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What if social media isn’t actually social anymore—and what if that changes how creatives should use it?

In this monologue episode, I reflect on a growing realization I’ve been wrestling with for years: social media has quietly shifted from a space for sharing and connection into something much closer to corporate media. And many independent creatives have been doing a lot of unpaid work for big tech without fully realizing it.

I talk candidly about my own experience building audiences on Instagram, YouTube, and this podcast—and why the familiar promise of “just keep sharing and it will pay off” no longer feels like a fair trade. I unpack the gambling-like dynamics of algorithms, attention, and hope, and explain the one big mindset shift I’m making as I head into 2026.

This episode isn’t about quitting social media. It’s about rethinking our relationship to it, getting clearer about what we’re actually selling, and using these platforms more intentionally—as business tools, not creative homes.

🙏 A huge thank-you to all paid supporters on Patreon and on Spotify. Your support makes these thoughtful, independent episodes possible.

IN THIS EPISODE

Why social media now functions more like corporate media than a social space
How algorithms turned “sharing” into a gamble
Why the old promise of free publicity no longer works for most creatives
My own experience building large followings—and what I’ve actually gotten back
The shift from thinking like a content creator to thinking like a business owner
Why “look what I made” isn’t enough anymore
How clarifying your product and your customer changes everything
What this mindset shift means for creatives heading into 2026

LINKS

🎨 Inky.af — My class on creating expressive, inky illustrations using analogue techniques in Affinity (now free forever)

⁠http://tomfroese.com/teaching/inkyaf⁠

📗 Drawing Is Important — Book preorder available now

⁠http://geni.us/DrawingisImportant⁠

HOW TO SUPPORT

You can support Thoughts on Illustration by:

Sharing this episode with a friend
Leaving a comment
Leaving a rating or review on Apple Podcasts
Following the show / subscribing to this channel
Becoming a paid supporter here or on Patreon — ⁠https://patreon.com/tomfroese⁠

FIND ME ELSEWHERE

Website — ⁠https://www.tomfroese.com⁠
Instagram — ⁠https://www.instagram.com/mrtomfroese⁠
Daily Drawings — ⁠https://www.instagram.com/drawingisimportant⁠

CREDITS

Music and cues by Mark Allan Falk:

https://linktr.ee/semiathletic⁠