Substack Is a Shiny New Toy for Creators — But You (Probably) Shouldn’t Play With It
Here’s why
Image from Evan Kelly post
Why have you been sleeping on this for so long, Scott?! It looks great, and creators are seeing INCREDIBLE growth!
It’s hard not to get sucked in by Substack.
You see people getting attention for their Tweet-like “Notes”, and you want a piece of the action:
Screenshot from Substack
Last week, I fleshed out my profile and even posted a couple of times. But then I took a step back.
Do I really want to play this game?
Like most platforms, there’s incredible talent there. Dwarkesh’s posts are great, and I’m a big fan of the Pathless Path community.
But if you’ve been in this writing game for any length of time, you’ll see the same pithy one-liners being spun over and over again on Substack.
Show up. Post consistently. Don’t miss out.
Quite frankly, I’m done with it.
We’ve been here before
BitClout was a Web 3 platform that took off during the pandemic.
I bought into the hype and posted daily.
I also “invested” in my own coin.
But my belief eroded when BitClout became a classic pump-and-dump. Some creators lost thousands of dollars, and the platform is dead.
Now, I’m not saying Substack is like this—far from it. It’s just that you shouldn’t be so quick to add another platform to your toolbox.
Zulie’s mega-viral article touches on this idea. She argues that if you want to be a creator, you should delete all (but two) social media platforms.
Her reasons?
“1. The people giving you that advice are gurus who want to bring you to their platform, because that’s how they make money.
2. (Most) platforms take time and don’t give you anything back.
3. It’s easy to get caught up in the hype. Pay attention to your own desires and skills before investing.”
Let’s start with the gurus.
Creators will BEG you to join Substack
It makes sense, right?
If you follow their lead, their networks grow. They get more eyeballs on their content and can then sell you stuff.
The most popular thing to sell?
A course on how to get thousands of followers.
It’s basically a Ponzi scheme.
“McKinzie, like the other gurus, had a vested interest in convincing me hers was the right platform to make it big. It’s not malicious — I do the same thing with blogging. I started blogging, was successful, and now share tips on how others can do it, both for free and for money.
“But what worked for her didn’t work for me. All it did was make me feel like there was yet another place to post, another place to keep up with, another source of followers I had to maintain and learn about.
“Creators want you to try out their platform, because that’s how they make money. They want you to feel FOMO, because that’s how they make money […]
“Again, it’s not malicious. Most creators aren’t trying to trick you. But they’re biased.”
Personally, I have nothing against these creators. How could I? I sell online courses too. People are providing a service that others want to pay for.
All power to them.
I just don’t want to play this FOMO game anymore, and I urge you to think twice before joining another platform.
I’m also biased
Zulie admits to being biased about blogging, and I’m biased about Medium.
I have to pinch myself. Since September 2020, I’ve made thousands of dollars and lifelong friends through writing on there.
I don’t intend to stop.
So you can imagine how much it pains me when people sh*t on this plaform. You know the types. They’ve got so close to the action that they can’t see their entitlement.
Sure, they might not be making as much money as they were in the “golden years” (2016–2019). And this platform isn’t perfect. Nowhere is. But we’re still getting paid to write by a platform that’s free to use.
(For the record, I don’t think earnings have gone down. The quality bar has simply got higher. Last month was my fourth highest-earning month of all time.)
Remember: If you’re not paying for a product, you’re the product.
What do you want?
The platforms I use — Medium and LinkedIn — give me everything I want.
I get to:
Make money from my writing
Have a positive impact
My writing business is on track to make six figures this year. I get to work from anywhere, anytime, and I feel like I’m having a positive impact.
I also get dopamine hits from being subtly famous:
Screenshot from my emails
Isn’t that enough?
“Never forget why you’re really doing what you’re doing. Are you helping people? Are they happy? Are you happy? Are you profitable? Isn’t that enough?”
— Derek Sivers, Author of Anything You Want
What should you do instead?
I’ll let Zulie take it from here:
“Being present on +2 platforms in any meaningful way is a mistake that someone else has persuaded you to do. It doesn’t make sense because a) it sucks your time and b) you’re not a good fit for most platforms thanks to your existing skills and interests.
“I think a lot about success, and how to be successful online […] It’s not down to consistency. It’s not down to luck. It’s not down to being early, so you don’t need to compete.
“Those all help, of course, but what I think really makes a difference? Focus and intention […]
“Focus on the platforms that work for you. I’d start with just two. And pick them with intention.
Do you have the skills to stand out and succeed?
Do you enjoy spending time (REALLY enjoy, not just find yourself scrolling because you’re addicted) on the platform regardless?
Do you think that, if you weren’t successful even after being consistent, you’d still want to post there?
“You need yeses to each question for that platform to be worth it.
“I challenge you to pick TWO platforms. Make sure they’re ones that meet the criteria I listed above. Commit to them. Focus on them. Go all-in on your strengths. Stop chasing the dream of other platforms.
“And delete the rest.”
Substack is like any platform
It might not be as crowded on Substack compared to other platforms (although it’s getting more crowded by the second).
But this doesn’t mean you’re guaranteed success.
You’ve got to learn its rules to do well.
The question is, are you willing to put in the work to learn these rules, as well as continue to post on YouTube, Twitter, LinkedIn, Instagram, TikTok, etc?
If you are, go for it!
But if you’re like me and you’re already getting everything you want from the platforms you use, think twice before playing with this new toy.
You probably don’t need it.
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