Instead of enjoying 20 percent of the work and not enjoying 80 percent of the work, change the workload so that you enjoy at least 80 percent. This might require you to outsource part of the work. Use the 80/20 rule to outsource the work you don’t enjoy.
For example, if you just want to hit the record button, you could hire someone to edit the video, create thumbnails, write the descriptions, handle the monetization strategy, etc.
Streamline Your Process
A workflow that’s hard to follow can also cause burnout. It’s hard to make yourself do steps you don’t enjoy. You should make sure those steps are needed. You should also look for better ways to do those steps.
Monetize Wisely
Monetization is one of those high-stress points for any platform, and this is just as true for YouTube. The more stress there is around your monetization strategy the easier it is to get burned out. Reduce that stress by monetizing wisely.
Focus on the best monetization options, such as sponsors and Patreon. These options are not perfect, but they’re often better than Google ads.
Patreon allows your audience to support you on a monthly subscription -style basis. There is no limit to the number of Patreon supporters you can have for your YouTube channel. However, supporters tend to stop supporting you after a while.
Sponsors usually want 10,000 views per video, which can be difficult to obtain. If you’re focused on getting views, then you’re putting yourself in the position to get burned out if it takes months or years to reach those views.
Don’t use Google ads as your primary or only source of income. You can work for many hours creating content only to be paid less than $10 from Google ads. You would need several hundred thousand views per week to make good money with Google ads.
Don’t think of YouTube as a way to get rich quickly. It can take years to make good money and many content creators burn out before that happens. It’s best to have another reliable source of income. You’re less likely to burn out if you don’t have to rely on the income from your channel while you’re trying to grow your channel.
Take Your Time
Don’t try to build your channel too fast. It’s easy to get burned out if you’re only focused on fast growth. It takes time to build an audience and it’s best to be realistic about the time it will take and plan to take that time. Slow and steady is better than fast and burned out.
Don’t Follow Trends for Views
It’s easy to get caught up in creating the same trendy videos that others create just to get views. Trends can lack substance and make everyone look the same. It’s best to create the types of videos you want to watch and be yourself instead of trying to be like everyone else.
Clickbait titles and thumbnails are good examples. Once viewers realize your titles are just clickbait, they’ll stop clicking and you’ll lose subscribers. Constantly having to trick your audience into viewing your content creates anxiety, stress, and burnout.
Don’t Get Caught Up in Comparisons
It’s always tempting to compare ourselves with others. It can seem as though we’ve spent a lot of time and effort growing our channels, but we can’t get the traffic and recognition that others are getting.
Comparing yourself to others is neither helpful nor healthy. We all have different goals and it’s not helpful to compare the results when we don’t include the goals.
For example, you might work four days per week and have extra time for you or your family. Others might work six days per week and never get to see their families.
We also might not be aware of the struggles and work they’ve put into their channels. They may have worked for years developing the skill set needed to produce high-quality content.