In 2015 I was a freelancer.

In 2016 I took a remote position.

In 2017 I freelanced some more.

In 2018 I started an online course business.

In 2019 I started a profitable vlog.

In 2020 I made a lot of money on Medium.

In 2021 I….well…I'll answer that one next year perhaps. ;)

The point is I've done A LOT of things to make money online. Another point? 

Notice how my income streams change every year?

First it was freelancing. Then a remote job. Then more freelancing. Then online courses. Then Medium. Then vlogging.

The truth is, you need one skill to succeed online as a writer..

"You Made $6,000 With One Video?"

"Wait Tom, how much did you make with that video?

"$6,000," I replied.

I could feel the air leave the room.

I was speaking to a room of Filipinos about how one video I made about Catriona Gray (the Miss Universe winner from 2018) made $6,000 in ad break money on Facebook.

It was a semi-ridiculous story because the video had 1,000,000 views six hours after it was published.

What's even crazier? I was speaking to a room of people about vlogging. Vlogging isn't even my first true love.. blogging is.

I'd much rather sit and write an article than sit in front of a camera with fake enthusiasm trying to be chipper for my audience.

Yet here I was, being looked at as some expert in vlogging. It felt surreal because I managed to grow a following on two major platforms doing two different things:

Writing on Medium.

Vlogging on Facebook.

That wasn't by accident. 

I planned it. 

Here is my secret..

The 1 Skill Creators Need To Make Great Money Online

In 2017 I wrote a blog post about how important being adaptable is. I used the classic Netflix/Blockbuster example to drive my point home.

The 1 skill we need to make great money online is the willingness to be ADAPTABLE. We need to try new things. We need to diversify. 

Why?

Because platforms are everything to creators. When platforms no longer give us a lot of reach, we need to cover our ass. How do we do that?

We start a side hustle within a side hustle.

Side hustle inception.

That's the reason I started making videos. I wanted to build another platform in case Medium stopped giving me great reach.

That's why I wrote an article last month called "The Medium Feast Was Never Going To Last - We Should've Known." Some people took that article personally, but really I was just trying to liberate the minds of people who ONLY write on Medium.

Sure, we built a name for ourselves here on Medium, but that's not enough. It's not going to last our whole lives. We need to move on, find new opportunities, and become learners again to keep making money doing this.

Three Years Ago Some Buddies And I Created A Group To Grow On LinkedIn Together

Three years ago, some buddies and I created a group with the sole purpose of helping each other grow on LinkedIn. We were terrified of Medium reach going down the toilet, and we too, wanted to cover our ass.

After a few months the group started focusing more on Medium, but I never stopped posting on LinkedIn. 

I had about 2,000 followers back then, but now I have about 15,000. 

Seeing how reach there is absolutely freaking BONKERS right now, I can still get my message out to thousands of people regardless of what happens on Medium.

Build An Audience. Send Them To Another Platform. Repeat.

The online game is like a post-apocalyptic world.

Staying in one spot isn't going to work for you in this environment.

You need to build multiple outposts in multiple places.

Your outposts are your social media profiles.

LinkedIn, Medium, Bitclout, Facebook, Your Own Blog, etc.

Build them all.

Stack fat stacks of canned beans and soups in those mother fuckers.

Act like a doomsday prepper. 

Build a following on one platform, then start funneling them to others. Slowly but surely, you'll have built follower stock piles on all major platforms. Great. Now you don't have to worry about algorithms squashing your reach.

Always Be Adapting

The best advice I can give to creators is to constantly be adapting.

It's not a matter of IF things don't work anymore, it's a matter of WHEN.

You need to be willing to eat shit, learn a new platform, and get on with it if you want to survive.

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