewers will have a plethora of videos to view, and they’ll be hooked.

This is how you set yourself up for longevity and become a mainstay in the industry. Build the content you want, and the right audience will come. Your brand should be you and your personality. You want people to connect with who you are deep down, not a persona you create. That way, you can endlessly be unapologetically yourself at all times and know that the community you built actually values you for who you are. The subscribers and viewers that you’ve gathered are interested in seeing what you are up to and what you’re going to do next. That’s how you develop a fanbase that is loyal and engaged with your content. The real always prevails. Remember that.