In the teacher’s lounge after my departure from my “safe” and “noble” career, it is likely you heard statements like: “Brian left teaching to do some YouTube thing. Sounds rewarding.”
An insult at worst or a doubtful-yet-envious statement hidden within what is supposed to be considered a compliment
First, you’re crazy.
Then you’re lucky.
Then you’re a genius
Fast forward a few years of “the grind” and 7-day work weeks that entrepreneurs wear as a badge of honor, and my little “YouTube” channel had 750,000 subscribers and was providing me with an income greater than my teaching job that, and a career as a creator and an artist that I truly enjoyed.
The irony that, at this point, I had become comfortable and scared yet again, afraid to trade in what I knew for what was unknown.
- What I knew was I would receive a dependable, steady income if I just “followed my model”.
- What I knew was consistent and positive engagement from my “fans” as long as I didn’t “try anything new” or stray too far from the current mold.
- What I knew was making “too much” money was evil and exploitative of my subscribers.
Yes, it’s true. It took Justin Burnash a year and many…. many lunches to convince me that “It’s okay to make money.” You do not need to work 100 hours per week for the rest of your life to do what you love for a living
Truthfully, I had many objections to teaming up with him but by working through the university, selling merch, building an email and text list of subscribers, I was able to double my income within the first month.
I thought the fans I had earned on YouTube would hate me for it. That they would see it as exploitative. Cheap. A Scam. That it was “off-brand” or that it “wouldn’t align” with my content or that I “sold out” to “the man”.
The opposite was true. They loved me more.
YouTube comments are full of positive statements when we give our subscribers a fun way to help support the channel. They are excited to see every car I am reviewing!
Everybody, no matter their race, creed, color, sexual orientation or status in life, has a real chance to be part of a super fun community.
Every day I get real comments like: “Oh god, RCR is reviewing a SHUTDUTDUTDUTDUTDU. I don’t know where you find things like this, I just assume you smash your face on the keyboard and it will make a BMW skew at some point that nobody knows about. Either way, I’m glad the last video went amazingly, hope this one does too.”
Justin has shown me that by offering my audience amazing content they value (this is key), they will love me even more.
Makes sense in hindsight, right? Who wouldn’t appreciate this?!?
I’ll tell you who… Haters! And they exist whatever you do.
So embrace your haters, give your subscribers and supporters amazing content, and…. actually, make a great living while doing so
How? It’s simple. Trust my good friend Justin.
He has cracked the code for people like us!
At the time of this writing, having worked with Justin for many months, I’ve learned a new truth about how followers relate to content creators.
Followers want to be a part of your world. Each video is an event in which they want to (and get to) participate. It means more to them than just a piece of merchandise or an automobile. It is a positive shared experience for everyone.
Thanks Justin for making these moments possible!
Brian, aka Mr. Regular, Regular Car Reviews Youtube Channel