there are two universal laws of the Creator economy content creates opportunity and success requires consistency but between managing your 9 to-5 and pursuing your dream whether that's writing your novel or building a portfolio or launching your business how are you supposed to add a third full-time job of content creation to your plate you look at these creators churning out daily content and building massive audiences and living the life and you ask yourself if they can do it what's wrong with me is it lack of discipline or motivation maybe you're just not working hard enough maybe
you're just too lazy the truth is they are producing more than you but it's not because they have better systems or habits or stronger willpower is that they're simply playing an entirely different game once I understood this I was able to build an audience of over 125,000 on Instagram and launch and monetize two YouTube channels in a matter of weeks all while working full-time evenings and weekends only no content team no quitting my job and I started where you probably are right now trying to force myself into the hustle harder approach wake up at 5:00
a.m. sacrifice sleep push through burnouts and I failed miserably but the solution wasn't working harder or finding more time it was discovering a fundamentally different way to think about content creation which is exactly what I'll break down in this video we'll cover why typical Creator advice Miss this is the reality that most new creators face we'll go over three distinct strategies that you can use to scale your content without scaling your time and finally we'll look at a step-by-step walkthrough using one of these strategies to produce your very first piece of content today even if
you've never created before and these strategies work whether you're an author trying to build an audience around your writing or you're an artist looking to grow a following or you're an entrepreneur trying to build a business because these principles behind this approach are completely Universal let's start by addressing the unfair truth of content creation most content advice comes from full-time creators who have completely forgotten what it's like to start from scratch and they tell you exactly what to do just post a short or real every day for that algorithm to get reach and a weekly
long form video to build trust and repurpose all of that content across different platforms and stay active in the comments and network within your Niche and through all of this keep leveling up your craft just wake up earlier they say build better systems develop better habits and it all sounds so reasonable and believable these successful creators are just telling you what to do in order to replicate their approach that you can create just like them if only you were more disciplined and more efficient and more committed so you keep searching for that perfect morning routine
that game-changing productivity flow that will finally let you keep up and when you still can't even after trying everything that they suggest suggest there's really only one explanation left you must be lazy or not dedicated enough and not hungry enough for that success but there's something that these advice videos conveniently leave out and it's a truth that sits right in front of us yet we never seem to acknowledge these creators have teams they have 40 plus hours a week their team members have 40 plus hours a week each their entire business and calendar and focus
is cont and that's not your reality your reality is three full-time jobs packed into one life first you've got your day job the one that pays the bills and Keeps the Lights On Second you've got what I'm calling your core work which is that art that you're creating or the writing that you're crafting or that business that you're building it's the thing that you're actually trying to turn into your full-time thing and then because you know how valuable it is for your growth and to increase the impact or reach of that core work you're trying
to add content creation on top of all of that so what most new creators do in order to achieve that advice given by the procreators is they try to chip off pieces of their core work into content they create behind the scenes Clips or work in progress shots and they give quick updates on whatever it is they're working on anything just to check that box without completely sacrificing their core work because let's be honest if you go all in on content creation when would you have time for what you're actually trying to build and I
know exactly how this feels because I was there just two years ago and in fact I documented those early days of what it was like building my first 880,000 followers while keeping my full-time job so for anyone who's just starting out you can grab those notes and Reflections in my free guide at the adk artist which I've Linked In the description but the biggest realization I made through all of it the one that changed everything about how I approach content was that most new creators including me at the start make the same fundamental mistake they
look at their core work their writing their art their business and they build their entire content strategy around what it is they create and this makes sense right authors should promote and share their books and artists their worlds or characters and entrepreneurs their launches and results and successes the problem is that this only magnifies that feeling of falling behind because your polished core work even if you're creating every single day can't possibly keep Pace with always on content creation each day that you don't finish and post that Gap grows wider and the pressure to hustle
harder intensifies and that voice saying you're just not working hard enough gets louder this is what leads creators to that initial strategy they attempt to split up their core work into smaller pieces the behind the scenes Clips the work in progress shots and daily updates basically just process content I try this exact approach back when I was in 3D art school working on props or scenes that would take weeks or months I'd simply share another work in progress shot of my world building process each day and no one cared and looking back there's two reasons
why this should not have come as a surprise first behind the scenes only works when there's already a scene to get behind no one cares about the journey until they care about the destination but more importantly the vast majority of people don't care about your process or your experience or your story they care about what's in it for them they care about the value that they get today for me with my content that meant I had to stop asking myself what an artist or an author creates WR those worlds or novels and instead to start
focusing on the perspectives and the discoveries and the realizations I Had Each Day in those roles and how that could translate to value in the form of content and that is the real secret to consistent content creation you you have to decouple your identity from your content now there are three strategies that you can use to start putting this into action but which one or mix of strategies that you use will depend on the type of audience that you want to build through your content and how or if you want to monetize them the first
strategy that we're going to be going over is called synthesis creative work runs on inspiration and information think about everything that you consume just to create your work references that spark ideas tutorials that level up your skills skill s breakdowns that reveal new approaches books articles and newsletters that deepen your understanding of something most creators passively consume their inspiration or they directly apply what they learn or they simply file all of their research away into reference boards or into notion documents they treat it purely as fuel for their own creative work but within each of
these studies lies multiple pieces of valuable content that you could be creating and that is synthesis it's transforming what you learn into insights that others can apply that moment right after uncovering something useful is where opportunity for a more seamless approach to content creation lives whether it's a technique that will solve your problem or a principle that made everything click or a creative approach that opened new possibilities just take 5 to 10 extra minutes when that happens note down what someone a few steps behind you on your same path would need to know in order
to reach that same conclusion the key here is adding context that Bridges the gap between raw information and practical takeaways the details that you might take for granted if you hadn't stopped to document your process think beyond what is contained inside of what you just consumed that might be needed in order to understand and apply what you've just learned what background knowledge is needed which misunderstandings should be avoided what makes this approach particularly effective based on your experience most creators think that they need to create their content entirely from scratch but if you're already learning
every day to level up your core skills in craft when you adopt this first strategy your learning process is able to naturally generate valuable content and just as importantly the act of breaking down what you learn for others forces you to understand it at a much deeper level as opposed to being a distraction content creation is able to begin complimenting and accelerating your growth in your core work the power of this approach is why synthesis is one of the five skills that I teach in future fundamentals which I've Linked In the description for those of
you who really want to leverage this approach but what makes synthesis perfect as our first strategy is that anyone can start using it today even as a complete beginner and if that's you stick around because in a few minutes I'll do a step-by-step walkthrough using this exact strategy to create your first piece of content today right after we introduce our next two strategies the first of which I'm calling distillation when we segment out and classify our core creative work from other things that we do what sets it apart is that it is the most complete
version of what we offer whether that's a feeling or a realization or an experience or a solution to a problem when new creators start out they think that they need to continuously deliver their core work in the form of content because that is in line with their identity whether it's an author or an artist or an entrepreneur but there's another better way which is to create concentrated doses of that same experience that you offer in your core work and you can think about it like this while working toward that finished novel or that completed game
or that launched product you can create micro experiences that capture its Essence not random work in progress shots or context free excerpts what I mean are intentional self-contained pieces that deliver immediate value something that if someone tasted it they wouldn't ask for another they would ask for more of that and this distinction is key to understand so if we take an author for example content isn't releasing novels over and over or behind the scenes of what it feels like creating your novel or just talking about and promoting it over and over it means for example
creating short three-line stories that exist inside of a larger world but use that exact same tone or touch on the same themes or for artists it means creating focused studies that evoke the same mood or Style of larger pieces or for developers it's sharing single elegant interactions or moments that demonstrate your design philosophy and approach with this strategy of creating concentrated doses of content you're able to offer self-contained satisfying experiences on their own while also building anticipation for your larger work but really the effectiveness of distillation comes down to understanding what makes your work compelling
at its core what specific elements create that impact which small pieces can stand alone while carrying that same DNA this lets you create consistent value and content without having to wait weeks or months between finished projects the third and final strategy is Reflections in my 10 years working as a creative director in Tech I've noticed two terms get thrown around at the end of every project without fail postmortem and learnings and while I can't stand this corporate terminology the practice behind it is incredibly useful yet 99% % of creators are too caught up in the
hustle of pushing forward to take a moment and to capitalize on what looking back can offer every project is able to teach invaluable lessons through its constraints and solutions the structure of a hook that finally worked after 10 videos the technical approach that cut production time in half the design limitation that actually improved the final piece most creators mentally note these insights and move on but these hard-earned breakthroughs are some of the most valuable content that you can share document these lessons immediately after completing your work while it's still fresh what assumptions did you start
with that proved wrong which unexpected Solutions emerged from limitations what would you tell someone starting this exact same project tomorrow in the same way that strategy one harnesses what you learn through consumption strategy 3 captures what you discover through execution focus on the specifics that changed how you'll work on the same challenge in the future but don't get too caught up on these needing to be revolutionary some of some of my most successful content came from seemingly minor discoveries never underestimate how meaningful what you just learned could be to someone a few steps behind you
who hasn't yet invested the time and energy which in your content is translated as saving them from the detours and pain and cost required to reach that same realization okay so now that we looked at each of these strategies let's step back a moment and look at how they serve different needs synthesis can work for all types of content and creators especially those who are newer because you're already learning every day so why not turn those discoveries into contents but if you'd rather Focus purely on your craft distillation lets you create complete self-contained pieces that
give people a taste of your work and finally coming back to that third strategy that we just went through if you've been at this a while Reflections offers a great approach to turn those I wish I knew this sooner moments into shortcuts for others some creators stick to one approach that fits their style others use different strategy for different platforms and many shift between them as they grow there's really no Universal answer of what's best it just comes down to what works for you and your content and your goals so with all of that said
if you're already familiar with content creation you probably have a good idea of how to start putting these strategies into action but if you're completely new to this let me walk you through that first strategy right now so you can already post your first piece of content today this approach might seem too simple at first but that's exactly why it's the perfect way to start first what you'll do is to find three videos on YouTube related to your craft or your core work these could be tutorials or philosophy videos design principles storytelling techniques anything that's
valuable to your core work or what it is that you're building watch them and take notes on two things first the new Concepts that resonate with you right the things that you learn and the second is the familiar ideas that you see presented in a new way that would have unlocked their understanding much earlier than the way that you originally discovered them now go through all of those notes and select one from each that stands out the most to you and leave a thoughtful comment under each of those videos and what I mean by thoughtful
is to break down exactly what made the Insight or explanation impactful to you write your comment in a way that gives a fresh perspective for anyone watching who might not have your background or experience remember what I mentioned before your unique context might help someone else understand this concept in an entirely new way next Once you post those what we'll do is turn those takeaways into social content and for those of you new to writing for social media you can use a tool called types share which is a subscription-based site that provides templates and Frameworks
specifically designed to help you structure your thoughts for different social media platforms but for those of you not in a place to invest or to commit to a new subscription right now which I complet completely understand you could instead use the set of templates that I built out and included directly in future fundamentals which I've Linked In the description now what we'll do is take those restructured comments and share them on X or Twitter as a tweet or thread linking the video and tagging the original Creator by doing this you're not only creating value for
the original producer of that video themselves by commenting and adding engagement or Distributing it by posting it on Twitter by sharing it together with your thoughts in a structured way and adding that extra texture and Nuance to the video you're starting to help people discover that content through the lens of your perspective which can be incredibly valuable now after sharing that tweet or thread we'll use a tool called tweet pick to create a clean screenshot of your post which you can then share on Instagram if you're not familiar with this format I promise this is
a thing and quite honestly is a very powerful approach to repurpose your content across platforms in a very quick and easy way that successful creators are seeing a lot of Engagement with at the moment next what we'll do is go to substack and set up a free account if you don't already have one and if you're not familiar with substack it's essentially a Blog and newsletter platform bundled into one it has more reach than a personal blog on your website and less overhead and cost compared to trying to set up a newsletter from scratch so
it's really a perfect place to start practicing your writing so what we're going to do once we've signed up is to take all of those posts that you shared on the to Twitter and to combine them into a single newsletter ideally those three videos were related or on a similar topic which will make all of this much easier but if you're new to this longer form writing and you're not sure how to start connecting these thoughts together yet I'll put three simple templates on screen right now that you can use as a starting point this
will absolutely get easier with time but for now just pick whichever of these feels the most natural or relevant and use it to write your first newsletter bridging together your three main points finally once you have that newsletter posted what we're going to do is to find a quiet spot near a window with natural light or to sit at your desk and using a webcam or a camera or even just an iPhone we're going to record ourselves speaking your newsletter to the camera simply start with a quick hey welcome to my Channel today we're going
to explore three things I learned while X which helps me achieve y better or faster and then read your newsletter across those three points and end with a simple thanks for watching if you want more click subscribe and really don't overthink it no one will see these videos at the start but they are incredibly worthwhile to start building confidence and comfort in front of the camera and look I fully understand that depending on where you are in your journey this will either sound incredibly simplistic and not like real content or it will sound like a
lot to tackle all at once and if you're in that first group maybe one of the other strategies is more up your alley but if you are still struggling to start just use this approach as a first step you can graduate from it in a few weeks or in a month it's just here to give you a road map to build that initial momentum but if you're in that latter group who is entirely new to content creation and you can't imagine doing all of these steps right now just start with the comments and social posts
today lean hard on the templates on types share or that I've included in future fundamentals and work up to that newsletter and video as you get comfortable what's essential here is that you start small and you start today and you build that foundation and now that you've made it through this video you already have a head start because you could use it as your first one to analyze and I always reply to thoughtful comments which will give you a bit of extra content and flavor for when you create your newsletter and an additional bonus to
this synthesis strategy and the reason why I wanted to cover it here is that it works with any reference material that inspires your work whether it's games or movies or shows anything that fuels your creative process so when you're ready to dive deeper into exactly how to use it for any type of content Beyond just YouTube videos make sure to check out future fundamentals which I've Linked In the description where I break down my complete framework for leveling up as a creative while creating content from that same process so yeah if you found this video
helpful let me know in the comments below and make sure to drop a like so you can find your way back and until then thank you for being here and I'll catch you in the next one