I feel jealous that I’ll never achieve my dreams

[Lysholm]

I'm 37, so I've been privy to social media back to it's infancy in the 90's. I feel bad for people your age and younger, as growing up after YouTube etc. were well established paints a blatantly false picture of the "grass roots" operations that social media platforms project. They need people to believe that anybody can do it, anyone can compete, anyone can make a living doing whatever they want whenever they want. It's just not true.

Social media influencing is the playground of rich brats and corporate ad campaigns. You wouldn't know it the way they show their lives, but people with lots of spare time and plenty of resources are the only ones who can dedicate themselves to creating and posting content on a regular basis. This is true for young people as well as old - they universally need familial or corporate support to do what they do. "Normal" people that dumpster dive or hitch hike across the country don't have the money for several GoPros. "Normal" people that buy and review tons of makeup or tech gadgets aren't concerned with the cost of groceries. And there's so much corporate made content (different from corporate sponsored content) that it would make you question everything you think you know about influencing.

Due to the normalization of resource-rich content creation, production values have skyrocketed and you can no longer just go out with a cell phone on a selfie stick and make whatever. People expect the kind of images and audio requiring expensive gear and a small crew, scripted and heavily edited. Programs like Premier Pro require powerful and expensive computers to run. Even simple pictures are a misrepresentation of real life, as camera and editing techniques allow a picture to show way more color and dynamic range than the human eye can see IRL.

You can make a living doing this stuff, but it's almost impossible to do it by yourself these days. And competition is so fierce in the influencer game you have to be super consistent over a long period of time - something "normal" people don't have the resources to do. I'm not saying you cannot make it, just expect success to be ten times harder than you can imagine.

 

[mysterionz]

How much will it be to live independently? When I went to do that, all I could afford was a rental in a lower working class neighborhood, among the working poor. Getting started, one learns to eat humble pie.

Waaaaaay too much.. i would only have enough to pay for one month of rent (if I rented an apartment where my parents live myself, it would be 2.5K a month). I’d rather not be homeless and have a way to get to and from work.

 

[mysterionz]

Sims logic time..

enter a cheat code and you’re an instant millionaire! I wish it worked like that irl.

 

[Gerald Wilgus]

Waaaaaay too much.. i would only have enough to pay for one month of rent (if I rented an apartment where my parents live myself, it would be 2.5K a month). I’d rather not be homeless and have a way to get to and from work.

So, do you want to be independent, your own person, or dependent on others for the necessities of life? Everything I did, from HS on, was done with the goal of living independently.

 

[Rodafina]

Waaaaaay too much.. i would only have enough to pay for one month of rent (if I rented an apartment where my parents live myself, it would be 2.5K a month). I’d rather not be homeless and have a way to get to and from work.

This is also a common problem for your and my generation. Independent living in the United States is a huge challenge and it is common to stay with parents, family, or lots of roommates.

 

[mysterionz]

So, do you want to be independent, your own person, or dependent on others for the necessities of life? Everything I did, from HS on, was done with the goal of living independently.

Live independently one day and not rely on my dad for things. I’ll be getting my license once my family’s financial situation gets better

 

[Rodafina]

Everything I did, from HS on, was done with the goal of living independently.

I do think this is an excellent goal and your advice is very sound, but it is also true that the generations after you have had a difficult time in establishing the same independence in housing. Social trends indicate that it really is a new problem facing recent generations.

Independence in every way possible is a valuable goal, but if living independently is not affordable, it should not be integrated as a personal failure.

Not criticizing your advice in anyway, Gerald Wilgus. It is extremely valuable. Just adding the perspective of someone in between your generation and mysterionz’

 

[Forest Cat]

Sims logic time..

enter a cheat code and you’re an instant millionaire! I wish it worked like that irl.

There are cheats like that irl, it's called "bank robbery". The profit is high but so are the risks. And it's not an honest job, nothing to be proud of.

 

[Gerontius]

I’m hitting two years at my job in January!
The GFM this person posted had a 10K goal with only $500 raised.. that + what they made from commissions and stuff won’t be enough to last long in an apartment.

That's less than a month, basically. Influencer is basically a fancy way to say unemployed.

 

[mysterionz]

There are cheats like that irl, it's called "bank robbery". The profit is high but so are the risks. And it's not an honest job, nothing to be proud of.

You’re not wrong at all.

 

[mysterionz]

That's less than a month, basically. Influencer is basically a fancy way to say unemployed.

*dhar mann enters chat in 3,2,1..*

 

[Mr. Stevens]

I’m 18 years old and I’m stuck at the same part time job I’ve had since I was sixteen, where I haven’t been promoted. One tiktokker I look up to (who’s also my age) is unemployed and they make more than I would in a month (minimum wage in Florida is 11/hour currently) being a content creator after they had to go live on their own (which they presumably got enough funds to do as they set up a GFM for it), my mom would say this is absolute scammage as there’s no way a young adult would be able to make that much. How can I handle this/should I believe anyone that claims they’re able to make a living off their hobby alone?

job in question is front service clerk (bagger) in a supermarket, if I went to a different department, I could potentially make more. Did some calculations and I kinda call scammage on making $750USD in a month from just art alone.

It may not be clear now, but you will find your path if you are open to it. I don't mean that this can't be your creative work, or that you would have to let that go if your main path in life involves something else. I never expected to work with disabled people. And I certainly never expected to find out I'm Autistic while doing so. Both things have made my life more meaningful, and I question the path I thought I wanted at 18.

You have talent and...more importantly...a great attitude. You seem like a very humane person, and I think you will find good things in life. As others said, you don't have to compare yourself to other people. Be kind to yourself, and be realistic with your goals, while reaching your potential. You'll get to a good place

As Heraclitus said, "Character is fate."

 

[VictorR]

As others have noted, you’re doing quite well to have held a job for two years. It means that you’re reliable and dependable, especially if you’re in a state with “at will” employment law. Employment isn’t always necessarily about moving up – and so if you’re looking to vary your work experience, perhaps you could ask about a lateral move?

Sometimes moving up, if that's what you want, may involve "jumping ship" to another employer - and so keep in mind that loyalty isn't always rewarded, unfortunately.

Also, reach out to social service organizations in your area - there's often paid internships, mentoring opportunities, and other career-boosting programs available to targeted groups. In my area, for example, we have employment programs for youth, those with disabilities, women, those looking to advance out of an entry level position, those looking to enter skilled trades, etc. When I was working at a job search coach, one of the things that intrigued me was the number of programs I could potentially be referred to, if I were my own client.

Also, specific to young adults are programs like Job Corps that might give you a chance to try out some random things you've never thought of doing, and maybe do some travel as well.

 

[VictorR]

As for self-employment earnings – take them with a grain of salt. People almost always report gross (rather than net) when they’re trying to “show off” and are often spending a lot of unpaid time, that after being added up, results in the self employment paying significantly less than minimum wage. I've known a lot of people in this boat.

Something that I think is significantly different now than say 10-15 years ago is that in the past, people generally sold stuff that sold itself based on its merits. These days, a lot of shops (whether art, or branded merchandise) operate more on patronage type model, where fewer people actually buy the item because they were looking for it and love it than those who bought it because they are doing so to support the individual. i.e. I like XYZ's channel, so I'm going to buy a $20 shirt from them. A lot of websites have switched over from being product-based to being personality/brand-based.

I'd also like to note that people tend to focus on the positives (naturally, most people like to promote themselves in a positive light), so someone who might be happy to have sold a $100 painting... what you might not hear is that they've spent $2000+ on supplies, and might have spent $30-40 in advertising and listing fees across various websites to get that sale, and that the price was inclusive of shipping which might cost $10-20, so the net isn't much, and they're overall deep in the hole.

I'm not saying this to discourage you, but for most people, selling art is more so a way of sharing it with others than as a way to make money. If you make some money along the way, that's great, but I wouldn't count on it, and most who make money don't earn enough to live off it anyways. I don't have actual numbers in front of me, but I wouldn't be surprised if it's something like...

60% lose money
25% make <$200 net / month on average
10% make $200-$500 net / month on average
3.5% make $501-$1000 net / month on average
1% make $1001-$2000 net / month on average
0.35% make $2001-$5000 net / month on average
0.13% make $2001-$5000 net / month on average
0.02% make $5000+ net / month on average

And one of the worse parts about being an artist who is trying to make a living is that there's always someone making something similar who is doing it for fun who is willing to undercut you to make a sale, even if it means selling a work for less than the cost of the materials used.

 

[MildredHubble]

My advice, for what it's worth is try to plan ahead, think of what other opportunities there are that may pay a little more.

When I was close to your age I stupidly got stuck in a dead end job for years because I felt I had to be loyal and I felt that I didn't really deserve better. Plus I had to pay the bills so "a bird in the hand..." As they say.

Eventually though I did move on, but I should have done it sooner. I made much more money and it was the best work experience I had ever had in my life, despite it seeming at first like it was going to be a miserable slog.

What I'm suggesting is to plan and be smarter than I was. One thing I would highly recommend is learning to drive. It can increase the number of options you have for work. You can go further afield to get jobs that pay better. So be on the look out, bide your time, don't be in too much of a rush. You've done great to keep a job for two years and that will look great to future employers!

Maybe you could work at an Apple store? You could certainly show off what people could do with an iPad!

But most of all, work towards your dreams! Never give up on them like I did! Make every job you work at a stepping stone to where you want to be in the future!

 

[Gerald Wilgus]

I do think this is an excellent goal and your advice is very sound, but it is also true that the generations after you have had a difficult time in establishing the same independence in housing. Social trends indicate that it really is a new problem facing recent generations.

Independence in every way possible is a valuable goal, but if living independently is not affordable, it should not be integrated as a personal failure.

Not criticizing your advice in anyway, Gerald Wilgus. It is extremely valuable. Just adding the perspective of someone in between your generation and mysterionz’

Understood. Perhaps as the baby boom dies housing prices will decline. There has been so much greed around housing and other drivers of economic inequality that I wince at the disenfranchisement that many following me are experiencing. Plus, apps like Tinder have sold the superficial so well that they have gone Pareto, with 80% of the women chasing 20% of the men. With the superficial ascendant, there is little chance to spend the time and get to learn about that shy, successful, and interesting guy, hoping to get a little attention. So many of both sexes are finding a healthy relationship a mirage. With things stacked against them economically and emotionally, abandoning the norms of society looks rational

Our society is abandoning our young. Sometimes I despair. So I have applied to be a big brother and hope I can make a difference in a young life.

 

[Gerontius]

*dhar mann enters chat in 3,2,1..*

Who is Dharman?

 

[Slime_Punk]

Sadly, most artists and streamers make next to nothing. A lot of the musicians and artists in my circles have made better money becoming designers, developers and basically doing the stuff less people want to do. Even in my case, I've only been able to make a decent chunk of expendable change (nothing to actually live off of, however) by switching over from the 'artist' role over to the more challenging roles because the market isn't nearly as saturated.

The cool thing is, you can have a side hustle. Don't quit your day job, but you can pour all of your free time and everything you've got left into your true passion and once that becomes stable enough, consider going full-time. Like, if you want to open an online store, I'd say seriously give it a go because it could really turn into something huge down the road.

And obviously, if the passion project doesn't pan out, at least you did something cool. That's the part that matters!

 

[Slime_Punk]

Also, I wanted to mention another strange phenomenon.

Younger people (I'm 33, so I'm old as heck) have been sold on the streamer / influencer route just as much as my (and previous) generations were sold on the musician / artist route. Their whole trick is to make it look easy, when in reality the bands or artists (or in this case, streamers) worked harder than everybody else in order to get where they are. They took the crap jobs, they got stalked, made fun of, bullied, harassed, or had a beer bottle thrown at their head at least once. They also likely toured themselves sick for a decade, depending in which scenario we're going with.

It's a rough path. Let's just put it that way! In my old(er) age, I'd much rather take the safer route than that stuff, but there's no harm in giving new things a go!

 

[Gerald Wilgus]

As for self-employment earnings – take them with a grain of salt. People almost always report gross (rather than net) when they’re trying to “show off” and are often spending a lot of unpaid time, that after being added up, results in the self employment paying significantly less than minimum wage. I've known a lot of people in this boat.

Something that I think is significantly different now than say 10-15 years ago is that in the past, people generally sold stuff that sold itself based on its merits. These days, a lot of shops (whether art, or branded merchandise) operate more on patronage type model, where fewer people actually buy the item because they were looking for it and love it than those who bought it because they are doing so to support the individual. i.e. I like XYZ's channel, so I'm going to buy a $20 shirt from them. A lot of websites have switched over from being product-based to being personality/brand-based.

I'd also like to note that people tend to focus on the positives (naturally, most people like to promote themselves in a positive light), so someone who might be happy to have sold a $100 painting... what you might not hear is that they've spent $2000+ on supplies, and might have spent $30-40 in advertising and listing fees across various websites to get that sale, and that the price was inclusive of shipping which might cost $10-20, so the net isn't much, and they're overall deep in the hole.

I'm not saying this to discourage you, but for most people, selling art is more so a way of sharing it with others than as a way to make money. If you make some money along the way, that's great, but I wouldn't count on it, and most who make money don't earn enough to live off it anyways. I don't have actual numbers in front of me, but I wouldn't be surprised if it's something like...

60% lose money
25% make <$200 net / month on average
10% make $200-$500 net / month on average
3.5% make $501-$1000 net / month on average
1% make $1001-$2000 net / month on average
0.35% make $2001-$5000 net / month on average
0.13% make $2001-$5000 net / month on average
0.02% make $5000+ net / month on average

And one of the worse parts about being an artist who is trying to make a living is that there's always someone making something similar who is doing it for fun who is willing to undercut you to make a sale, even if it means selling a work for less than the cost of the materials used.

So, more than 90% fail to earn enough to afford the necessities of life.