“What is it that makes a great Youtuber?”
To be honest I don’t really give a crap. I love Youtube but that’s mainly just to fulfill my Dr. Pimple popper addiction.
I listened to a podcast today with Ali Abdaal (a very popular Youtuber) and it got me connecting some philosophical dots.
Ali kind of deflected this question. It was a very miniscule side comment that had no real effect on the nature of the remainder of the podcast. But it got me thinking about growth.
“What is it that makes a great Youtuber?”
“Hmm a part of me is reluctant to give an answer to this because I don’t consider myself a great Youtuber by any means…”
Ali has 1.4 Million subscribers on YouTube.
Ali teaches a wildly successful course…ON BEING A YOUTUBER.
Not to mention the YEARS of consistent quality that he’s produced.
WHAT the H E double hockey sticks does he mean?!?!?! If he’s not great than who/what is?
At first glance this can seem like a humble sidestep, but in the grand scheme of things…it logically makes a lot of sense.
If Ali had acknowledged his rightful crown as a “great Youtuber,” that would have made all of his growth and progression thus far a simple means to an end. Ali worked hard for years, learned a lot, and is now “a great Youtuber.”
The thing is, he’s not done making videos. If he pegged himself as a master Youtuber, what would he gain by making new videos? It might be nice for a few weeks…
“Hey guys, look at me, mastered my craft, might delete later….IDK.”
But that sense of fulfillment is waning.
This is very Socratic. The first step to learning more is to acknowledge that you first know very little.
Instead of pursuing new knowledge and growth as something to be achieved (mastery or a title), pursue it as something that will open your eyes to even more things that you don’t know. Use these experiences to then learn more and compound your growth.
Being a guru sounds nice, but what does it bring? Once achieved, where do you have to grow?
Ali (and guru’s all the same) can still use his talents to progress and better yet, help others progress. But it requires the right mindset to avoid the temptation to become stagnant.
Knowledge and truth are in the same boat.
If we pursue knowledge as an item to collect, we achieve what we pursue and then stop. We latch on to the first truth that we find logical and die on a hill defending our point. But if we seek knowledge as something that is ever growing and evolving (acknowledging that we actually know nothing/are not a great Youtuber), we move past those first few truths and find stronger and better beliefs to latch on to.
Ben Greenman 