It's been a busy couple of weeks where nothing has happened.
Funnily enough I am not busy with work or study or being social. I've been busy turning my passion into a lifestyle.
I realized that if I can put all these effort into maintaining a Hive account over the last 7 years, I can double that effort and expand upon the work I've already done.
The nice thing about having done all that work is that now I have 7 years of articles to draw from.
And so after one month on Substack, I have 55 Subscribers and about the same amount of Followers (the only difference is that Followers see you in their feed but aren't notified when you upload a new article.
It seems the crowd there is a bit different. They are younger but also much more "left leaning" than Hive, although on both platforms I manage to find people who are not as indoctrinated with a single philosophy or way of life. As many people who follow me know I do not like the political dichotomy that we are shoved into and try to dismantle this divisive way of thinking wherever I can.
So I share the same work there and the response is very different but equally positive.
It feels nice to have people paying attention on both platforms. To have 10-25 readers on a post on one platform is one thing, but then to share the same on 3 platforms (including Instagram), and get the same amount of readers...we are nearing 100 readers now....
I get over 10 comments on almost everything I share now, and lots of engagement on short thoughts I share at Leo threads and substack (almost ready to quit X entirely).
My phone feels like its blowing up for a few hours a day. I finally feel like I know what it's like to be successful. The money isn't flowing in to a degree that I can make a living this way...not yet, but it feels like the foundation is being built now.
I was originally planning to use subscriptions at INLEO and Substack both as a place for donations, without putting anything behind a paywall. But as I started thinking about what I might put behind a paywall, I realized, there is a lot I don't share because it's searchable by google and other search engines. Without that to worry about, there is more I could share...and so I'm thinking about sharing 2-4 articles a month behind the paywall.
Then that got me thinking about the paywall at substack, and how there is more than one genre of things I could talk about more freely if it's encrypted and not going out to the web crawlers.
I am thinking about sharing more in the realm of personal stories from my travels as well as language learning hacks and tips on how to adapt to a foreign culture over at Leo for subscribers. I will still share most important things with everyone on Hive and Substack, just going to get a little more detailed in private stuff for people who like me enough to subscribe.
I don't think Hive is as interested in the self-exploration and shadow work stuff as Substack, there is a large community for that kind of stuff over there and I've already connected with them, so I'm considering doing the same kind of paywall over there but with more of a focus on shadow work, fiction and personal development.
I have no idea if either of these will attract people willing to pay money when the economy is such a mess and people are struggling...but I know I am worth those $5-8 to anyone who can afford it, and who knows...maybe there are people who think I'm worth way more than that.
The way I see it, if I can attract even just 5 people who want to pay at each platform...that's $65 ($5 for Leo and $8 for Substack) a month. Not much, but over the course of a year that's $780. That's that trip I haven't been able to afford the past few years. It also gives me a chance to get my music and fiction out there a little more.
Meanwhile, I realize that since people at Substack aren't used to upvoting for $, they are more willing to pay for things, and some of them are looking for guidance, guidance that I can provide. Some want to become independent from their parents or get out of their cultural bubble or become better at making conversation.
If I can find a few clients to coach every year or people who want to study Japanese, Mandarin or English, I don't need to worry about promoting my language classes anymore. And promoting my classes has been the LEAST FUN part of being a freelancer....it drains me far more than the work itself.
If my writing can become promotion for my other work, I'm killing two birds with one stone, because I love writing and connecting with people.
So slowly, slowly, I am building up the multiple income streams I need to make a living out of my passions.
If I can earn $250 a month on Hive upvotes and curation, $250 from subscriptions here and $250 there, then earn another $250 from new clients, I literally have nothing to worry about with regards to work and money. That would cover all the money I'm losing when students quit due to losing their jobs or going abroad.
Add to that the $20+ I can earn per referral to Hive on Leo and more book sales. I can use that to invest back into the community.
From there I hope to get back to playing music, something that doesn't earn much money but really drives the network effect and can help to eventually double or triple the amount earned from each of these things.
The goal is not to have to think about how to earn money, to just do the things I love and connect with people and have money flowing in my direction. Right now I'm just building the system in order for that to become possible....and it seems to be coming along quite nicely!!!
All of this has made me very very busy, but I don't feel tired or stressed. It's work, but it's fun work! I really can't wait to introduce a few new friends from Substack to my friends at Hive and vice versa.
If anyone is interested in hearing about Culture shock, hitchhiking journeys, conversations with homeless people and language hacks, let me know and I will send you a link to my subscription page once it's up. INLEO's subscription services should launch in the next 24-48 hours!
And if you are interested in growing on another platform and helping me bring some people back to hive, let me know!