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YouTube Creators Hub
The Power of Community in YouTube Growth: Sandra’s Creator Story
00:39:10
In this episode of the YouTube Creators Hub podcast, host Dusty Porter interviews Sandra Di, known as Sandra Dee on YouTube. Sandra shares her journey from being a full-time engineer to a successful content creator, discussing the challenges she...
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- [00:00]
Sandra D
The first thing that comes to mind is I was incredibly uncomfortable on camera. We talk about that a lot where it's just we don't like the way we look, we don't like the way we sound. But something happens when you press record and you just freeze up. And I had that happen the first multiple times. And sometimes I would get so frustrated with myself, I would just turn off the camera and I would just give up.
- [00:23]
Dusty Porter
Hello and welcome to this week's episode of the YouTube Creators Hub podcast. Dusty Porter, the host of the show here, where each and every week we interview, view and break down a content creator and we talk with them about their journey, we ask them how they started, how they've grown, their channel, how they're monetizing, and a whole bunch of other stuff. So if you're looking for a basic deconstruction of what it takes to be a creator, you're in the right place. Subscribe to the show. It's absolutely free. We have no sponsor, there is no sponsorship, there is no script that I'm going to read here. You can connect with me and hire me to be your YouTube coach. I have a YouTube coaching business where I have worked with over 250 creators up to this point and have helped them gain tens of millions of views, grow their channels, quit their jobs. So if you're looking for someone to walk alongside you on this journey, definitely reach out to me. A cheaper option would be our Creator Communities group. It's our Discord server. Five bucks a month get you in the door, you get access to the server and all the folks that are in there, as well as our monthly mastermind calls that I host on Zoom, as well as a new edition which is going to be an audio episode about an 8 to 10 minute exclusive audio episode on the Patreon feed where I break down a YouTube topic, a creator topic, even an entrepreneur topic, where I discuss something that can help you take your channel or your business to the next level. So it's just more content. So if you get access to that $5 tier, you're good to go. You get everything. You get the audio exclusive episode, you get the Creator Communities group, and you get everything that comes with that. Thank you all for listening to this show. It really does mean a lot to me. This show continues to grow. It's growing on our YouTube channel, it's growing on the audio side of things. Wherever you want to subscribe, it's helpful. But if you really want to help, you can leave us a review. Whether it's On Apple Podcasts, Spotify, Google Podcast, wherever and however you listen, it's free every Friday morning in your feed. Don't forget to check it out. Don't forget to subscribe to our email newsletter. It's called the Entrepreneur's Minute. Got a lot of fun exclusive stuff coming down that feed as well. I post that every Friday morning, so definitely go check that out if you're an entrepreneur trying to grow your business. Now let's jump into this week's conversation. Hello and welcome to the Conversation section of this week's episode. I am joined today by Sandra. Now Sandra, your last name is short, but I'm afraid I might mispronounce it. Can you tell me your full name?
- [02:46]
Sandra D
It's Sandra Dimitrilius, but I go by Sandra D on YouTube.
- [02:50]
Dusty Porter
Yeah, Sandra D. So it is Sandra D D I over on YouTube. If you're looking for her YouTube channel, let me just give you a brief kind of synopsis about Sandra and what she's done on YouTube. So she started her YouTube channel in 2020, which a lot of folks did, sharing graphic design tutorials and tips on how to sell digital products. She was working as a full time engineer so it was more of a side hustle. In just over a year. This stat is amazing. She reached a hundred thousand subscribers and had her first brand deal within 365 days. In just under two years, her YouTube channel was generating more income than her full time job. She quit her full time job in January of this year 2025 to officially pursue content creation full time. So congratulations on that Sandra and thank you so much for joining the show today.
- [03:39]
Sandra D
Thank you so much. I am so excited to be here.
- [03:42]
Dusty Porter
All right, so let's talk about the just the origin story of the channel. What inspired you to start the YouTube channel and how did you decide on the niche or the space that you were going to be in once you did start?
- [03:54]
Sandra D
Yeah, I started in October of 2020. So that was during the pandemic and we were working from home. I had a bit extra time during that year. I had started an Etsy shop and I was dabbling into multiple side hustles and it's because I just, I've never been fully passionate about what I do about my full time job. It's just been a stable job, comfortable, a means to an end and I had always been interested in graphic design because I also studied that and I was a freelance graphic designer. So I was trying to generate extra income to supplement my full time income but also have that creative outlet. What I was finding though is I was burning out very quickly. I was getting multiple clients just using Instagram, which was great, but I just, I couldn't handle the amount of clients I was getting. And I knew I couldn't scale that business. And so I stumbled upon Etsy and I started to upload my artwork on there. And then I started making passive income. That was the first time I ever experienced passive income. And I remember I was watching Etsy videos and I started going down a rabbit hole of just making passive income. And I started coming across many creators talking about making passive income on YouTube. So I wish there was a more beautiful story where I could say I wanted to start a whole business on YouTube. And I was just very inspired by many creators and things like that. But the truth was I was looking for passive income streams and I was like, you know what, let me jump onto YouTube and talk about my freelance graphic design experience and maybe I could start generating AdSense, because if I can figure out ways to generate passive income, I won't burn out from my side hustle. And then maybe, just maybe one day I could leave my job and do this full time. So that was what inspired me back in 2020 to start the channel. And that's how I came up with the niche.
- [05:47]
Dusty Porter
So I'll be honest with you, the way that I discovered your channel is a bit different than how I discover a lot of the channels that I have here on the podcast. Most of the time I have a big list of 150 to 200 niches or topics that I want to look for the channels that are the top of market for those topics on YouTube. And I have someone who basically does a lot of the reaching out for me. They'll provide me with email addresses and I'll send personal emails to the people as I did you. But for you, my wife is a third grade teacher, as those people who listen regularly know. And she and I both sell stuff on teachers, pay teachers, which is another digital marketplace for teachers. And one of your videos came up when her and I one night were looking at how to do something or how to process something, and one of your videos came up and I, whenever I'm watching YouTube, she, my wife gives me a hard time. She says, you're never really watching the videos for the videos you're watching to see for which people you want to bring on the podcast. And she's right. A lot of times I do that. And we got done watching your video and I said, this is fabulous. I'm going to absolutely Make a note that I want to email. Email you. And I did. And here you are on the show. So I want to ask you this. What were some of the biggest challenges early on as you were growing and the channel was scaling out and how did you handle those?
- [07:04]
Sandra D
Oh man, there's so many. The first thing that comes to mind is I was incredibly uncomfortable on camera. We talk about that a lot where it's just we don't like the way we look, we don't like the way we sound. But there something happens when you press record and you just freeze up. And I had that happen the first multiple times. And sometimes I would get so frustrated with myself, I would just turn off the camera and I would just give up. And then the other thing too is I am awful with tech, I'm awful with gear. And I remember I learned batch filming and I would try to film two or three videos at once. So I'm like, okay, this is the best way that I'm going to be able to stay consistent and work full time. So I started batch filming and I remember I didn't do any test recordings. So after I would finish maybe two or three videos, I would check back and the microphone wasn't on or there was like a weird clicking of the microphone and I would have to redo it and it would just set me back. So that was very frustrating in itself. And then I would just, I would have to step back, take a break, and then I would come back the next day and I would do those test recordings. So I just kind of. I had to learn the hard way. And there were times that I felt like I hit a plateau with my channel. I would have a few videos that would go really well. They'd get so many views and amazing comments. And then you start getting very excited and you feel like you have that momentum. And then I've had a couple of videos that did not perform well and then you feel like you've hit like a plateau and that you're channel is just not going anywhere anymore. And I would constantly have to remind myself that there's a reason why YouTube is such a powerful platform. It's a search engine. Even if my videos don't perform right now, it may pick up in a few months. And sometimes that did happen. So I would have to constantly remind myself that it doesn't have to hit it out of the park every single time. So that was difficult. But I also joined a lot of communities, Facebook groups of a lot of small YouTubers that were also struggling with the same issues and confiding in each other. And that really helped me continue and move forward.
- [09:14]
Dusty Porter
Yeah. One of the best things we've done here on the podcast is the past few years we've grown something that I call the Creator Communities Group. It's over on our Discord server. It's one of the ways that I monetize the podcast is five bucks to get in. You get access to that group. Can you speak on Just the benefit of rubbing shoulders or rubbing elbows with other creators and just being able to speak content creation with people who understand it. Because when you're out and about people oftentimes. Just last night we were eating supper with my wife and a couple of our best friends and both of them are teachers. My wife is a teacher. And it's almost like a different language for me when they're speaking about things. And I want to be a part of the conversation, but I can't really interject if I don't know much about what they're speaking on. And the same thing goes for content creation or any job that you may have. How important was it for you to be able to have these people to lean on early on? And even now as you're still growing.
- [10:08]
Sandra D
Honestly, without it, I don't know if my channel would be where it is today because it can be a very lonely process because when you're first starting out, like when I first started out, I don't know if I really knew anybody in either full time or part time content creation, let alone YouTubers. So I was very much alone. And I remember sharing what I wanted to do with my friends and family. And although I have a very supportive community, I think that I still got questions on what the purpose was. And I started having all these visions that I just, I couldn't really share with anyone. Although I do have once I have my husband and my immediate family that were always cheering me on, but they still were not on the exact same journey. So when I started joining Facebook groups, it just. You feel less alone. You can discuss with everybody what your doubts are and really hear from other people and how they've struggled and how they overcame it. And on top of that, it's always exciting to bounce ideas off each other and get feedback from each other. And instead of focusing on the emotion of a video not performing well, you're really. You understand that you have to focus on the data and you're constantly reminded of that. And that is so important. It truly kept me going. And even now I'm still part of Communities where sometimes I just jump in and I start looking through conversations about how what people are doing and it continues to motivate me and inspire me to keep going.
- [11:38]
Dusty Porter
Yeah, I couldn't agree more with everything that you just said. So I'll just say ditto and we'll move on. I want to talk a bit about growth strategy and audience and content and how you've grown the channel so quickly, because as I mentioned with the intro, you grew your channel to 100,000 subscribers within the first year. And people listening to this are thinking, oh, I've been on YouTube for four years and I still don't have 10,000 subscribers. Everyone has a different growth rate. A lot of it depends on the niche and space that you're in. Timing, luck goes into it. Oftentimes, what strategies helped you grow? Because a lot of clients that I have that hire me for YouTube coaching or content coaching, oftentimes they're asking the wrong questions. They're asking the question of I'm stuck at 82 subscribers and my videos get this amount of views and they plateau. What methods have you used and have you seen really move the needle for your channel?
- [12:27]
Sandra D
Yeah, in the beginning, when I first started, I was trying to focus on topics that were not as saturated. So I used a lot of tools. So I used tubebuddy. I used keywords everywhere, things like that, to figure out some topics that were getting a lot of monthly searches. But then I would try to narrow it down with my keywords. So I was very specific on what I was actually covering in every single topic. So I, at the time when I started, there were of course, people talking about Etsy and Pinterest and selling digital products. But I did find a niche that was very like there was a gap for sure, and that was specifically selling printables on Etsy, selling templates on Etsy and things like that. Now what's interesting is that's not how my channel started. I actually, like I mentioned, I started sharing graphic design tips and getting clients on social media. But I remember, I think it was like my eighth or ninth video that I started talking about selling digital products on Etsy. And that video started performing so much better than all of my other videos. And that's actually the video that eventually got me to my first 1,000 subscribers. So I took that as a signal and then I started creating more videos specifically on digital products to sell on Etsy, printables and printable tutorials and things like that. And that's what helped me grow much quicker. So I Had to really listen to my audience and pivot my niche. And I had to get really comfortable reading analytics because like, you hear about looking at which videos are getting the most views but getting even more specific. I would look at which videos have the most engagement and the most audience retention and what points are people rewinding and rewatching. Can I create videos on those specific topics and then those videos will perform well? So it was very much listening to my audience, reading the analytics, and making sure that I'm constantly answering people's questions in the comments.
- [14:31]
Dusty Porter
That's something that a lot of people don't think about. The method that you just mentioned of going in and doing a deep dive into a successful video and seeing the portions of that video where that heat map or that heat graph is higher than normal, right, where people are going, like you said, and you can notice that they're rewinding, they're watching it over, or it's the part of the video where the most people are still watching, whether they fast forwarded to get to it. And you're taking that subpart, that subsection of said video and you're just making a individual video about that even. And that's performing well. That's something that people can really learn from. What you just said is that learning that data is more than just views and subscribers and even watch time. Watch time is great, but looking at your demographics, knowing your target audience, and being able to get to where those people are.
- [15:16]
Sandra D
Yeah, no, absolutely. And what's great is you can also figure out what products to create for your audience too, just based on those analytics. One of my videos had a peak when I was talking about different sizes of wall art to sell on Etsy. And I ended up creating a video on that. And I created a free document which helped me grow my email list and that continues to grow my email list now, just based on that one analytics.
- [15:43]
Dusty Porter
We'll definitely talk about the email list here in a few minutes because it's something that I preach here a lot on the show you mentioned, that's one method in which you get ideas for videos. But what are other ways that you get ideas for videos? Like for you, the creator. This is oftentimes one of the stopping points for people is that they don't have a good method to create ideas to make the videos for their channel. So what methods do you use?
- [16:08]
Sandra D
Yeah, so I do, I like to call like internal research and external research. So the first thing I like to do is just look at my. I've already mentioned analytics but I like to look at the last 28 days and see which ones are the top performing videos. Then I will brainstorm some new ideas from there. Then I'll go onto YouTube and I'll actually just use the search bar and start typing in some keywords that might describe what I want to talk about. So if that's digital products or ebooks for example, I'll start typing in ebook tutorial and then see what YouTube is auto populating for me. And again I have keywords everywhere installed so I can see how many monthly searches there are for each keyword phrase. That's auto populating and then I will choose one that I find really interesting. So let's say it's maybe an ebook tutorial step by step using whatever it may be canva or kittl and then I will then look at the top performing videos that are ranking. So I'll look at other creators and see what topics they're covering and then sometimes I'll actually visit those channels and then I will browse through maybe their last three to five months of videos and see which ones are performing the best and then I'll just brainstorm topics based on that. Sometimes I will look at the most popular ones but sometimes you'll get like really old videos that won't be really helpful for you right now. So I like to look at more current. So Those are my two favorite ways. The YouTube search bar and then looking.
- [17:36]
Dusty Porter
At top ranking videos very similar to what I do. I love going to. I use some tools that allow me to I used to have a spreadsheet that I called peers or competitors or whatever and I would have everyone's link to their channels that did similar things to what I was doing. And I go to you don't want to go too far out. But like you said, three to six months of seeing you can use tools that show you like the outlier of what videos might be an outlier for their channel and you see which ones are performing and that's probably a good light bulb that can go off in your head of oh maybe I need to look into that. This is not copy paste by the way. This is just you getting an idea from the video they've done. It's already been proven out there and to be successful. And so it's a great way of doing it. And the whole thing of typing stuff in and letting YouTube autocorrect. I do the same thing for Google and YouTube and I wish there was a way to do it for obviously there's no history on ChatGPT or AI tools, but I wish there was a way with AI tools to see what are other people typing questions with those tools. Maybe down the line that'll be something that we get to what role does consistency play for you and your channel? Like, what's the cadence? I can look at your channel right now and have it pulled up. Looks like you're doing about one video per week or every other week, depending on kind of the season that you're in. How important is consistency and the cadence and how have you set yourself up for success in that regard?
- [18:53]
Sandra D
Yeah, consistency is very important. Unfortunately, when I was working full time, it was difficult to post a video every single week because of course life happens and I would do my best. I think it was maybe the first six months of my channel I would post a video once a week. At least I would do my best. But there were times where when I remember I launched a digital course and I was off YouTube for maybe three months and then I was panicking because I was like, oh my gosh, am I going to be punished now? Is YouTube not going to push my videos out? Have people forgotten about my channel? But I remember I came right back and I just basically picked up where I left off. So although consistency is very important for many reasons, for one, it's really important to practice. And also the more videos you can put out, the more data you can collect as well and learn from at the same time. I do believe in quality over quantity and that's why I feel that my channel has grown as it has, because I think now I have about 100 videos and I'm getting to 300,000 subscribers almost. And again, like, I've done my best, but I think that quality is definitely more important than quantity because these videos continue to rank and search over the years. As long as you've optimized your videos, you've got a pretty strong thumbnail and title and SEO optimized. It will continue to work for you. So now that I have quit my job, my goal is to be more consistent. But yeah, I highly recommend quality over quantity.
- [20:27]
Dusty Porter
Yeah, being able to find what works for you in your lifestyle and what season you're in your life. That's what I always tell creators. Did you just have a new baby? You're probably not going to be able to upload twice a week like you normally do. So there are times of your life when you'll have to pivot it and make some changes to your schedule. Consistency is important. I've Talked about it here a bunch, but as she just said, as Sandra just said, the quality of what you're producing needs to be the top of, hey, I want this to be better than the last video. Every video you upload, it needs to be just a bit better than the last one and just continue to get better. And you don't want your audience to expect one quality metric and then you upload four times the next week and they're just really crappy videos. You want them all to be what the audience is going to expect from you and what you expect from yourself. Now let's talk about monetization and how you make money. What are your main revenue streams from YouTube and can you give us maybe an estimation of what you might bring in from those on a monthly basis?
- [21:25]
Sandra D
Yeah, so I have a YouTube AdSense, sponsorships, affiliate marketing and digital product sales. So every month is very different. If I, if I talk about YouTube AdSense, it could go anywhere from $2,000 to $10,000. It could be lower than that. It could be higher. It just really depends on the season, how many views I'm getting, what the topics are that I'm covering, and then a few other factors. Affiliate marketing can be even better than that during certain months. Again, it depends on what I'm also promoting. But affiliate marketing is something I have been working on since I started my channel. I included affiliate links in my very first video before, of course, way before I even got monetized and that became a snowball effect. And then sponsorships, as I had mentioned, my very first sponsorship came one year after I had started my channel and that was a four figure offer. And that was the first time I was really, that was the first time I really, I was thinking, wow, YouTube can truly be a business. And yeah, I've, I've worked with multiple sponsorships before. I always recommend working with sponsors that you truly stand by and we've actually tested out their tools and software and now I've partnered with a few that I work with on a consistent basis. So a package with them where I have maybe six videos going out for the year and things like that.
- [22:50]
Dusty Porter
Can you talk briefly about how you approach sponsorships and brand deals? Maybe everything from how you reach out, what kind of communication, the types of deals and the rates that you've with your numbers just for letting the listeners know what they need to be asking, what questions do they need to be asking, do they need to be reaching out in different locations like should they be going to LinkedIn or should they. Because I tell this all the time. I get inundated with five to ten emails a day. Hey, I want you to sponsor this product or this. And most time it's just all spam. Now, there might be a couple of them. How do we know which ones to take consideration?
- [23:28]
Sandra D
Yeah, absolutely. So LinkedIn is a great place for the contact, 100%. So first, the first one that contacted me, they actually, they stumbled upon my channel. So quite a few sponsors that I have worked with came to me first because I leave my contact information on YouTube, but I have just gone to their website and I will just go to the contact page and I'll explain who I am and I will ask who I need to speak with. So I've done that with two sponsors now. And what I will do is I'll share my channel, I'll share what my channel is about. But I heavily focus on who my audience is because that's what they care about. If the audience that's following me is actually interested in what they have to offer. Right. Because they're thinking of their return on investment. So I will actually share very specific metrics and I will let them know that I've also worked with similar tools. Actually, a bonus would be that you've recommended their tool before and that you've had people ask questions about it. So there's actually an Etsy research tool.
- [24:32]
Dusty Porter
Oh, that's a good one.
- [24:33]
Sandra D
Yeah, yeah. So there's an Etsy research tool that I started using before I worked with them and I wanted to test it out and see if people were interested. And I showed how I used this tool to find profitable digital product ideas. And I had so many comments asking, which tool is this? How can I sign up? And I actually screenshot these questions and I sent these comments to this, this research tool, this company, and I let them know that my audience is very much interested and I would love to create a few videos for them and get people to sign up. And they were. I got a response within, I think two days and they were very much interested. And then I ended up signing up with them. I think I did three videos for them and they wanted to continue to work with me. So that's one. That's one bonus. Definitely start talking about the tools that you actually want to work with to show that audience interest. The other thing too is you have to understand what their goals are. So you want to understand, like what the campaign's goals are. Do they want to repurpose your content? Do they want brand awareness? Are they looking for more conversions because that can impact how much you charge. And then the other thing is try to offer packages where they might say, we will pay you this much, let's say $500 or $1,000 for 120 seconds of an integration into your YouTube video. If you want to expand this partnership and kind of even increase your income from sponsorships, you can offer more deliverables. So you can offer, oh, I can add in some YouTube short in there. I can add in an Instagram reel. If you have TikTok, you can offer TikTok usage rights and things like that will just increase the value. So that's something that I've also been doing. And then I will offer three videos in the package.
- [26:19]
Dusty Porter
So you prefer to do like multiple videos. That way you don't. A lot of times where people make a mistake is they say they guarantee, oh, you get 10,000 views or 25,000 views. What if that video doesn't reach that? But in your case you can just say, hey, I'm going to pitch you a set of three videos. You're going to get mentioned multiple times. Not to mention, you mentioned earlier in this interview that my content has a long tail, which is something I love to tell brands. For this podcast I have people that go back and listen to episode one, like still in 2025. And so the brands that are coming on to sponsor the show and the things that are being talked about will be heard for years in that case, maybe even a decade in the future. So that's a very big perk. Now as far as your rates go, you don't have to tell me exactly, but I love to go into the details here. What are your average rates for a channel that is of your size, which as the recording date right now you're just under 300, 300,000 subscribers. What are you charging these companies for the package of three videos?
- [27:18]
Sandra D
So for I think I'll take it back to focusing on one video because what I like to do is I will customize it based on their goals. So usually it will be a four figure investment. So I'll do video with. I also send out an email to my email list and I have an email list of over 20,000 subscribers and I'll give them the details of that. I will also post on Instagram, I'll give them usage rights for a few months. So that typically again is four figures. So I'll do maybe a thousand to two thousand somewhere in that range. And then every time that I increase it by one video, I'll Give them a deal. Right, so it's not going to be like 2,000 for two videos or sorry, it won't be like 3,000 for two videos. It could be maybe 2,000 to 2,500 for two videos. But that's just like a ballpark because it really does depend on again, what their goals are and if they want usage rights and if they want to repurpose my content because that also increases the value. And so I actually wanted to mention, the reason I also like to offer multiple videos is because I find that the conversion rate is much higher because the more people can hear about the same tool, the more they're gonna take action. Right. And sponsors know that. So I've had quite a few people or quite a few sponsors let me know that we prefer if you could do five videos for us because we have found with other creators we get a lot of, a lot more signups because some people are still hesitant the first time they hear about it, second time they might still be thinking about it. And then third time a lot of people start signing up. And then the last thing I'll say about that is it's also more authentic to work with the same sponsors on a consistent basis as opposed to constantly recommending different tools and confusing your audience. So I actually prefer to have long term sponsorships and that just. They feel more like authentic recommendations.
- [29:08]
Dusty Porter
Yeah, I call that the bag grabbing method, where as a creator you're just grabbing any bag that comes your way. TubeBuddy has been with me on this podcast for over 10 years now and it may not be with me in six months from now. I don't know what the future holds, but it has been with me for a while and being able to mention some of the same tools, I've mentioned some of the same tools here on the show forever and it really does add some authenticity to it. And some just, oh, they must really use that. That must be something they really utilize. So a couple of months ago, you decide to take the leap of going full time as a creator. January 2025. Great way to start the new year. I've been there. This was about eight, nine years ago for me. Now I was la. I went back to work at another job and then decided and talked to my then very new wife and I told her, I said, you know what, I think I can do this thing on my own. I think I want to start my. Not just I had my own business, but I want to just do my own business. That's it. And we had some very Late night conversations. We had some really deep, meaningful conversations of what will this look like? What does insurance look like? What do the things that we do now, what are some things that we may have to cut out for a little while? So for me, I wanted to reach a certain number before I felt comfortable because at the time, my first daughter was about to be born maybe six months down the line. And so I wanted to make sure my family was provided for. I would. I told my wife, I said, I'll be a Starbucks barista for all I care. I just want to make sure you guys are taken care of. But I do believe my business is sustainable. And at the time it was making more money than what, like you said, what I was making at my full time job. So what made you take the leap? And by the way, congratulations on that leap. But what were the thoughts and kind of processes that you went through to get to that decision?
- [30:50]
Sandra D
Yeah, that story was so relatable because I had the exact same conversation with my husband during the holidays and I think it was maybe three days before I actually quit my job. And we were sitting in the basement about to watch our show and I basically said, I think I'm going to quit my job. And it didn't come as a huge shock because I had been telling him for a while and he knew that was my goal eventually. He just didn't know it was that soon. But I had realized that we had our first baby. Actually I was on mat leave in, in 2024 and I had gone back to work in October and I didn't stay for very long, but my YouTube channel had already been earning more than my full time job for I think it was like over two years. And I had proven to myself that I could scale this business even further if I had more time. And before we had our son, the times I'd be working on my YouTube channel was in the evenings and weekends. And when we had our son, I had no time anymore. And I realized I was starting to burn out because I was trying to juggle my full time job, my YouTube channel and my family. And I just knew something had to give. I knew I had to either give up my job or I had to give up my YouTube channel because it just was not working. And then I realized I have so many ideas for my business. I want to launch a digital course, I want to serve my students, I want to be consistent on my channel. It's impossible to do all of this. So I basically told my husband I want to treat this as like a 12 month break from my job, which I never planned to go back, but I just in a way to ease into it, that I could always go back to my job. That was like for us to feel comfortable about it. But I had just realized it's just, it was so overdue. I had never been happy in my job and it was not bringing out the best in me and I couldn't show up the best way I possibly could for my business, for my family, for myself. And that's when I just, I realized I had to finally, I had to finally take the risk. And I'm so glad I did.
- [33:07]
Dusty Porter
Yeah, it was one of the scariest but best decisions that I ever made. And there's such a difference in going to a job where you know that when you go there that the consistency of income is going to be there. As long as you're employed, you're going to get a paycheck every other Friday or the last Friday of the month in the case of my wife who's a teacher. And then your mindset shifts to oh, in order for me to get paid, there has to be. Things happen. Which is why we talk so much here on the podcast about not passive income. Passive income is great. That's a term that people throw around all the time. We talk about creator centric income that you can make from the content you create, whether it be adsense revenue or like you said, affiliate sponsorship deals, working with brands. Long term, starting a podcast, doing live streaming. There's so many ways that you can do this and then that leads, leads to growing an email list and getting your website out there and offering a service or a digital product. So there's a number of ways to monetize as a creator and you and I have talked about many of them here today. Now you mentioned a little bit there what your goals were and normally one of the final questions I ask is what are your goals? What are your short and long term mindset for the channel? What are you looking to do? I know you mentioned a course. What else do you have going on?
- [34:27]
Sandra D
Yeah, my digital course is going to be my main focus this year as well as my channel. Now the difficulty is when you know, when you grow on YouTube for a very specific niche, it is a little bit hard to bring in different topics that your audience might not be interested in. I had to learn the hard way because I was trying to share different topics specifically about growing on YouTube, email marketing and digital marketing specifically. What I may do is actually start a second channel talking about Business in general. But my main focus, this will be my digital course and continuing to work with my favorite brands, which I've already signed up with for this year, which I'm very excited. There's a few that I've been wanting to work with for a very long time. I'll be working with them and I want to continue to just grow my community and help them build their own businesses because I've never been more motivated to help other people leave their jobs that they're not happy about. And I get these comments all the time about people that have been working years for a company that they're not passionate about, they're not happy with, and they, they want to turn their side hustle into a full time income. And that's my goal now. I want to help people reach to where I finally have reached this year and hopefully help them through all the trial and error that I've been through, teach them through my mistakes, and hopefully help them get there quicker.
- [35:50]
Dusty Porter
That is awesome. And now just in closing, couple of just fun questions as we, as we're on our way out. What's the most fun or interesting or funny comment that you've received on one of your videos?
- [36:04]
Sandra D
I can't focus on what you're saying because you're wearing too much makeup.
- [36:08]
Dusty Porter
Classic. Classic. Yeah. One of my favorites that I've ever gotten was if this guy wanted to help me. I don't want to misquote what he said because it was so funny, but it was along the lines of I do technology tutorials. And the guy said if he was trying to help me accomplish what I came to this video for, he did the exact opposite is basically what he was saying. And the video did show what he was. He just ran into a problem. And people, they get mad when they can't figure something out. I love that one though. That's fantastic. I assume as a female creator, you guys are subjected to so many more crude comments than what we are as male creators.
- [36:44]
Sandra D
Yeah. And it can get hard sometimes, but honestly, after a while you just, I don't know, I ignore them now. I used to get very upset about it. I used to think about it for a while. I used to talk to my husband about it and I would vent about it to my friends. And now I just, I honestly don't have time. I just don't have time to look through these comments and act like I just, I gotta move on. I gotta, I've got too much to do. But yeah, sometimes they can get hard. You get a Lot of other great comments that I just recommend focusing on those. It's really easy to focus on the one bad comment, but there's a lot of great people out there that appreciate our work.
- [37:19]
Dusty Porter
Yeah. And then lastly, my final fun question is if you had to start a completely different YouTube channel in a different niche, couldn't be business, couldn't be selling digital products in the space that you're in, what would that channel be?
- [37:33]
Sandra D
Book reviews. I love to read, so I would love to start a book club and talk about what I'm reading. That would be an absolute dream.
- [37:42]
Dusty Porter
Yeah, for me, it's productivity. I'm such a nerd about productivity and software and things. I guess that's similar to what I do. But I love productivity and learning, like the different knobs that people can turn. So, you know what, Sandra, you've been an amazing guest. And if you want to check out Sandra's YouTube channel, it is Sandra D. On YouTube. Sandra Di to go and see what she has going on. I'll have all of her links down below. And I also believe that she had a free YouTube channel, like a setup training that she offers. I will also link that in the show notes as well. So, Sandra, thank you so much for being our guest today.
- [38:15]
Sandra D
Thank you so much for having me. It was a lot of fun.
- [38:18]
Dusty Porter
And that's a wrap on this week's episode of the YouTube Creators Hub podcast. If you've liked what you've just listened to or watched, subscribe with. However you consume your podcast, don't forget quickly. You can hire me to be your YouTube coach. You can join our Creator Communities group. All of those links will be down below as well, well as my weekly newsletter, the Entrepreneur's Minute. If you're a person who's looking to start a side hustle, start a YouTube channel, obviously a podcast. Anything to help take your personal brand or business to the next level. The Entrepreneur's Minute newsletter is where you need to be. It's free. There's no ads, there's nothing I'm trying to sell or to pitch you. It's just me every Friday talking about a topic or something that I'm learning within my business. Thank you again for consuming this podcast. Subscribe where you're listening and we'll see you guys next week.