Hello world.

In 2007, I excitedly published my first YouTube video after hours of practice. I taught myself how to set up, record and upload. I was finally making my debut online.

Over the next 7 days, I received a grand total of 24 views.

I felt frustrated, annoyed. Confused. I had thought that the quality of my playing would attract a lot more people.

I kept publishing. Weeks of silence.

The Void is gamer shorthand for grinding early levels with no rewards — for creators, it’s publishing when no one notices.

Eighteen years and 16 million views later, I’m back in the Void again. No one’s listening—yet.

Staying motivated is the only way through. Here’s what keeps me going.

Shifting Mindset

I accept that I’m new to writing. Like my old cardboard-box violin, these first posts are rough: dropped, frequently, then picked up again with a slightly better grasp. Each revision sharpens one part, revealing new issues I didn’t catch last time.

I’m not playing the lottery. Most people drop ticket after ticket down a hole, expecting a fortune to randomly spring back up. Um, that’s not how gravity works; it’s like expecting my box violin to just leap back into my hand — cardboard doesn’t bounce.

Here’s what I’m telling myself:

  • Expect to mess up a bunch. The value is in picking it back up, like a violin.
  • Don’t chase virality. It took me 18 years to hit 16 million views — a long-term investment.

Declaring Goals

My biggest challenge is perfectionism: iterating endlessly and never committing. That was past me; I’m older, wiser, and still screwing things up — just faster now.

Accepting roughness isn’t enough. I needed a system to keep going when motivation fades…

Read the full essay on Substack →

This essay continues with my specific goals for publishing cadence, overcoming perfectionism, and taking action despite fear. I publish the complete versions on Substack, where I document the journey of building creative work in public—from skill transfer to staying motivated through uncertainty.

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Originally published September 24, 2025