What He Learned from Working With 10,000 Creators

Creator Science helps you become a smarter creator. 

It's never been easier to become a creator, but breaking through the noise gets more difficult every single day.

The only way to get ahead is to learn from other creators who are playing (and winning) the game right now. Creator Science gives you that edge. 

Every week, we explore what's working right now to help you grow your audience, generate more revenue, and break through the noise. You'll hear from today’s top professional creators, including James Clear, Ali Abdaal, Tim Urban, and Codie Sanchez.

Creator Science is a Signal Award-winning podcast hosted by Jay Clouse.

The team behind Creator Science:
Host: Jay Clouse / @jayclouse
Producer: Conor Conaboy / @conorconaboy
Thumbnails: Jonathan Sippel / @thumbnailgrail

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Jay Clouse

Successful creators possess a relentless curiosity, a willingness to learn and improve, and the ability to understand and connect with their audience on a deeper level, focusing on holistic content creation rather than just chasing views or trends.

Consistency in posting is less important than consistently delivering high-quality experiences that stand out, often achieved by doing what others are unwilling or unable to do, signaling high value through costly or unique efforts.

Extraordinary success requires sacrifices and a willingness to prioritize the work that truly moves the needle, avoiding distractions and focusing on personal fulfillment and mastery of craft over solely optimizing for external metrics like money or views.

Zach, having worked with thousands of creators, highlights **a relentless curiosity as a key trait**. This involves constantly seeking ways to improve, understanding audience needs, and figuring out how attention is captured and trust is earned.

He emphasizes that this curiosity isn't just about quick hacks but a **lifelong pursuit of understanding deeper connections with the audience** and fulfilling something meaningful for both the creator and the viewer.

📈 The Importance of Improvement Over Mere Consistency

While consistency is often touted as crucial, Zach reveals that **consistency in posting wasn't correlated with top growth**. The real key is consistent improvement and implementing feedback.

He notes that many creators fall into the trap of making the same video every week and wonder why they aren't improving. **Experimentation and being okay with failure are vital** for taking steps forward.

The discussion shifts to the idea that we are moving towards an era where **consistency of experience matters more than consistency of publishing**. Audiences want a consistently good experience when they engage with content.

In a world where publishing is increasingly easy, quality and unique experiences become premium. One way to stand out is by **doing things that others are unwilling or incapable of doing**.

Zach shares a story about a creator who manually creates subtitles with unique styles, highlighting how **going against the grain and embracing the "costly version" can capture attention**.

⚖️ Work Ethic, Sacrifice, and Realistic Goals

Work ethic is crucial, but it's intertwined with the willingness to sacrifice other aspects of life. **Achieving big goals requires trade-offs**, and creators need to be aware of what they're giving up.

Zach cautions against romanticizing the grind and encourages creators to **align their lifestyle and sacrifices with their goals**. He suggests having a job that complements content creation skills.

He also points out the importance of **working smart on the things that push you forward**, not just working hard on things you're comfortable with.

🎭 Authenticity and Evolving Personality

Personality matters, and creators shouldn't try to change who they are to fit a mold. **Authenticity is a superpower** that allows for genuine connection with the audience.

Zach stresses the importance of evolving as a person and allowing your content to mature with you. **Maintaining a sustainable career means being authentically yourself**, even as your interests and personality change.

🚩 Red Flags: Actions vs. Words and Perfectionism

A major red flag is when a creator's actions don't align with their words. **Lack of follow-through on commitments is a bad sign**.

Perfectionism, often masked as insecurity, is another pitfall. **Creators need to be okay with failure** because feedback on published content is invaluable.

🎯 Defining Success Beyond Views and Money

Zach advocates for a sense of peace, fulfillment, and happiness as key metrics for success. **Optimizing for money can be empty and lead to a never-ending hamster wheel**.

He suggests focusing on mastering a craft and **finding fulfillment in incremental improvement**. This allows creators to avoid comparing themselves to others and detaching from external validation.

🤝 Building Genuine Connections and Avoiding Distractions

Zach emphasizes that views from loyal, returning viewers are more valuable than views from new viewers. **Building a connection with the audience is crucial for longevity** and resilience against platform changes.

He warns against distractions like starting new ventures or pursuing brand deals too early. **Doubling down on the thing that's gaining momentum is often the best strategy**.

He gives Eric's example of turning down invitations to parties and events to stay focused on YouTube. **Avoiding distractions is key to continued success**.

Introduction to Zach Hanar and traits of successful creators.

Zach Hanar managed YouTubers like Yes Theory and Arak before they became famous.

Zach has worked with over 10,000 creators since 2017.

The episode will discuss the traits of highly successful creators, how to measure growth, and how to set up for long-term success.

Identifying potential in creators and the importance of curiosity.

Zach recalls immediately recognizing potential in Jenny Hoyos due to her relentless curiosity and engagement.

A key trait is a relentless curiosity about improving content, understanding audience attention, and earning trust.

Understanding content creation as a holistic endeavor, connecting with the audience, is crucial.

The value of curiosity, temperament, and willingness to improve.

Curiosity and a willingness to learn are more important than pre-existing skills.

Creators should be willing to experiment, accept failure, and implement feedback for improvement.

Consistency vs. Improvement: Analyzing growth indicators.

Consistency alone isn't enough; consistent improvement is key to success.

Analysis of 10,000 creators showed that posting consistency wasn't correlated with top 10% growth.

Publishing consistently is a prerequisite, but the focus should be on consistently providing a good experience.

The shift from quantity to quality and unique experiences.

The ability to publish a lot is becoming easier, making quality the new scarcity.

Creators are moving towards publishing when it makes sense, focusing on high-quality experiences.

Creating manual subtitles as a way to make content stand out.

As technology makes things common, the manual and real become premium, like handmade clothes or real drone footage.

Costly signaling: doing the more costly version of something to stand out from the crowd.

Standing out by doing what others are not willing or capable of doing.

Successful creators don't just copy others; they identify what others can't or won't do and capitalize on their unique advantages.

Finding a unique perspective based on knowledge, skills, or location can help creators stand out.

Originality is key; there are no world-famous cover bands.

Sponsor message from Artlist and voice-over generator.

Artlist is the first creative platform to offer a voiceover generator created specifically for video creators.

The role of work ethic and sacrifice in achieving creator goals.

Achieving big goals requires a willingness to sacrifice aspects of life, like social life or certain jobs.

Being the biggest creator in the world requires an unhealthy amount of obsession and sacrifice.

It's important to align one's job with content creation goals to maximize efficiency.

It's important to consider the trade-offs and sacrifices others make and whether you're willing to do the same.

Balance is not prevalent in people at the top end.

Working smart on the things that will propel you forward is important.

The importance of personality and authenticity in video creation.

Personality matters, and creators shouldn't try to change their personality to fit what they think works on YouTube.

Being comfortable showing your true self on camera is a superpower.

Creators should avoid performing and instead let their authentic personality shine through.

A sustainable career as a creator involves evolving as your personality evolves.

Red flags: actions not backing up words and perfectionism.

Lack of follow-through on commitments and constant excuses are bad signs.

Perfectionism, often masking insecurity, can hinder progress; being okay with failure is essential.

Feedback on published content is the best teacher.

Creators should disconnect themselves from the output and focus on the inputs.

Checklist of the things under your control before clicking publish.

Defining success beyond views and optimizing for fulfillment.

Success isn't just views or subscribers; it's about peace, fulfillment, and happiness.

Optimizing for money is not a good metric of success; it leads to emptiness and a never-ending hamster wheel.

Mastering a craft provides incremental fulfillment and avoids comparing oneself to others.

If you make the goal of I'm going to be the biggest Creator in the world, well, then what happens if you do become the biggest Creator in the world? You lose all motivation.

Consider the potential downsides of extreme success, such as loss of privacy and security concerns.

Instagram and social media platforms have really only shown us the sexy part in people's lives, and so we romanticize the success.

The value of returning viewers and building a loyal audience.

Views from loyal, returning viewers are more valuable than views from first-time viewers.

Building a connection with the people who are watching you is important to create longevity for yourself.

Creators often don't optimize for connection because it's hard to measure.

The golden metric for Yes Theory is how many people can we get to take a certain action.

Tactical advice for increasing subscriber growth and avoiding distractions.

Find a group of creators around your skill level and ask them to roast your videos.

Avoid starting a business or podcast, or reaching out to brands, and instead just double down.

Distraction and diversifying your attention and effort seems to be one of the biggest pitfalls that I notice in folks that are otherwise pretty well set up for success.

Indulging in too much is taking away from the thing that got you there in the first place.

Hunches about the future of social networks and the Creator economy.

There's a huge white space for social networks to come back.

There's equal if not more opportunity for new creators, especially with the ease of tools that can teach you.

We're just going to fundamentally think about these Platforms in a very different way than we have in the past.

What He Learned from Working With 10,000 Creators

What He Learned from Working With 10,000 Creators

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