Here’s how to avoid burnout as a YouTuber, because let’s be frank: there were a few times I wanted to quit. Times I thought of closing my Youtube channel and putting that season of my life to rest.

But the reasons for doing so were never because of being burnt out by the work itself. The workload as a content creator has never deterred me. I am a maker by nature. In my free time, I would much rather create than consume content.

The reason I have wanted to quit Youtube in the past is because of one thing: frustration.

Feeling frustrated with the lack of results and income earned from the amount of time put into my videos. And when I focused too much on that frustration, it led to resentment.

Resentment is the root of what propels anyone to quit doing what they love.

One thing I believe wholeheartedly is that if we love doing work that we genuinely enjoy if we actively love the process of doing said work, we will never get burnt out.

It doesn’t matter if you’re working ten-hour days. If you love what you do, and you focus solely on enjoying the process and not placing expectations on the results or the lack thereof, you won’t burn out as a Youtuber. Dale Carnegie said it best:

“Our fatigue is often caused not by work, but by worry, frustration and resentment.”

The Refreshing Truth on How to Avoid Burnout as a Youtuber: My 9 Tips

So for today’s post on the dear blog (fun fact: I’ve been blogging since 2015 and 300 blog posts later, I’m still madly in love with this process, with this little slice on the internet where I get to pour my heart and soul into!😻), we’re talking about how to avoid burnout as a Youtuber. I’ve been making videos on Youtube for over two years now (!!) and I have yet to “burn out” as a Youtuber. Here’s what I have learned, what I’ve kept in mind and why it is that I’ve avoided burnout at a Youtuber.

Make Sure You’re Doing it for the Right Reasons

Are you naturally a maker, doer, a creative-type? Do you like to publicly share your opinions and express yourself to others? Do you feel a deep need to create and share videos with others? If so, then content creation may be a great fit for you! I think a lot of people go into blogging, Youtube and content creation because of external pressure.  To some, it looks like a glamorous job. Maybe others go into it thinking there’s lots of money to be made from posting videos from your home. Knowing your values and what is most essential to you and your lifestyle is so important. If you actively enjoy the process of creation, why would you get burntout? If you’re A.) not putting pressure on yourself to keep creating constantly and B.) you’re doing it for the right reasons, there is no reason one would get burnt out from being a Youtuber. This brings me to my next piece of advice…

Forget the “Consistency” Advice

One of the pieces of advice I so often see Youtubers give out is to “stay consistent.” In other words, post a video every single week and don’t fall behind on your schedule or Youtube will penalize your channel and stop sharing your videos to your audience. I’m going to break the honest truth to you: this advice is not true. The reason I say this? There are countless YouTubers (myself included) that don’t get penalized by the Youtube algorithm for not posting consistently. One of my favorite Youtubers posted three times in the last year. After she came back to Youtube with her first video in nearly 8 months, that first video went viral and she gained millions of views. This happens to a lot of my favorite creators and I’ve also noticed videos of mine get picked up after not posting for two weeks. To be honest, I think the advice to “post consistently” stems from Youtube wanting you to keep cranking out content so they can keep making money off of your ads.  Let’s lift our heads from the mass programming. Let’s question everything that is being spouted to us. Instead do what feels good. Forget the pressure to post every week. Just create what feels fun and good to you. If you follow your inner voice – your truth – you will not get burnout!

Create Only When You’re Inspired

Only make stuff when you feel excited to do so. No pressure! No schedule. The easiest way to burn out from doing something you love is to make the process of doing it so serious. Where’s the fun in that? What’s the point in creating if it doesn’t stem from a place of lighthearted play? Connect with your inner child and get curious. What feels fun to make right now? Follow your excitements. Wait for those gut feelings, those impulses, those ideas that seem to come form no where. Wait for that inspiration to strike! Actively live and be part of life around you and then respond to the world. Constantly check in with yourself: does making this feel fun? Do I feel excited or passionate in sharing this? Ask yourself, “Is this content something that I would watch from someone else?” If the answer is no, trash it and move on. No need to overthink things. Just make when you feel excited.

Do Not Go into this for the Money

Honest truth: you will make more money babysitting than starting out as a content creator. The first two years in any new business venture are the hardest and most people will say it takes an average of three years to make a full-time income doing what you love.  Here’s the thing with Youtube: Unless you’re getting hundreds of thousands of views each week, the money is negligible.

Don’t rely on Google Adsense as a source of income.

Just to give you a rough estimate: I make between $5 and $15 per video I create, on average, without sponsorships. The last video I made which took me around 2 full working days to create from start to finish earned me $6 total (before taxes). The amount of time, energy and work that goes into video creation is not even worth relying on Google Adsense. Instead, there are two better ways to go: Patreon and Sponsorships. 

The Truth about Sponsorships as a Youtube Creator

Patreon and brand sponsorships are how I earn an income making Youtube videos, and Patreon is an amazing support for me as a creative (if you’d like to support my work, you can donate here!) but those are also not consistent. Patrons frequently withdraw support and brands tend to underpay what a content creator’s time and value is worth. There are a lot of negotiations, research, pitches and emails I send that never get responded to.

For me, sponsorships have been one of the hardest avenues to navigate on my own Youtube journey. Brands want to see a minimum of 10,000 views per video, and as I tend to have 10% of my audience watching my videos, which is the norm for many Youtubers (for me, this is around 6,000 views), brands want to pay me far less than what is typical for a Youtuber of my size to earn. Because of this, it’s very easy to start worrying about the number of views you’re getting when brands don’t want to work with you because you don’t meet their expectations. And if brands don’t want to work with you, you don’t get paid (Again, Google Adsense is negligible).

All this to say: in the beginning of your journey as a content creator, I highly recommend keeping your day job (for me, it was English tutoring) or just not relying on earning an income from it straight out of the gate. Don’t rely on the income to be there right away. It takes time to grow a platform. If you don’t rely on it, it will keep the process of content creation fun and enjoyable for you!

Take it Slow

To avoid burnout as a Youtuber, take it slow and steady. This is primarily how I have avoided burnout during these past two years as a Youtuber. I approach the continuation of my channel like a slow snail with endurance. Instead of feeling the pressure to build your castle quickly and all at once, build it brick by brick. Simplify the steps. Create one small, tiny thing each day. Get grounded and lay the foundation – observe your channel from a long-term perspective. Are you going to dedicate yourself to this for the long haul? Is this something you really want? If so, it’s so imperative to take it slow, keep the process as simple as possible and forgo the need to create and build things quickly. The best, most enduring things in life take time. As long as you have patience and continue to nurture your garden, the seeds will bloom.

Take Regular Breaks

Obvious but important: make sure you take regular breaks. I write more in-depth on this topic here in my past blog post on following the cycles of creativity,as well as in my other blog post on how I balance my slow lifestyle as a creative. But make sure you’re taking at least an entire day off each week from creation. I only work four days a week, as I like having personal time that has nothing to do with my public life as a creator, but it’s really important to engage in your other hobbies and itnerests that don’t have anything to do with your work as a Youtuber. Cultivate a rich, full life outside of Youtube. Having a few different hobbies or interests will keep you grounded and reminded of the big-picture of your life. If you’re a planner, pick the same day(s) on the calendar every week. If you’re more spontaneous like me, follow your energy and listen to your body’s needs. Taking frequent breaks and cultivating a life separate from Youtube is essential to avoid burning out as a Youtuber.

Try Something New

Change your work environment! Instead of working at home, venture to the public library or nearby coffee shop or co-working space. When you feel stuck, it’s time to switch things up. Download some new overlays for your videos. Learn to edit in a new style. Change something up with your intro or outro. Play with a new video structure. If you typically do voiceovers, start playing with vlogging! Or speak on-camera. If you typically make one type of video, start making a variety of different style to keep it interesting and playful. In terms of your personal life, pick up a new skill. Learn a new hobby or language. Get out of the house, travel or venture to a nearby town for the afternoon! If you’re feeling stagnat, stuck or bored with content creation, chances are your audience can feel it too. So it’s important to move your energy around and start playing! To avoid burnout as a Youtuber, change things up and try something new.

Don’t Make Trendy Videos Just Because.

Seriously, there is nothing more cringe. For Pete’s Sake, be original. There is nothing more thirsty than following popular trends or straight-up lying in titles for clickbait. Forget the pressure to make videos that are trending. You know, it’s one thing if you actually enjoy the subject matter and the topic of that particular trend, and it goes with the brand you’ve already built and created, but like I said in my past blog post about my advice for anyone wanting to be a Youtuber, speak your truth. Be honest. Create from your own authentic voice. Honesty and authenticity do not go unnoticed. There are far too many content creators that are just copying and regurgitating content from other people. Being a content creator is about being creative. To be a creator, you have to create. It’s about thinking outside the box, following your inner truth, and creating from your own point of view. Don’t create videos just because you want more views; It’s a sure-fire way to take yourself out of the inner love for the process and into the arms of what everyone else thinks and wants from you. Do you. Block out the noise.

No Expectations

I think a lot of people go into becoming Youtubers because they see how quickly a person’s life can change when they go viral. Suddenly they are quitting their day job and living their dream lifestyle, making content for a living. Realize that the people that consistently get picked up by Youtube are few and far between. Everyone is operating at their own timeline, their unique fates. (Zodiacal releasing can show us this.) This is a hard truth but it needs to be said: the people that go viral and are constantly being recommended to you on your Youtube homepage are the minority. The vast majority of content creators and their videos are not being pushed by Lady Algorithm. I can’t tell you how many Youtubers I’ve discovered that make incredible videos and have been doing this for years and have 1,000 subscribers – even though their content is just as good as creators with hundreds of thousands of subscribers. It’s not about the work or the talent or the person. It’s about timing. So, the best way to avoid burnout as a Youtuber is to hold zero expectations and just enjoy the process. Easier said than done, I know, but if you love the process of creating, you’ll feel the desire within you, that fire in your belly, to keep going. Keep your love for the process alive and you will never go thristy.

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That’s it for my Tips on How to Avoid Burnout as a Youtuber!

I hope this lil post on how to avoid burnout as a youtuber inspires or encourages you to follow your intuition, question everything, and do what works for you! I love sharing my journey as a Youtuber, sharing openly with you on the process. Feel free to follow me on Instagram and send me a message letting me know your thoughts! I’d love to hear from you! xx

I’m sending you lots of love and a warm hug through my keyboard! Have a magical day!

Love,

Helena

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