Unpacking my first year as a full time content creator.

It's that time of year--reflecting on 2023, which happened to be my first full calendar year as a full time content creator. Come along for the lessons I learned through the highs and lows of pursuing content creation/being an influencer full time.
Hope you enjoy!
📚 || CHAPTERS ||
0:00 - What you're getting into
2:27 - $$$
4:30 - Pitching Brands
6:33 - Seeking Help
8:22 - Posting Targets
10:22 - Dropping the Ball
11:55 - What Lights you Up
13:28 - Importance of Foundation
14:35 - Struggling with Focus
17:38 - Facing Comparison
22:04 - Work/Life Balance
25:26 - People
28:51 - Community Validation
30:05 - Year ahead
📣 || MENTIONS ||
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📱 || CONNECT WITH ME ON ||
My Blog: creatingwithkaya.com
Instagram: / creatingwithkaya
Twitter: / creatingwkaya
TikTok: / creatingwithkaya
And don’t forget to like and subscribe! ✨
#contentcreator #contentcreators #microinfluencer #influencerlife

[@CreatingwithKaya]

This video ran away from me, and it ended up more as a diary-entry-style ramble vs a tangible "lessons" video. Do forgive me. I hope it's still insightful/interesting, and if it prompts any questions or topics you'd like to see covered on this channel, comment below! Appreciate every single one of you, looking forward to the year ahead! 💜

[@SoJesusChristMusic]

I watched the full video and subscribed to your other channel too. Keep it up kaya. You're inspiring and motivating us while giving us who you are as a person.

[@CaseyPalmer]

I MADE THE VIDEO! YAHHHHHHH! ❤ Nah, Kaya - love these videos from you; just great listening to you for a half hour about your authentic take on your year. There's a lot I write about and reflect on in a similar fashion, but it never makes it to the brand. Lots of journalling. Lots of reflecting. But I love that you're following through and putting it in a space where others can be inspired by your journey and see where it resonates with their lives. Love it 😊

[@CreatingwithKaya]

OF COURSE YOU MADE THE VIDEO!! thanks for watching my friend. You really inspired me this year to get back to journalling reflecting.. I technically *always* do it, but am not the best at actually gathering the thoughts in any sorta cohesive way. And just because there's a lot that hasn't made it to the brand.. doesn't mean it won't ever. 👀 Hope to catch you irl in 2024, and to keep doing cool stuff together!

[@ThatsDashaVu]

Kaya, we have so much in common, which is why I think I love your channel so much. Especially the dopamine hit of working on things. I procrastinate a lot, and it's not because I am too busy. It's because there's another shiny task I preferred to work on instead!

[@CreatingwithKaya]

Ahhh it DEFINITELY sounds like we are the same. 😂🙏🏽 we will pull through it somehow, thank you so much for being here and for your support!! Let's take 2024 by STORM!

[@NamesWithSteph]

Honestly I could listen to your chatty videos all day! So true what you said about connection and getting to know other creators. I've been connecting with other baby name consultants this year and it's been so invigorating and special!

[@CreatingwithKaya]

That means so much, thank you. 🥹🙏🏽 And I love to hear that, really connection is what makes this whole thing so worth it!!

[@ThriftsandTangles]

Ahh I felt so seen when you said you compared yourself to your past self! I was telling my husband recently that I didn’t do as much for my brand in 2023. But he reminded me that I literally gave birth to a human! 😅 but that comparison of I should’ve done more was still there. As always, great video! Excited to follow your journey in 2024.

[@CreatingwithKaya]

AHH SO RELATABLE 😂😭 I’m glad your husband is there to remind you-mine literally reminded me weekly that I was in the middle of achieving the goals I set out for community this year but wasn’t appreciating it. 😂🤦🏽‍♀️ you are killing it, excited for your year ahead as well!!

[@ItsShayDay]

I appreciate your transparency on your content creator journey. Thanks for sharing with us. All the best in 2024. I’ll be here for the ride!

[@CreatingwithKaya]

Thank you so much Shay!! Glad to have you here, and hope 2024 treats you WONDERFULLY

[@rosesinhouston]

Just found your channel today and I love your style. So soothing and very insightful. Girl, you just inspired me to revive my Pinterest again after YEARS of not using it 😅 I started my rose blogging & KZbin journey then realized I needed to reach more audience and drive traffic to my blog. Your Pinterest video came up to remind me of another avenue. Running a business full-time is not easy at all. I used to dream of becoming full-time biz owner while working my corporate job and thought I'd have much more time to focus on my biz. The harsh truth is being a full-time biz owner requires a high level of discipline, time-managent skills, focus & consistency. I feel like I am all over the places for 2 years 😂 Thank you for your vidoes, they are wonderful and helpful.

[@CreatingwithKaya]

Thank you so much for the kind words--I'm grateful to have you here in my corner of KZbin! ☺️ And I SO resonate with this content, it IS tough, but it is doable. If it helps, know that I was all over the place for about FIVE years before I started really focusing in and making money from this. I'm sure you'll get there even faster though, because there are SO many more resources out there than there were than I started.

[@cookinglivewithlala]

Kaya, you really come across as genuine and honest. I love to see it. 🧡

[@CreatingwithKaya]

Thank you so so much, I really appreciate that. 💜

[@NamesWithSteph]

Also loved your tips and insights! My goals include posting on YT more, an online course, Livestream events and my first brand deal ideally 🤞🤞🤞

[@CreatingwithKaya]

I'm so glad you enjoyed it!! and I love these goals!!! Hopefully this channel can help you on the brand deal front. 💜

[@HexaAngel]

I love watching videos like this from you! You truly are such an inspiration, and learning from your journey makes all of this feel "possible" for me as a smaller creator. I haven't shared my 2024 goals publicly anywhere else yet, but I feel like this comment section is a safe space, so here we are: 1. grow my online revenue streams to a livable income level (won't say the exact number, but it's super modest--but would be a huge deal nonetheless since I'm nowhere near there yet) 2. send 1 UGC or influencer pitch email every day (at least until my inbounds pick up on their own) 3. post 2 long-form KZbin videos per week, plus shorts 4. lose 20 kilos (44 pounds) 5. start a blog and make 50 blog posts this year, plus corresponding Pinterest posts 6. maintain a good routine to cover the basics (skincare, shower, exercise, that sort of thing) 7. get my ADHD diagnosis These are the "high priority" goals, and then the last 4 I will kind of just squeeze in if and when there is time for them: 8. read 12 books 9. start doing art again and selling prints 10. launch a passive income product 11. make a "Mandarin vocabulary basics" video series for my Romanian channel (which is pretty inactive right now)

[@CreatingwithKaya]

Absolutely love this thank you for sharing, it’s absolutely a safe place. We actually have a lot of overlapping goals! Here’s to crossing things off!! 💜

[@Nailia_Essi]

I am soo in love with your content - it is truly helpful! Thank you. 2024 goals are consistency & treating content creation as a business.

[@CreatingwithKaya]

I’m so so glad!! 🥹🙏🏽 and cheers to that!! You absolutely got this!

[@VideoforBosses]

Here from Threads and excited to learn more about you and what you do from your KZbin content.🤩

[@CreatingwithKaya]

Welcome aboard!! Thank you for coming over and for the comment. 🙏🏽 Happy 2024!!

[@Natoya]

So lovely running into you in 2023. Very inspiring content as always, I guess my goal for this year would be consistency. It’s been difficult balancing a career as an illustrator and finding time to create quality content.

[@CreatingwithKaya]

It was SO nice to see you. Always appreciate your support 💜 consistency is a great goals, definitely hear you in the balance department-I’m sure you’ll find it this year! Just don’t be so hard on yourself with what ideal consistency looks like for you 💜

[@TheBodyElectricSupplement]

This video is such an inspiration Kaya. This helps me believe I can branch out into Content Creation as I build my coaching business. Thank You!☺

[@CreatingwithKaya]

Thank you for watching!! And I’m so glad!! You got this 💪🏽

[@bleh5419]

I usually dont comment but on this i had to! Watched start to finish and plan to listen to every other video on this channel! I want to be a content creator in future, im a painter and I want to share my work and hopefully get more orders this way and listening to your story has given me such a boost. I live in Kenya - Africa and its so much harder to monetize your content but here's to hoping and God willing I can make it. Also ill post on Pinterest cause you highly recommend it 😊❤

[@CreatingwithKaya]

Thank you so much for taking the time to comment, and to watch!! I hope this corner of KZbin continues to be helpful!! I definitely know there can be more limitations or obstacles depending on where you’re located, but it’s ABSOLUTELY possible 💜🫶🏽 you got this!! Happy 2024!!

[@andfanilo]

This video deeply resonated with me :) I'm in my 2nd year of KZbin side hustling, and for some reason I really felt the "lack of focus - chase all the dopamine effects" this year 😔 I've been learning so much in video production & business, that it had the side effect of me feeling the need to be productive or learning something new all the time. All so I improve by 1% on the next video or brand deal, to always feel better than my past self, and hopefully less hard on the quality of my current content. Every time I had some free time, I would be watching some motion graphics tutorials on YT or scrolling for content ideas on social media. I think eventually my attention was just always scattered everywhere, and by the end of year I couldn't easily do deep work. For example, right now I'm supposed to be scripting my next "ramble recap" video too 😂 Between creating better KZbinr habits with "Atomic Habits" and journaling to empty my mind thanks to "The Artist's Way" books, plus planning a solo trip to take a longer break, I'm hoping for a clearer 2024 as a content creator :) thanks for sharing your experience and advice, you may have less views but I'm sure the impact will be much greater on the few viewers, it really helped me! Wishing you all the best for the new year! PS: I'd love to know how much time it takes you to script this kind of video. Ok I really need to script mine now, no excuses left!

[@CreatingwithKaya]

Oh my goodness thank you for such a heartfelt comment! I SO relate to the constant consumption and learning, which always seems so productive but so easy to get stuck in that state. I think that’s actually what a lot of the “non productive” time I’m referring to was, yes there was a lot of doom scrolling and mindlessly switching tabs, but a lot of those tabs were either research or analytics. Looking forward to your video, I too am also reading Atomic Habits! I got it on my trip and read half of it on the flight home, was so pumped taking notes… and then I returned to “normal” 😭 hoping to get back to implementing soon. Oh and on the script writing-I need to start timing cause I’m not too sure. It took me awhile cause I was just throwing notes around, but it was a solid dedicated day for this one when I finally focused. It varies for other videos, whether I’m just writing notes or more concrete paragraphs .

[@Ieasha_Abdullah]

Very good video from beginning to end. I would love to figure out Pinterest and grow my blog. There are really many goals but hitting those marks would be awesome.

[@CreatingwithKaya]

Thank you so so much for watching!! And I hope this channel helps on the Pinterest front, as I'm planning to double down on my blogs again, I hope to document and share more tips too! We got this!!

[@junquette3000]

I so appreciated this video! I stopped to replay certain sections as well and will probably go back. My goal is to monetize while enjoying the process. I wantto structure a workable content calendar that allows me some flexibility. And, lastly, I want to create a podcast along with my channel. Thanks for your insightful reflections. You are so refreshingly relatable (and your lighting is wonderful).

[@CreatingwithKaya]

I’m so glad it was helpful! Thank you for the comment 💜🥹 that is the absolute best goal, the last thing we want in pursuing this is to make it feel like just another job we hate. Excited for you on this journey!!

[@VivaciousLyla]

21:25 hey Kaya can you elaborate on the co-working studio you mentioned, where you were working with other creators? that sounds so cool!! is that like an office where you do admin tasks with other creators or filming / studio lights, cameras, etc.?

[@CreatingwithKaya]

Ooh it’s an office space, usually I just bring my laptop and do admin or edit a KZbin video in other people’s company-great for accountability.

[@TheRLSLife]

Monetization. 😊

[@KiKiCarr]

omg i need so much help with outsourcing i have no clue where to start 😩

[@CreatingwithKaya]

😭 it’s so tough. So far the most success I’ve had (outside my husband) has been contracting people to make blog posts from yt videos and making some Pinterest pins… but I’m struggling to do much more 🫣🫠

[@etonfoods3013]

Great video as always. Beautifully vulnerable. Can you share what you learned about your gear, motion graphics, color grading, lighting etc. What video editing software do you use?

[@CreatingwithKaya]

Ooh yes absolutely!! Definitely on the agenda this year-currently edit in Adobe premiere! I made a lighting video but hated it. I’ll try again soon tho 😂 . This video has a bunch of filming tips that may be helpful in the meantime: kzbin.info/www/bejne/imK0iWWJhM16g6s (And thank you for watching! 🥺🙏🏽)

[@murielsamuels4370]

I love that you don't share when you hate it. What motion graphics software do you use?@@CreatingwithKaya

[@CreatingwithKaya]

@@murielsamuels4370 haha I only want to share content I trust is useful 🙏🏽😂 I’ve scrapped SO many videos halfway through editing before. I actually do a lot right in premiere pro, but like my little subscribe pop up, and things I want to reuse or that are more detailed, I’ll dabble in After Effects.

[@itsdanielleryan]

My experience with pitching has been the exact same 😂😂 can’t decide if I should give up or double down lol

[@itsdanielleryan]

Loved this video. You are forever creator inspo 🫶✨

[@CreatingwithKaya]

Haha I’m glad I’m not alone!! I feel like I should mention I only pitched like 5-8 brands before throwing in the towel and did luck out on one paid one gift so maybe I need to not be a baby, let my ego go and double down. 🤣

[@CreatingwithKaya]

@@itsdanielleryan 🥺🫶🏽 appreciate you always

[@realadvantageproductions563]

Unpacking my first year as a full time content creator, Creating with Kaya. Hey. I'm watching you. I see you. That is half the battle right? LOL...... I like what I see. Very cool. Very cool. I can definitely relate to what you are talking about. You did a good job with this one. Great video! I have just subw3scribed to your channel. So congrats, you just gained another one. I am an advocate on this platform for engaging with others and supporting one another. And returning love and reciprocating feedback. I think that kind of community on here is what we need. Hey, if there were a lot more people like me on here, you might have an extra 5,000 friends and fans to your channel, right now. Extra. That is the community I'm encouraging people to help me build. Hope your channel continues to grow. I'm a real person. I am not a bot. I am a content creator, just like you. Let me get half the battle too. Who knows you might even like one of the videos there.

My 2024 goal is to finally get monetized here on KZbin. I’ve been working to get monetized for at least two years now. And I would love for it to happen.

[@CreatingwithKaya]

🙏🏽 wishing you all the luck and perseverance!! KZbin is quite the journey! I did it in just about 2 years, but admittedly I did have an existing audience to build on on other platforms.

[@leanstead]

I've just discovered you and your channel(s). Love your content and the style, set, lighting, pace and overall style. You've just gained a new sub, follower and fan. (Hope @leanstead)

[@CreatingwithKaya]

Ah thank you so so much and welcome to my corner of the internet! This comment means so much!