It was just two years ago, almost to the day, that a friend of mine broached the subject of Twitch streaming with me. "It's too late to make it big, the small streamers get overlooked. There's a glass ceiling that wasn't there before - I'm done."
Unfortunately, this is a tale as old as time to my ears. I've heard this in many conversations, seen it in many a reddit thread, and I've gotta say it - due diligence.
From the beginning of time, or at least the beginning of human organization, before one sets out on an endeavor, one must do his or her due diligence. This means understanding the ebb and flow of an idea, the ins and outs of a process, the short and long-term goals of a collective effort. While the phrase typically applies to financial investments or contracts, I see human willpower and drive as a type of investment - emotional, physical, time-related deposits we hope to withdraw having accumulated some amount of interest.
As it pertains to Twitch streaming and success therein, I'm going to divide our conversation into categories to make things readable and digestible.
So, here's what we will cover: scheduling, emotions, and business.
Consider this article today's dose of due diligence if you're interested in breaking into Twitch-streaming and wanting to make it big.
Oh, and real quick before moving on... I want to take a self-conscious moment to let you know that at this point in my writing, I am starting to worry you might be seeing this article as a "e-how" clickbait internet link to "be successful" with just 4 SIMPLE STEPS!!?!
I can assure you that is not the case. I truly believe if you stick this out you'll leave with some interesting ideas brewing around in that beautiful mind of yours. I hope this article serves as a challenge and encouragement along your own path to success.
So let's get started with some ideas. The first two points are things I find invaluable in the day to day grind of streaming. However, trust me when I say I saved the best point for last.
Consistency is Key.
It's no secret that streaming takes time. But one item I see constantly overlooked in conversations about streaming is the idea of a schedule.
In most cases, the most popular streams will have times posted that their user base can expect to see them online. This is huge when it comes to building an audience and building trust with viewership.
The benefits of a schedule? Having a day, time, and plan of action set for each stream creates a type of learned conditioning in the mind and emotions of a viewer. For example. Let's say I wake up at 6am every day. While getting ready for work, I like to tune into so and so at twitch.tv. I've seen their schedule posted, so I know they generally start right around 6am, my time daily. Weeks go on, and one day I go to tune it, but no stream. Before I know it, my morning routine is thrown off. There are emotions of all sorts, none of which I am fond of.
This example seems rather juvenile, I know, but the core of it is true. I've had this happen to me with streams, tv shows, radio programs, you name it. When we come to expect something, we tend to miss it when its gone.
A twitch streamer with a sporadic, unplanned, and disorganized stream schedule is far less likely to leave his or her audience missing much when they choose not to stream on a whim.
The main point here is that consistency creates credibility, and without credibility you have no platform to stand on.
Twitch as an Emotional Investment
The psychological effect of streaming on a day to day basis is something that ought to be noted here. "Only the strong will survive," while cliche, is also relevant in this case.
It takes a lot of mental fortitude to bring oneself to continue broadcasting your face, voice, personality, and flaws on a weekly basis. Why? Whenever you put your creativity out into the world, it is immediately subject to critiques and criticism. Especially when it comes to a live stream with real-time chat.
You are essentially placing yourself on the chopping block and hoping to have mostly merciful, kind-hearted constituents on the other side of cyberspace.
Whether you're a top notch veteran or struggling and new to the game, the hate is always going to be there, most likely more often than the praise. It's a fact of life that can be seen in almost any entrepreneurial or business endeavor. The takeaway is to find methods of improving mental resilience and to practice the art of "taking things with a grain of salt."
Just because someone says you suck at talking in your stream doesn't mean you never talk. However, it doesn't mean you don't have room to improve either. The important thing is to remember to separate yourself from your content. It doesn't define you. If you have a bad stream day, it doesn't mean something is wrong with you. Rather, you define your content. Instead of beating yourself up, start by asking yourself simple, balanced questions. "What went wrong? What went right? What can I change without sacrificing my identity in the stream?"
Meditation, controlled breathing, and simply talking with others are great methods for keeping your emotions in check and making sure you aren't letting yourself get in the way of producing good content. Similar to emotional tilting which happens in sports, if you have a bad stream and don't fully process what happened, chances are you will wear the experience on your sleeve during the next broadcast. When this pattern continues for too long, it can lead to destructive behavior and poor mindset.
Keep yourself in check, confide in close ones who can help keep you in check, and don't forget to breath while you do so!
Twitch as a Business Endeavor
"...focus all your energy not on fighting the old but on building the new." - Socrates
If there is one point to take away from this entire article, it's this: if you want to be successful at something, don't start by trying to copy someone else and replicate their achievements. Instead, approach the matter like any good entrepreneur or business professional would: find a need in a successful market and become the solution.
The majority of conversations I've had with people wanting to get into Twitch streaming or content creation are frustrating. Not because I don't respect or admire the individuals drive or determination to "make it big" or "become the next big thing". Rather, it's the way in which our culture tends to view success, and how these individuals have bought in.
Have you ever visited a website seeking the perfect diet? Have you ever found yourself in a forum looking for the perfect workout routine? How about a self-help speaker telling you the 3 things you need to become rich in no-time? My point here is that our culture is obsessed with the idea of instant gratification, with the least amount of effort put in. Well what about the people who were successful in the first place? You know, the one's that online journalists wrote "get rich quick" articles about?
My point is that smart and deceitful businesses in our culture are capitalizing off of this idea that you can be whatever you want by copying someone else whose already done it. I tend to disagree. Let's dissect it a little further by looking at a breakdown of success.
In my experience, the business market and success can be broken into 3 categories.
- Phase 1 | Technological Advancement - A new idea is formed and executable - examples: blockchain technology, dot-com boom, live streaming
- Phase 2 | Experimental Period - Early developers and pioneers seek to be the first to understand said technology and find use-cases - examples: Patron (company built on blockchain), Google, Amazon, Ninja (yes the streamer, I will explain)
- Phase 3 | Business Development - Now the technology or idea has hit mainstream media with a storm, and with large successful companies making their debut, it becomes a gold-rush for entrepreneurs and developers who want to get in on the action - examples: altcoins (seeking new use cases based on different blockchain platforms), web and mobile app developers, new twitch streamers
Here you can see how over time, there is a cycle that correlates to success and discovery. Interested parties can enter at any part of the cycle based on timing, but it's important to understand which part you are entering and what your goals should be as a result.
The fact of the matter is, if you are looking to get into Twitch today, you need to understand you are coming in at part three of the cycle. Ninja started back when Twitch was known as Justin.tv, and live-streaming yourself to the internet was at it's genesis. You can't expect to come into it now and do exactly what he did. The reality is, he has years under his belt, including plenty of trial and error.
Rather, as Socrates once said, "focus all your energy not on fighting the old but on building the new." This means the solution is to find a gap in the part of the cycle you're in, and capitalize on that gap. Make it your goal, mission statement, and singular purpose to solve the issue. For example, I am currently developing a streamer tool mobile app for Twitch streamers and Twitch chat that I plan to eventually use for my own stream, but the purpose of it is to solve problems that other tools haven't solved yet and to create a stream experience that is unlike any other on Twitch. As a streamer, it is your responsibility to give the community something new they haven't seen before and to do your best to set yourself apart from the crowd.
Ninja worked hard for years and capitalized early on Fortnite hype. Dr. Disrespect was a developer and youtube content creator for a long time before getting in early as one of the first dramatized Twitch personas, the Doc (the two-time). What will your signature be? How will your stream be different from the others? Instead of trying to replicate what the top streamers do or copy their methods, find your own path.
Find a need, fill the gap, and work your @$$ off. Come up with short and long term goals. Treat your stream as a new business. What makes your product different from the rest? What makes your stream a force to be reckoned with?
In a nutshell, be you and be creative. Don't go in with plans of dethroning the gods of Twitch by doing what they do. Rather, be the stream that chat is looking for. Not the one they already have a thousand carbon copies of.
Focus on quality (content and equipment), quantity (schedule), your mental health, and your goals. And remember, this article is not intended as a "guide to being 100% successful." I don't want you to look at it as a guide. Rather, I hope it simply serves as a challenge to critically think about your efforts and to work hard at defining what it is you want to accomplish.
Now go out there and get at it. And don't forget to breath. You need oxygen for the marathon. It's a long haul, not a sprint. But I believe you can do it.
P.S. - as of the publishing time of this article, twitch.tv/making_it_big is not an active twitch account. The title of this article is simply a play on the twitch handle formatting - meets cheeky internet journalist hoping someone gets the joke. This post title is not affiliated with a twitch account and never will be affiliated with a twitch account.
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