The hard truths of content creation

One year on - was it worth it?

Hello, I’m Molly, a fulltime creator based in the Scottish Highlands. Subscribers can enjoy weekly posts around the themes of slow living, thriving in a creative career, books & nature. Members get access to ALL my content, including video tea times, slow scrolls of all my favourites and seasonal book reviews.

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It has now been a year since I left my 9-5 role as a conservationist to work full time on my creative business.

The world of content creation can feel shrouded in mystery. That’s why, in this week’s post, I wanted to share the reality of what its like earning a full time income as a creative

Its time to be honest.

The viral video that changed everything

In May 2022, I went viral on YouTube with my Tiny Home tour video.

I was 3 months into my YouTube journey. Although I was growing well on Instagram (helped by a few highly viewed reels), it was costing me too much. My mental health was suffering and I was desperate for a way out, yet reluctant to give up on my creative dreams.

I chose YouTube as this platform allowed me to share high-value, long-form content from my slow life. I was able to nurture my burgeoning film-making skills, connect with a slower community that I craved, whilst still driving traffic to my blog that was the centre of my business.

Despite my relatively high following on Instagram, it was a slow start when it came to growing my YouTube, with my first few vlogs only getting a handful of views.

Yet, through the wonders of the YouTube algorithm, this one video ricochet my views, gaining me hundreds of subscribers within a couple of weeks. It didn’t take long after that for my channel to become monetised, meaning I was finally earning an income from my creative work.

By August 2022, I’d made the decision to quit Instagram, encouraging my thousands of followers to join me on YouTube and my brand new Substack.

Some did, but most didn’t. However, I grew anyway and, by August 2023, exactly one year after quitting Instagram, I was able to go full time on my creative business.

This was just the start.

Nothing could stop me

The word luck never quite sat right with me.

Yes, being in the content creator world means that the vast majority of your success is out of your control, or at least it can feel that way.

I could never predict that this tour video would take off like it did. But its what happened next that really counted.

This was my moment. I was desperate not to miss the opportunity to change my life. I needed to build on this success, rather than becoming a one-hit wonder.

So, I threw everything at my business. I made the decision to go part time in my conservationist role, despite the significant cut to my income, and channelled these hours into my creative work.

And it worked.

Although my progress was far from a straight-line, my audience continued to grow.

Knowing that I couldn’t live of YouTube Ads alone, I set up various income streams. In addition to brand collaborations (i.e., sponsored videos and affiliate links), I designed my own line of sustainable clothing and started selling Notion planners on my Etsy store. And in January this year, I launched my paid membership here on Substack.

As my audience and revenue grew, my success felt limitless and my ambitions rose to new heights. I was brimming over with energy. Coming up with content ideas felt effortless.

I continued to ride this high, until this year when it all came crashing down.

Is my business dying?

A 2019 poll found that more children would rather be a YouTuber than an astronaut.

The Global Influencer market doubled in size between 2019 and 2023, with estimations stating this industry is now worth $21 billion.

Although this can seem like a dream career, more and more sources are reporting the darker reality of this industry, ranging from the fight to get paid (with significant pay gap prejudice) and the impact that negative feedback and relentless schedules can have on creators mental health.

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At the beginning of this year, I seriously considered giving up on YouTube.

Not only did I feel exhausted by my never-ending upload schedule, I’d somehow fallen into creating content that suited the algorithm but that I no longer enjoyed.

I had a choice, come off YouTube and likely have to find another source of income, or, produce videos that I want, when I want, and risk my growth on this platform declining. I chose the latter.

This meant that I shifted my content to more ‘day in the life’ vlogs, that still offer value for my audience but are easier to film/edit, and gave me more time for my Substack and, most importantly, time off work to indulge in my various hobbies.

I’m far happier and healthier after making this shift, but it has come at a cost.

Although my channel has continued to grow, the rate has slowed significantly and I have gained 60% less subscribers compared to the same time period last year.

Of course, not all of this is in my control, as the algorithm is a tricky beast, but I doubt its a coincidence.

Although I stand by my decision, I’ll admit that it breaks my heart a little every time I see these analytics.

Thankfully, my Substack has continued to grow from strength to strength and I’ve seen a significant boost since I made this platform my priority this year (I’ll be writing more about this in future posts).

I won’t let it break me

I’ve always been someone that does things my own way. And I’m not about to change that.

I just needed to reprioritise and remember why I started this career in the first place.

Lessons from 1 year as a full time creative

My values come first

There is so much pressure to show up a certain way online, especially if this happens to be your job.

However, I now know what works for me. I’m never going back to platforms like Instagram and I only utilise the tools in YouTube and Substack that suit me, e.g., focusing on longer form content where I can provide real value, rather than ‘quick growth’ (but are they really?) shorter content like Shorts and Notes.

Plan content I enjoy

One of the pieces of feedback I get again and again from my audience is they enjoy the variety of my content.

Although I stick to key themes (e.g., slow living in nature), I enjoy having different ‘content buckets’ to pull from and shift my work seasonally, to avoid getting into a rut or my content becoming stale.

Regular analytic reviews

Rather than hiding from my analytics, I review both my YouTube and Substack on a monthly basis, using my Notion planner (you can check out my Blogger Planner on my Etsy, which includes this review template).

Not only does it help me to strategically plan future content, it also encourages me to regularly celebrate my wins. Even if my overall views/subscribers/revenue are down, I still created content that I can be proud of, which is worth applauding.

My existing audience come first

The community that I have grown online are the reason that I continue to do what I do. Their thoughtful messages and comments can lift me even on a bad day. I recognise the names that come back again and again and I’m so grateful for them.

I intend to continue to prioritise nurturing these existing relationships as opposed to solely focusing on attracting new people.

It makes my work so much more fulfilling and its the least they deserve.

Protect my creativity

One of the main things I noticed when I shifted from a scientific to a creative career is that I can’t just go, go, go.

My creativity is something that needs nurturing. Allowing myself time to rest and to explore new experiences might seem self-indulgent, but is in fact a necessity that I’m slowly learning to prioritise.

Final thoughts

Is being a full time content creator harder than I thought? Yes. Do I find it frustrating? Naturally. If I could go back, would I do it all over again? Absolutely.

One year in and I couldn’t imagine doing anything else.

Thank you to everyone who has helped my dreams come true.

Until next time

Molly xx

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The person I’ve become since I left social media

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