Beyond followers, there is a field. Let’s meet here? Because when we become the leaders we need, there are no followers, just connections and relationships. Creators focus on producing and sharing our art. We don’t wait for perfection, knowing life is to be experienced.
Jack Conte, CEO of Patreon, recently shares a critical shift in the digital landscape that affects every creator who has ever clicked “upload.” The traditional follower construct is going away. Initially, platforms like YouTube revolutionized how we share and consume creative content, allowing anyone to share with a global audience instantly. This freedom birthed countless creative paths.
However, as algorithms dominate platforms such as Facebook and TikTok, we’re at a crossroads of what is healthy and what is toxic. These algorithms, designed to prioritize platform engagement over creator-community relationships, severely limit creators’ ability to connect. The impact? A stifling of creative freedom and a significant challenge to livelihoods that depend on genuine connections with a community. Not at all social; just one-way broadcasting and advertising principles.
But beyond followers, Jack Conte believes that platforms like his Patreon promise a different approach: your wildest creative reality! On Patreon, creators directly engage with communities without interference from obscure algorithmic forces.
Similarly, Tyler Haney, the founder of Outdoor Voices, with Try Your Best, TYB is focusing on enhancing the connection between creators and communities. Much like other platforms that prioritize direct engagement over algorithmic formulas.
Beyond followers, there is a future where creativity is not just a pursuit but a partnership between creator and community. When we no longer buy into the construct of followers, new models based on trust and genuine connection emerge. Ironically, they have always been here; we just forgot. Every creator can then connect authentically based on a value exchange rather than an algorithm.
Trekking into the unknown, we experiment beyond followers and likes. We usher in a future of creativity by letting go and sharing our wildest creations with care and respect. We ask new questions that break any constrictive mold no longer serving us. Because trust, relationships and community are the currencies of our time. Who needs an audience when we create meaningful communities?