Heard a silver shop content creator talk about this concept.
He basically says that the mass of humanity is pathetic, and to make them do something you have to just show them some lowest common denominator things like Mr. Beast will show a pile of cash, or Andrew Tate will show flashy cars or something like that.
Basically something that everybody wants, things that have the bar really low for them to garner appeal.
People want to listen to those who’ve made it because we have an instinct in us to look up to people, or maybe say, “Hey, I can be in that position,” or “Hey, I can emulate this guy.”
But what signals someone has made it?
It is the proof via common denominators that shows us that.
“Oh, it’s a business coach and he has a multimillion-dollar company?”
Ooga booga, he must be good. I must listen to him.
See, common denominators make people perceive a person as someone who has made it
And thus important enough to listen to their personal content where they’re talking about themselves instead of the audience’s concerns or interests.
Like Kylie Jenner is not talking about your stress or your goals.
She will be talking about her own lifestyle because she has made it.
Listening to her talk about her mansion is way more interesting than to see content with your own concerns.
It can be said that presence of common denominators in your content makes you worth listening to when it comes to personal things.
Because when you make it, you show the proof via common denominators.
But if you somehow scam your way to having those common denominators, then they also serve as proof that you made it, even though you have not.
That’s why we see a lot of those Miami penthouse renters trying to sell courses by faking it that they have made it.
People have an instinctive tendency to look up to those who display success markers, regardless of authenticity.
But why is making personal content so appealing?
Because value-based or humor-based content, they run dry sooner or later, plus it’s aspirational to just talk about your own self and get attention.
Value content requires research, insight, originality.
Humor requires creativity.
Personal content just requires… living your life while filming it.
But audience doesn’t dish out attention to personal type of content unless you have made it.
There are two types of content that do well: one is personal content of people who have made it
And content that talks about the audience, which is made by people who have not made it.
Content about Chasing and trying to make it is also OK, but it is less potent than either of those.
But once you have made it while chasing those goals, you can do that personal content.
Basically it’s about if you’ve made it or not, which determines the type of content you should make, and if that content will work or not.
Made it = permission to talk about yourself
Haven’t made it = must talk about the audience (productivity tips for xyz)
Chasing it = hybrid content (documenting the journey)
Basically, if you have not made it, you lack the aura to make personal content that is worth watching.
And by making it, I don’t mean that OK you have A $1,000,000 mansion or something.
It just means having a favorable position in hierarchy which others look up to.
It can be having more resources than them, having more connections than them, having more skill than them, having more materials that can be showed off.
But of course, the world is not this black and white, and there is one format that I can imagine right now that will do well even if you are making personal content when you have not made it.
And we have seen Youtube personalities like Pewdiepie, Markiplier or carryminati etc use this same thing.
Where you make personal content, but you have to deliver a payload of humor constantly.
Get to the joke as quickly as possible and it better be good.