The Truth About Content Creation
Okay folks, here we go. We are diving deep into the truth (in my opinion at least) about the content creation world today.
Many of you who are reading this might feel the same way and resonate with these thoughts in some way. A few of you might just be joining the content world and want to hear some insider notes.
First, I want to mention I have been in the influencer/content creation world for a little over 7 years now and It has changed SO much. I can hardly keep track and I think it's easy to fall behind and feel this sense of urgency to keep up with the fast-paced world.
The fear of failure - This is the biggest part of content creation I have experienced recently. There are so many aspects that play a part in this. Overall I have noticed that if I want to make content, whether it's a reel or an in-feed post I am held to this " new" standard that is almost beyond my reach. Some might say this new push has grown the industry, and believe me it has. In good ways and in bad ways. But, there is always the need to be better. To have more views, more followers, better pictures, stay on trend, etc. It's all very taxing over time. I think now more than ever we have to be pushing out content so quickly to keep up with the trends. It's very easy to get overwhelmed and left behind in the dust. Everyone is on the lookout for the new biggest thing in the hopes that they will be the ones to find it first and go viral. We are so focused only on creating what we "think the people want" that we leave our own artistry behind.
Another thing I have noticed is the time getting shorter for Tiktoks and reels. No one will watch a full-length short film, a long advertisement, or a multi-swipe Instagram post. I'm pretty sure half of the people who started reading this blog post have already stopped at this point too.
The sense of being overwhelmed - can be very hard to deal with. I think this comes in two forms. One is that you have no direction and not enough content so you feel stuck and overwhelmed by the world around you moving and producing these new things so quickly. Or two, you have a backlog of pictures, posts, words, drafts, reels, etc. You cannot find the brain space to piece all these little clips from your Italy trip together. Meanwhile, you just went to the best new coffee shop, and it's a "Should I post that as well, which one do I do first..?" It's a mess. Yes, let's just say everything can be a mess sometimes if you are too busy with your real-world job/work life or are just a little unorganized.
The Reward - It's not all dark and shadows. I do not want to paint a terrible picture of this world. It has so many rewards and that is why we keep on going. We keep going for the home bakers, the solo first-time travelers, the film students, the dreamers, and the fantasy lovers. We keep creating our work because we know someone will love it. And I think that's the most important part.
I saw a quote the other day that read something like "Don't make something one thousand people might like, make something 100 people will absolutely love" and it made me realize the goal again! Even if 5 people absolutely love my content and find my travel guide useful that is reward enough for me to keep on creating content for you.
How I would start again - I recently got asked this question and I didn't have a great answer. But, now that I have thought about it a little more I think it would say this: I would start the same way I originally did, I created content that I liked, and thought other people might find interesting. But I would not lose myself in what I think is "what I am supposed to be producing " You can change your niche at any time, you can change your style and quite honestly you can change everything if it fits your needs. I would also push to make friends in the content creation community, not fake Instagram friends but real-life friends whom you can go to when you struggle with ideas, need a second opinion, or anything else like that. it's important to find good friends and enjoy your content adventure.
Will I continue? Yes, of course, I will. I feel like this is a shift, I am pivoting my style, my focus, and a lot of things. But this is needed. I want to share more of my opinion on this world and how to navigate it. I love to create short film content and I want to focus on what I love to watch and support. It's been a good 7 years and I am determined to make it an awesome next 7 years.