Thread by @jayclouse

I see a lot of promising creators quit too early.

When you announce to the world that you're doing [thing], you see an immediate spike of attention.

You think, "Wow, this may actually work!"

But that almost never lasts.

1⃣ Thread 👇

2⃣ That initial spike of attention comes from your social circle – people who are already following you on Twitter, Facebook, Instagram, whatever.

They are mostly close friends, and a lot of them want you to succeed!

...they're also not typically who you're making things for.

3⃣ But there are also those who tune in because they have the same urge.

They want to create too.

And they may be jealous that you are taking the vulnerable step of putting yourself out there.

A part of them wants to see you fail so that they feel better about their inaction.

4⃣ In the best cases, those haters looking for schadenfreude stop paying attention when they realize you aren't quitting, and your consistency only fuels their jealousy.

But to you, that may actually look like a dip in your metrics.

You may start to panic.

5⃣ But in most cases, the stuff you're making isn't that remarkable yet.

It takes a long time to realize you need to make things that OTHER people identify with.

It isn't about you.

It takes even longer to find your voice.

Your metrics may dip.

You may start to panic.

6⃣ Whatever the reason for the dip in attention – this is when most people give up.

It's the dead blog or the podfade.

But you should expect this dip.

This dip is your best opportunity to get good at your craft and find your voice.

It's a safe time – because no one cares!

7⃣ So keep publishing.

Shed the haters and shed the well-meaning friends who aren't in your target audience anyway.

You'll see a dip.

But the dip is right before you start to build a following of the *right* people.

And those are the people who spread the word.