Who knows about the three-episode rule?
Whenever your friend suggests a new show for you to watch, the rule is to reserve your judgment until you’ve watched at least three episodes. You have to give it a fair chance. If you watch three episodes and you still hate it, fair enough.
You gave it a shot.
If only it was that easy for making it as a content creator. There’s a similar rule, except it takes longer than three half-hour episodes of a show on Netflix.
Before deciding to quit on a side-hustle, you should give yourself one year, minimum. That sounds like a lot of time, but it really isn’t. It’s the bare minimum barrier of entry.
One year is barely enough time to understand the nuances of a particular platform. It’s the time needed to learn whether or not you can see yourself doing a particular activity for the rest of your life. When you shift your perspective to the long term, you can visualize the value of your sacrifice.
How much effort are you willing to put upfront to have the life you want? That’s what this week’s blog post is about, sorta.
In your head, your first year of content is going to…suck. But it doesn’t matter what you think, because there will be a small section of superfans eagerly waiting for you.
It Doesn’t Matter if You Don’t Think Your Content Is Good Enough
TikTok singers performing live is a perfect example of the power of social media.
They’re singing in a bar of 50 people and having the time of their life. A million people will watch their videos, but only a handful show up in person. The world is pretty cool, sometimes.
No matter how good their music is, it’s not the online views that matter, but the group of super fans who show up in support. That’s music. That’s art. That’s writing. That’s building a newsletter. That’s believing in yourself for long enough.
Regardless of how high level your content is, there is an audience for you.
Here’s how you find them.
The long walk
I’m preaching to the choir here.
If you don’t love making content, take the exit door and get far away from your side hustle. Keep walking, and don’t stop until you find something you enjoy. The bottom line is being able to convince yourself to do the “thing” even on days you don’t want to.
This, of course, depends on what you want out of the content you make. There’s no shame in having one income source. You don’t need many part-time jobs to make a living.
You don’t have to make content either. But somebody will. If you disappeared forever, your audience would find somebody else to entertain them. That’s the harsh reality.
I constantly struggle with writing because, deep down, I want to make it big-time. Some days it feels like a passion project, and I'm just proud of myself for getting the work done. Other days, I wonder wtf I’m even doing it for.
It helps to reflect when the sun goes down. I have a journal app that reminds me to write what I accomplished during the day. It helps remind me that, yeah, I do a lot even though there isn’t a lot to show for it yet.
Yet is the keyword.
It's just as important is to recognize your wins as it is to keep moving forward. Read your old blog posts to remind yourself that you’re a damn good writer. Celebrate your new PR in the gym. Remind yourself that you got a raise half a year ago.
Living in the moment isn’t always easy because you can’t see the big picture from the present.
You don’t owe an explanation to anyone
“Why are you doing this? Just come out tonight.”
I’ve learned to shut up about my side hustles. People aren’t interested in the process. They only see results, and I don’t blame them. Whenever I try to explain why I spend so much time writing, my brain thinks three steps ahead of my voice.
Recently, I explained why I do this for my dad, and he asked what my end goal is. I told him I want to be in the top 1% on a given platform. Writing is a way to buy back my time.
That’s my dad, though. Try explaining a side hustle to your boss. Unless you are selling cookies, what you’re doing probably isn’t straightforward. If you’re not making money, it doesn't make any sense to anyone on the outside.
The thing is, you don’t have to tell anyone anything. Practice silent communication and grind when no one’s looking. The anticipation might hurt you on the inside a little, but that’s the sacrifice you make for a little mental stability.
The only person you owe is yourself. Cut out people who don’t want you to succeed or ignore them. Keep shooting photos, writing blogs, or making recipes for your Youtube cooking channel.
Recognize the wins and get hungry for more.
You’ll get better eventually
Two mice fall into a vat of cream. Both swim in an attempt to escape. One gives up and drowns; the other keeps going. Eventually, it churns the cream into butter, can stand on its own four feet, and escapes the jar.
Not that a side hustle is a life and death, but you see my point. The mouse seemingly went nowhere until, finally, it had a solid surface to stand on. Something clicked. The same goes for content creation.
That’s how it is gone for me, at least. I used to write 2–3 pieces that would either get rejected or wholly ignored. I published seven articles in one week recently—all of them in big-time publications.
That’s a year of growth right there, and it’s easy to ignore. I need to stop myself from recognizing that as a significant win.
Working a side hustle is like seeing the door but not having the key.
You have to build the key from scratch. You’ll find the metal but won’t know how to manipulate it to fit in the keyhole. You’ll figure that out, but then you'll have to match the key to the lock. At some point, you’ll open that door, on to find there’s another door to open.
That’s where I’m at—I'm facing my second door.
The nice thing is that once you learn to open a door on your own, you understand the process. Every door is different, but at least you know how to make a key.
Let’s conclude
Nobody cares whether your content is good, so you shouldn't either.
I’m not saying to pump out BS that you don’t believe in. Stay true to yourself. Be a positive influence on other people's lives. Try and find a simple way to make others' day-to-day better by making them laugh or teaching them something they don't know.
It’s easier to make content that you and your audience like. Remember that.
If your writing, photography, healthy recipes aren’t great right now, do the hard work. Study competitors. It’s more important to learn their process rather than the result of their content. Reverse engineer the creators you want to be.
I learned from many writers how to organize my writing schedule around a busy day. Reading their posts gave me insight on how to structure mine. Inserting jokes became more manageable when I recognized their comedic timing.
Learn, try it for yourself, and repeat. That is the mantra. Nobody cares about you until they do. Revel in your underground moments. It won’t last forever if you’re stubborn and keep improving.
Hey Ryan, thank you for the ... how do you call those here at Substack. Stories or Posts or Newsletters? :) Cheers!