It was almost not worth it, though.
I wrote about YouTube’s Softcore Porn Problem; well, that was the article’s title.
The article’s topic was that NSFW creators existed in YouTube niches where the average creator wasn’t posting anything lewd. But because they exist, and because humans are just smart-ish monkies, the average viewer gets distracted, and the average creator loses views to these other YouTubers.
The main point here is that we can’t create a perfect world where this doesn’t happen.
So if you’re an average creator, you should prioritize your real fans and try to earn an income through other streams.
- Digital Products (eBooks, Courses, etc.)
- Print-on-demand Products
- Extra Content Subscriptions (Patreon, Substack, Paid Communities)
- Referral Links (Amazon for starters)
That was the entire point.
A simple story: This is the problem. This is why we can’t solve it. So, here’s the best thing we can do.
It was an article about creators.
But nope — let’s make the author’s life hell.
The Comments
As of writing, the article has 71,000+ views — and out of the 64 comments, the majority were positive. But a rotten apple spoils the whole bunch.
Here’s the thing: it was just innocent a lot of the time. Everyone just took what they wanted from the article and casually posted it. But for me, it was frustrating to see all my intentions go down the toilet.
Sit back and watch this trainwreck, ladies, and gents:
“I truly hope one day people will see that porn is the problem”
Not the point, and I disagree.
Porn is a seriously bad experience with nothing to offer u in life, so this content creators creating this is just ugly.
I don’t think NSFW content creators are wrong, nor is it a bad category — I respect it quite a bit.
Yawn. Sounds like the morality police imposing their views again.
Ooft, after re-reading 12 times before posting to make sure I was explicit in what I meant, some readers skimmed the article and wrote the first thing they thought of — how annoying.
Pokimane lives off of making her simp army drool.
I used a popular creator’s criticisms on the topic, and boom, someone had to post about that instead of the article’s point.
It’s hilarious to read these articles by capitalists who complain about capitalism doing exactly what it was designed to do.
And this one utterly irrelevant comment ties a neat little knot onto my main point in this article that you’re reading now.
People See What They Want To See
Everyone walks through life with their biases and thoughts — all swimming around their heads.
If we’re given an opportunity, we’ll leap into a rant. Hell, even if we’re not given a chance, we talk about them anyway.
Have you ever listened to a friend’s problem and then used an example of your own situation as you were giving them advice? Then you fast forward 2 minutes into the example and suddenly talk about your problems, biases, and takeaways.
I do it often, and it’s not a good trait — but it happens.
Two people walking through a new city in the same neighborhood at the same time could have two wildly different experiences, and it’s colored by the glasses they wear — the bias glasses.
My article is no different.
Some people had valid criticisms, and some had tangentially valid ones too.
Why am I using clickbait if that’s a part of the problem? Why don’t I talk more in-depth about other distractions like money? Why this, why that.
I get those.
And I wish I didn’t argue nearly every single one — because I did.
Oh yeah, I delved in and viciously fought for my perspective.
This is where I messed up.
The Mistake
Repeat. I repeat, do not engage.
It’s okay to pick a couple of comments and engage people — especially the valid critics or those who seem like they’ve read the whole article. But that’s not what I did.
I got in the mud and am now covered in poo.
So a reminder to me, you, and anyone else that puts their work up for criticism: You’re already miles ahead in courage and work ethic than the average dude or dudette.
Focus on the work, and avoid the shitstorm — trust me on this one.
A grand feels better when you don’t self-inflict this type of damage in yourself to get it.
Keep going, and success will come.
Talk soon.
✌🏼 Sah
Comments / 0