Becoming A Content Creator

blue and purple sky with stars
This photo has nothing to do with this article. I just thought it was cool.

I went to sleep at midnight this last Friday night/Saturday morning and I woke up at 8:30. 8 and 1/2 hours of straight, continuous sleep. You would think that I would have woken up refreshed right?

I woke up exhausted.

I seldom remember my dreams, but I remember that night. I dreamt of work. Being on the truck, watching the bins go up on the claw and up the rail only to tip over and dump their contents into the shredder. Rinse and repeat, over and over.

And then I was dreaming that I was dreaming and that the alarm clock was going to go off soon and I would have to get up and go back to work. That was the worst part of the dream. I really thought in my dream that I had to get up and go to work. It created a sinking sensation in my stomach that almost woke me up.

It woke me up enough to realize that I had been dreaming, and that today was not a work day, today was Saturday. The sense of relief was so overwhelming that I almost cried. Later, I had yet another dream, and in this dream I dreamt that I rode somewhere on my motorcycle and when I came back to my bike, someone had stolen the saddlebags, the highway pegs, the seat, and the gas tank of all things. I’m telling you, I can’t get no relief.

Moving along now…

Tim Keefe has asked me if he could write some things and post them on my blog, as he figures that many of my readers would find what he has to say of interest. I agree with him and so he’ll be posting some of his writings on my blog as well as me posting my usual nonsense to you guys.

When I wrote Why You Shouldn’t Care About Karen, I gave not only that article a lot of thought, but I’ve been thinking about things in general that are also applicable to that article.

I’ve been a “content creator” (I hate that term) for over two years now. Some of the things that I’ve realized as time has gone by is that I don’t have nearly enough time to be a “content consumer.” With all of the different projects that I’ve been working on and all of the different things that I have been involved with, I don’t have the time to sit down and watch many other “content creators.” I don’t have the time to “consume” like I did years ago.

That’s mostly a good thing by the way. What little content I do consume has been thoroughly filtered for me by me. Am I getting something from it other than a dopamine hit? Am I learning how to do something? Am I learning a new skill or honing one that I already have? Then I’ll make the time to watch or read that type of content. If it’s just outrage or the same old, same old that I’ve already seen or read, I skip it and move on. My life and my time are too short.

Do you want to become a content creator? Here’s something that I’ve learned that may or may not help you out:

What do you want to do? Lots of guys hand out advice about finding specific niches and focusing on them. That’s solid safe advice, especially if you are looking to monetize and sell things. But what happens if you burn out, the niche runs its course, or you find you want to do something else? Now you have to create another channel on YouTube, or you have to buy another domain name and start another website. Nothing wrong with that if that is your thing, and if it is, by all means, do that. But what if you don’t want to “start over” again? What then?

That’s why I chose the domain RobSays.net. It’s about me talking about me. I can talk about things “red pill,” I can talk about things related to motorcycling, and I can talk about things related to editing and creating videos. I can cover it all if I want and I don’t have to keep making websites and starting over.

It probably isn’t a good way to monetize and sell things, but then again, I don’t care about monetizing and selling things. I create the content that I like and that I want. Since I’m not trying to monetize or sell things, I don’t need to keep an eye on the competition and see what they are doing.

There are plenty of guys trying to cash in on the “red pill” right now. Lots of YouTube channels that are all saying the same things and regurgitating the top guys. Almost all of them are doing outrage porn. It’s become saturated and boring. Different guys, different camera angles, different quality, same message. The top guys have it covered, I’ll just stick with them and honestly I don’t even watch a lot of what they have to say anymore because I’ve already heard them say it before. I guess this is what is called “Life After The Red Pill.”

I think when you decide to become a content creator, it’s ideally because you aren’t finding other people doing the stuff that you want to see, hear, and/or read. So you start making it yourself. I know I take great satisfaction in the videos and the blog posts I have made, even if I never watch or read them again, and in all honesty, I almost never do watch my videos or read my blog posts after they are published. I know what I said or wrote, why do I want to revisit it yet again? Also, my inner critic will come out and start pointing out the flaws and the mistakes and then I’ll want to revise and remake whatever it was, so that I can get it “perfect.” And we all know what happens when that happens…

Recently I’ve unsubscribed to a lot of channels on YouTube and same with a bunch of blogs that I used to read. I don’t have the time or the interest anymore, so it’s time that I move on from them. Some of the channels and blogs I have followed for years, others for a shorter period of time, but either way, it’s time to move on.

Whatever you want to do, do it authentically. I guess you can authentically regurgitate your favorite guru and rip him off, but can you really? Don’t bother answering that question, it’s rhetorical. I guess you can authentically talk about the latest outrage, but keep in mind that other guys have probably beaten you to it already and you’ll just be another channel or another blog talking about the same outrage as everybody else. Outrage gets tiresome after awhile and from guys I’ve been interacting with, they are looking for something different now. They are getting tired of the outrage as well. I guess we have all hit the stage of “Life After The Red Pill.”

Whatever you do, do it your way, in your style, with your own voice. That’s authentic.

So if you want to become a content creator, start there. Start with “What do you want to do?” Start with something that you would like to see or read, or hear and you aren’t finding it anywhere else and then create that. And be authentic with it. Show who you are in your way of creating and presenting your content.

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Why You Shouldn’t Care About “Karen.”

karencover

Lots of guys on the internet worrying about “Karen.” Why? Why do you care about what “Karen” does or doesn’t do? Karen is gonna Karen. Unless you married Karen, or are in a relationship with Karen, or thinking about marrying or being in a relationship with Karen, why do you care about Karen?

While we are talking about Karen, why are you so concerned with Murder Hornets? Remember Africanized bees from a few years ago? No? Yeah, no one else remembers them either, but apparently they were going to be the new scourge of the world and kill off all the honey bees and anyone else who got too close to them. The world didn’t come to an end then, and it isn’t going to come to an end with the Murder Hornets either.

I see so many guys “unplugging from the Matrix and taking the Red Pill,” finally starting to understand women’s behavior and whatnot, and while they are getting out of the Matrix, they are still stuck in the Web.

The Web of not only Mainstream Media, but also Social Media.

That article about Karen doing Karen stuff? Where did you see it? Who shared it with you? Why are you sharing it with me? Why do you think I care? Social media “news” is seldom newsworthy. It’s definitely not worth my time or attention, but why is it worth yours? Who is curating your news for you? What are you getting out of it?

Why are you choosing outrage over something else?

While everybody is “Karening” Karen, and thinking that the food supply is going to dry up because of hornets, and worrying about lines on photos, because guys are leaning in, I’ve been doing other things.

For one, I figured out how to get my microphone to sound like a high dollar professional microphone for free. I can not only record videos with great sound, I can live stream with great sound as well.

I’ve also figured out some cool edits that are really easy to do and they add a little more interest to my videos. They don’t take much time either, only a few seconds to do.

I’m also reading a couple of really good books, and while I’m at it, I’m having conversations with people that have nothing to do with Karen, COVID, or Murder Hornets. I’m even talking about lighting arrangements with a couple of guys.

Karen, COVID-19, leaning in, and Murder Hornets. This is what the internet has become. What a waste of time. Guys unplugging and yet still sucking down the outrage like it’s going out of style. I guess you guys can’t let go of your mental masturbation.

What do you get from it? A dopamine hit? Do you feel like you’ve done something useful or productive with your time? Are you looking for “brownie points?”

I’ve said it before and I’m saying it yet again:

Vote With Your Attention, Vote With Your Wallet.

When you click on that link and read that article that Karen wrote, what are you doing? You’re doing exactly what she wants you to do. You’re giving her attention. Same with the YouTube videos about her. Why are you giving any of it a moment of your time? Is your life really that good (or dull) that you have nothing else to do?

Who cares what Karen does? Who cares what she thinks? Same with Murder Hornets. What are you going to do about them? Start carrying cans of RAID around and nuke every flying insect you see? Why are you reading and watching stuff that tells you what to be afraid of? Why are you reading and/or watching stuff that tells you what to be outraged about?

You don’t watch Mainstream Media anymore right? Haven’t done it for years? And yet your reading, sharing, retweeting, and commenting on things that are even more absurd and trivial than what the Mainstream Media is showing these days.

When you have to talk about Karen, guess what that makes you? A Karen.

You’ve “unplugged” right? Now get out of the Web of Social and Mainstream Media. Decide what is actually worth your time and energy. Outrage isn’t it.

Those links to articles and videos that you want to share with me? I’ve already seen them. I saw them over two years ago. Nothing has changed. Do me a favor and don’t share them with me, because I don’t care.

Get out of the Web of Outrage and do something more creative and productive with your time. Or stay stuck in it and burn. Either way I don’t care. Just don’t share that nonsense with me. I’m done with it.

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Why Is The Old Man Always On A Mountain?

man standing on cliff

Because he can be.

You have read or heard a tale somewhere, at some time about a young man or woman (usually a man) seeking the knowledge from the town or village guru who happens to live in a cave near the summit of a mountain, or he lives on the summit itself.

Why does that grizzled, old, sometimes pleasant, sometimes nasty, guru of a guy always live on or near the top of a mountain? Because he can.

While I’m not “old” in the sense of what modern medicine and lifestyles of today can bring, I am old in other ways. I may not be collecting social security and facing mandatory retirement any time soon, but in many ways I’m definitely “old.”

I’m glad for it.

I’m glad I’m at where I’m at, at my age. I don’t envy the young men and women of today’s world, both in economic and in dating/relating terms. In many ways I feel sorry for the upcoming generations. I wouldn’t trade places with you even if I could. Too much horseshit and bullshit. If you guys don’t figure it out, you’re fucked. Straight up. And not in a good way.

But here’s the fun part:

You’ll figure it out. Or you won’t. But the more things change, the more they stay the same. I remember struggling to figure out women and I still don’t fully understand them, but I’ve learned to accept them, warts and all for who they are, and I appreciate them. If you are fortunate enough to live as long as I have, and granted 48 isn’t all that old, hopefully you get some perspective.

That’s what I think wisdom is mostly. It’s perspective. I’ve been around long enough to see certain trends come and go only to come back around yet again, only with a different hairstyle or a different cut of cloth. It’s still the same old same old though. Different packaging, same contents. Get rich and get da gurlz.

Snake-oil used to be sold on a table or in a booth out on the street with the salesman hawking his goods to you face to face. In my time, the snake-oil was sold via television “infomercials” and via direct mailings and catalogs. Nowadays it’s done via the internet and on social media. Different medium, same message. A lot easier today to reach more suckers than before, but the contents in the bottle are still mostly snake-oil, pipe dreams, and empty promises. It is what it is. The more things change, the more they stay the same.

person sitting on mountain cliff

Recently Neuro-Linguistic Programming (NLP) has been making a comeback in the pickup circles. Yeah that was a thing back in 1995 when Ross Jefferies hit the scene with Speed Seduction. I remember that time frame. I still have the cassette course somewhere. The more things change the more they stay the same. It’s been roughly 25 years since Ross brought Speed Seduction to the world, the Mystery Method came out in the early 2000’s? I guess we still have a few more years before it’s “rediscovered” and repackaged with a whole new look and a whole new vocabulary, but I’m pretty sure that “neg’s” and “peacocking” will be in there somewhere. Maybe not under those names, but they’ll be there.

What has been refreshing for me though, is I have been reading through MJ’s blog about life as a middle-aged married man. I remember when I first started reading his blog a couple of years ago and he’s revamped it from that earlier time era. When I first found it, he was offering advice on how to make your marriage and/or relationship better if I recall correctly (and if I’m off, I apologize MJ) and now he’s simply talking about his own marriage, warts and all. It’s more a “day in the life of this here married guy,” and it’s wonderful. It’s wonderful because he’s in my age bracket. He could easily be me. It’s wonderful because he’s being honest and authentic, at least as far as I can tell. Most marriage and/or relationship advice that is on a more positive note is either coming from a “pre-1950’s model” where grandma and grandpa have been together since Christ was a journeyman carpenter, or it’s the sad unfortunate “divorce machine” that far too many guys have gone through, or it’s the young to mid twenty-something’s to early thirty somethings talking about being Power Dad’s and Mommy Bloggers with 31 flavors of TradCon and Religion to boot. Life hasn’t fully come around to kick them in the ass yet, but it will. Because the more things change, the more they stay the same.

person on mountain

MJ’s posts are authentic to me because when I read them, I know what he’s talking about. While I don’t have the years of marriage under my belt that he does, I can and do relate to what he is saying. It’s funny to me because I can take what he is saying and add it to my knowledge of what I already know based on my own successes and failures and it makes a pretty neat picture. MJ is definitely one of those guys that I would want to sit down and have a beer with. Two old men sitting on a mountain and talking shit. In this case though, MJ is far closer to a beach than a mountain, and I’ll take that any day of the week, for a variety of reasons.

The “Old Man on the Mountain” is there because he can be. He’s still close enough to civilization to come down once in a while and mingle with the masses, but he’s far enough away to keep away from all the noise and the chatter. And the smells. You fuckers need to shower more often than you do.

A lot of people have accused me of being cynical and negative, depressing even. That’s okay. If you ever got to meet me you would find that while yes, I can definitely be cynical, and that’s because of the shit I have seen and been through, at the same time I have come through it all as a better person as I have grown from all of it and I’m happier for it. I’m far more at peace with myself and with life in general than I was twenty five years ago.

I don’t have the patience or the time to be “fluffy” and blow sunshine up your ass because sometimes life just plain sucks and there’s nothing you can do about it but hang on and ride it out. Anyone who tells you otherwise is either naive or is trying to sell you something.

That’s wisdom for you. That’s perspective. And it didn’t cost you anything but the time it took to read this.

“Old Men On Mountains” just plain old don’t give a fuck. They did what their friends, families, jobs, and societies told them to do, and they probably did it for years. They’ve just realized that none of that shit truly matters and that time is short and so they might as well do the shit they always wanted to do and to hell with everyone else if they don’t like it.

See you on the mountain.

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