none of the content you consume social media posts books videos games none of that can go on your resume do they pay people to watch movies projectionists for most of us our content consumption far outweighs our content creation this is called the 991 rule on the internet 90% of people are basically just lurkers around 9% interact in some way and only 1% actively create new content I'll show you how to Kickstart your creative Journey using the curation method and give you my best strategies to overcome that initial hurdle and get started let's do [Music] it
see I have a different perspective on creating for most people because I grew up with an artist for a father some of my earliest memories are of him painting figures and still lives in his smok out in the backyard for me creativity and art have nothing to do with the Internet or the Creator economy it's about a Timeless pursuit of artistry that people have been tapping into for Millennia all that's changed is that with digital tools and online networks it's far more accessible than ever to be an artist whether professionally or just in your spare
time so why do I think this path is one that everyone should pursue in some way or another I'll give you three reasons creating content deepens your understanding of a topic and solidifies your own knowledge when you first read a book or consume any piece of content you feel like you understand it you feel like youve gained this knowledge but then you go to actually teach it and you realize there's a lot of gaps in your understanding have you ever heard the saying when one person teaches to people learn whether it's writing a blog post
it could be recording a video or just even crafting a social media update those acts of creation act as a forcing function to organize your thoughts and then present them in a coherent way second creating builds your personal brand in today's digital age your online presence the stuff that you've shared and posted online that's your resume by sharing ideas insights stories from your day-to-day life online you're actually constructing a narrative about who you are third creating content can open so many doors to connect with like-minded people what you're doing when you share yourself online is
you're starting conversations those conversations can lead to collaborations or to job opportunities or to new clients and sometimes even new friendships one of my readers a few years ago was David Perell and he reached out to me and proposed a collaboration to create a new writing course he was envisioning we did that over the course of a few months and working with David as a business business partner over a couple years is what gave me the finances and also the courage to hire my first full-time staff I really don't know if I ever would have
made that leap otherwise so how do you start creating content if that's not something you've done before or if you've just done it a little bit the way I got started before I knew what I wanted to create and share was to collect I just started collecting all the best stuff I found from compelling pieces of writing and quotes to mindblowing facts to inspiring videos I collected all of it in my digital Notes app but after a while eventually I realized that collecting by itself is not enough it's too passive too easy and doesn't actually
change anything or anyone I realized I had to go one step further to curate curation means sorting through the content you've already collected and picking and choosing the best or most interesting items to share with others imagine the curator of a museum handpicking masterpieces to put on display for an exhibit or a newspaper editorinchief distilling a week's worth of events into a compelling newspaper this is precisely what you can do as a Content curator you're not just selecting but organizing and presenting information in a way that tells a story and communicates a clear message now
here's where the magic happens okay curation seamlessly transitions into creation when you curate you're not just passively aggregating content you're actively engaging with it you're going to annotate and explain and weave a narrative infusing the content with your own personal perspective your insights your personality that no one else has this process makes curation a public act one where you contribute meaningfully to the conversation and see how your actions can positively impact others let's dive into six tangible ways you can curate content and simultaneously create something unique and valuable curated newsletters do you pay close attention
to the news in a specific Niche you could become the go-to source for updates on that Niche by curating only the most important news items in a succinct email newsletter for people who don't have much time infographics and diagrams are you good at explaining things visually you could make infographics or diagrams or other visuals that map out the landscape of tools or websites or people or companies in your area of Interest comparison tables are you analytical are you good at researching and evaluating different options share your research in a comparative format to guide others through
similar important decisions toolkits are you good at finding valuable tools and resources collect all your best recommendations into toolkits for a specific skill or Niche that people are trying to learn about guides have you spent a lot of time in a certain field or industry create a comprehensive guide for those who are just entering it with lists of key players companies or educational resources they might not know about reviews do you have strong opinions you feel confident about offer your take or your opinion on products or works of art or emerging Concepts or Trends add
your commentary and give it your own personality now I want to answer the next question how exactly do I curate content here are my five guiding principles first you need a place to Simply collect things in other words a second brain this is the first to most fundamental step not only for Content curation but for knowledge work in general and it's the primary focus of my book and my online course building a second brain see it's impossible to curate effectively just by sharing things as you come across them you need a place to store everything
you're discovering and then only pick the best ones to share and in an organized fashion I recommend picking a note taking apps such as Evernote notion or Apple notes because they can store any kind of content content you encounter the idea here is to have a go-to digital space where you store organize revisit everything you find fascinating second pick something a topic that you really want to learn and make a commitment to learning it in public take a page out of Austin cleon's Incredible Book show your work and become a documentarian of your own Journey
it could be jotting down your personal thoughts snapping photos of your behindth scenes process or making videos in the middle of of the process use the tools at your fingertips to capture even the tiniest bits of progress or even the mistakes you've made or even the parts that seem messy and embarrassing that's what people love it actually shows evidence that you're taking risks and trying things three combine the personal and the objective most people share either purely personal updates of really no durable value like what they ate for lunch or their workout outfit or some
rant on a topic of the day or they go to the opposite extreme and they only share completely objective but boring factoids like a link to a newspaper article or a quote from a book with zero explanation as a curator you want to split the difference you want to take a middle path you want to share content that has inherent value for others it's practical it's useful but you also want to add your own interpretation or commentary you want to make it interesting four always pitch something and no I don't just mean selling something in
our attention scarce world every interaction is a pitch for someone's time and attention you can start small pitch other people's content or products or services that you've tried and enjoyed pitch books or articles or videos you found valuable pitch people on trying new things pitch them to even consider rethinking or improving an aspect of their lives every time you write an article post a social media update or even just reply to someone else's comment try to pitch them on something you know will benefit them by the time you're ready to make pitches of your own
you'll have developed an intuitive sense for how to frame something so that people take action on it five feed and tune your network it's easy to see the world of influencers and thought leaders and to think it's a solitary very individualistic Affair but I'm here to tell you that's really not the case there is always a community behind the scenes creative people that are working together to produce great ideas and great works share the things you love and value and over time the people that love and value those same things will find you these five
principles aren't just strategies they're really a mindset shift from building your digital repository to finding a community but there might be one thing that's holding you back I want to tackle a huge myth head-on the idea that you need to be an established expert before you can share your ideas or sell your advice or even just put your thoughts out there that assumption is so deeply embedded in the way we view the world the people with big platforms and huge followings surely they must know what they're talking about right but honestly often they don't they're
just weing it the same as everyone else and with the speed at which the world is changing now someone who maybe was an expert even just a few months ago might not be one today we are living through a complete revolution in how people access knowledge and expertise these days a few decades ago people only listen listen to the evening news today we share most information and news and updates and knowledge peerto peer that's where you come in your journey your insights they are gold for someone who's just starting out someone who's just a step
or two behind you that's where True Value lies building an audience creating content maybe even earning some money from it or building a business it's a steep hill to climb but the value of this journey isn't just in the destination it's in the clim time itself you have to find joy in the exploration in diving head first into a topic that fascinates you embracing the failures just as much as the successes this path is for those who inherently feel called to curate create and share regardless of how much Applause they receive think of this whole
process as a dialogue with your future self every piece of content you curate every Insight you share it's like a time capsule being sent to Future you it might bring them laughter might bring them tears or inspiration or just a moment of reflection someday this ongoing back and forth conversation Through Time helps you tell the story of your own Evolution and ultimately deepen your understanding of who you are and what you're meant to do in this life so as we wrap up I want you to ask yourself what sparks joy for me how can I
share that Joy with others even if it's just with my future self share what you come up with in the comments and if you found value in this hit the like button and subscribe for more and remember this is not just about creating content it's about creating a community starting with you and me
