My journey from Designer to Creator
Arunav Dwivedi • March 21, 2022 • 5 mins read
In October 2019, I posted my first video on YouTube. The aim was to create content for the design aspirants in the country. Created a telegram group for my audience to interact with. Frankly, I had no idea how to start, so just kept on experimenting. At that time, I was working as a film editor (which was going well ☺️). So, content creation was a side hustle project.
On July 1st, 2020 with the help of my two friends (Shashank: manages day-to-day operations at Kaphal and Arun: for creating curriculum), I launched my first online course Connect to Design.
Now, as of Jan 2022 (16 months later), we are able to generate revenue of over 60 lakhs ($66K). And, we did this working part-time on it. Arun still works as a game designer in a firm. While I have decided to give full-time to my new career (editing is my side hustle now).
I firmly believe that achieving this (i.e. making money online while working/learning full-time as a designer) is not rocket science. The process is out there in the open!
Your career is your business
It took me some time to realize that there is a difference between a designer and a creator. A designer has a limited role in the larger context of a product. But, the creator is involved in more than the design process. People with a creator mindset, understand that they are themselves responsible for every success, as well as every failure.
Thus, you become a creator in a true sense when you take responsibility for your career. I learned that my career is not attached to the degrees or certificates I hold. But, it is definitely attached to the brand I create for myself.
And, I can think of creating a brand for myself only when I treat my career as a business or a venture to run.
Now, creating a brand does not mean just deciding the font and color for your website. It is about building your niche audience and a community.
So, here is the process of building your career brand and using it eventually to convert your side hustle into an income-generating business:
- Build your niche community in the digital space (i.e. Post content on YouTube, Instagram, Substack, Medium, Telegram, or Twitter)
- Create value for your community (Invest time to interact with your audience)
- Launch your product (online course, any other service, or even apply for a job)
- Keep repeating steps 1 & 2.
But sadly, as with all things, getting started and maintaining quality + consistency is easier said than done.
Challenges in the journey
- You don't know where to start
- It feels daunting to create quality content regularly. You won’t see much growth, or money, in the early stages.
- You don't know what problem you are trying to solve for your audience
- You get distracted by all the different formats, tools, and platforms out there
- You won't be able to manage time with a full-time job or college
This is hard. It takes a lot of work.
But, it can be rewarding and life-changing if you can make it work.
Think of building community as designing a product. I am sure you have done this many times while writing your UX or UI case studies.
I have been able to design a community for Kaphal Studio and generated substantial revenue working part-time on it. And, I can help you design yours.
Designer to Creator Program
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About Kaphal Studio
Kaphal Studio is a modern, internet university for creators that brings community and learning together. We aim to prepare designers for the startup economy. We offer a new approach to online education through synchronous cohorts with an emphasis on peer-to-peer learning.