The Hustle and Highs of a Digital Creator

It all started back when I had this pretty mundane office job. You know the kind - cubicle farm, flesh-toned walls, the whole depressing nine-to-five grind. But I always had these creative outlets on the side to keep me sane. I’d spend my nights and weekends recording videos about my favorite games, editing photos from my adventures, or writing blog posts about anything and everything on my mind.

At first it was just a fun hobby, a way to flex my artistic muscles outside of the office. But then something clicked - my videos and posts started gaining traction online. The positive comments and growing audiences became crazy motivating. A little voice in my head kept whispering, “You could actually do this for a living if you take the risk...”

OK, so that made me one of those risk-takers therefore I staked myself. Let go of that dull office profession that was never my purpose and try digital creating on a full-time basis. Those initial days were so rough for sure. The unsteady flow of income was mind-blowingly terrible. In some months, I was up to my ears in dough from a viral video or from issuing a brand deal, but, in other months, I was barely making enough to cover my monthly rent. Imposter syndrome was my constant companion, making me doubt if I had what it took to actually make it.

Not to mention, the loneliness was brutal. One minute, I had coworkers and daily social interactions. The next, it was just me alone on the grind staring at a computer for endless hours, talking to myself while editing a video over and over again. Some days I barely interacted with another human being. It was rough.

But you know what kept me going through all of that? The drive. The passion. Knowing that what I created actually connected with people in a real way and brought value to their lives. Whether it was making them laugh with a funny video, getting inspired by my travel photos and stories, or just feeling understood from my super relatable blog content. That’s what made the hard times worth it.

As things started taking off, though, new challenges arrived. The audience was growing like crazy, but so were their demands for more, more, more content. It became a constant hustle - recording, editing, posting, developing, and exploring different platforms like YouTube, Instagram, TikTok, you name it. The creation grind that once recharged my soul started weighing me down.

I’d look at my insane upload calendar and past deadlines and feel panic and anxiety washing over me. When was I supposed to have any rest or work-life balance? Taking a vacation or little break wasn’t an option - my audience would just move on to the next creator, pumping out content relentlessly.

And don’t even get me started on dealing with the soulless algorithms and constantly changing policies on all these platforms. Instagram could zap your engagement and income on a whim with one punishing update to their feed rankings. YouTube would find a new way to demonetize videos in your niche without warning. You’re at the mercy of these faceless tech giants who don’t care about anything except extracting more content from creators to make them richer.

Even with those struggles, even with days I just want to quit and go back to a normal job...I wouldn’t want it any other way. This creator career lets me live out my passion projects every single day, connect with an audience of amazing people worldwide, and leave some kind of positive impact through the content I put out into the world. Sure, I may always be a bit of a starving artist hustling my face off. But at least my soul is being nourished.

So if you’ll excuse me, I’ve got a couple of videos to edit, some photos to shoot, and a blog post to draft before my next dozen deadlines! This is the life I signed up for - a relentless grind, but one that’s deeply fulfilling. Thanks for letting me share a peek into this wild digital creator journey.