First Decade Completed!
Preamble
If you are reading this in the future, then I have to say that I am writing this while in the lock-down of the corona virus. I have been noticing something has been approaching and I must admit, with all the virus related content to worry about it completely passed me by. However, I thought I would write something about it today to share my achievement with you all!
I’ve been on Twitch for 10 years!
It hasn’t been around that long!
Before you immediately start to type something in the comments, I’m aware that Twitch has not been around for ten years. In 2014, Twitch’s parent company, Justin.tv, was renamed Twitch. This was mainly due to the increase in use of the Twitch platform and the decrease in the viewership of the company’s flagship platform Justin.tv. Initially, unless there is an error somewhere, I think I had a Justin.tv account and then it just transferred over to Twitch.
So have I been streaming for 10 years!
10 years of streaming?
I actually started streaming some years ago. Initially, inspired by Twit, I produced a live show linked to my professional work – education. This was never successful. People do not want to watch live shows over the weekend to do with their learning or work!
https://youtu.be/nLSLvaq5CVI
I’m not when I actually started to stream games on Twitch. On my Youtube channel there are definitely some World of Warcraft ones. Star Wars the old republic probably started my main streaming engagement. A lot has changed from that time, from software to hardware and I guess even I have changed.
But rather than just reminiscing about the past I wanted to look back and talk about what I have learnt and how this will hopefully prepare me for the future.
What have I learnt over 10 years
Perseverance is a requirement, not an option!
I sometimes get the feeling that people think if you turn your webcam on twice a week and play some games that you will instantly get partnership and be greeted with success.
Not only do you need to find your niche, you also have to find your online self. You need to accept who you are and how this is going to come across while streaming. I can safely say that I did not start out to be the streamer I am today. It has developed and believe me, I have ploughed through a lot of stress and hassles to get where I am today. And that is still nowhere near the top! Without my perseverance and fantastic support from community and family, I know I would definitely not be celebrating 10 years!
There are some fantastic people out there!
Everyone has had their share of trolls. Those people who want to make fun of you, who create what they consider funny names in an attempt to get you to say something stupid online, or just want to be nasty to people.
But beyond these people there are the great people! I know that I would never have met some of the most supportive and fantastic people if I did not stream. I really feel blessed that they take the time to chat to me, to watch my streams, to chat and just to take an interest. These people have certainly made the perseverance point easier to achieve!
https://youtu.be/DsOQuNrReVA
Back in 2008
Avoid the numbers!
People always say you should stream because you enjoy it. That is completely true but frequently we get caught up with the amount of data which is fed to us about our streams. Sproyler was the first streamer to tell me to remove the viewer count from my stream, and I still thank him for this advice. I would support his point completely! But recently, and it took me 10 years to acknowledge this, I have even stopped reading the stream reports that I sent to me by StreamElements. Yes, it wonderful to see growing numbers but some of my most enjoyable streams have been to just a few dedicated and supportive people. Partnership is a business model and is reserved for those who will, in the long run, make money for Twitch. Get your affiliate status and then just enjoy. The best piece of advice I can give and one which has probably only dawned on my after ten years!
Support and value your supporters!
As a nation, I think we complain a lot but we very rarely say thank you. If one thing goes once, we are tweeting like a mad person! But for each of those good days that a company provides for us, we say nothing. Well, I certainly felt that I didn’t. I wrote a blog post about this before, but I wanted to just present a synopsis here.
People will support you as much as they can. Remember this and thank everyone. Yes some people will subbed to you and some people will lurk in your chat. Everyone is doing what they can to support you. I am trying so hard to not be exclusive at the end of my streams. Often we are trying to be inclusive and that actually makes is exclusive. If we start saying thanks to people then we are bound to leave people out. So, just say thank you to your supporters – value them all as much as they value you.
https://youtu.be/Y-36J1Aqg8A
Outro
I’m not doing a 12 or 24 hours stream or even doing a giveaway in celebration for this first decade. Maybe when I reach my second one I will.
What I am going to do is continue to develop as a streamer and get better at it. I am trying to include more things for my fantastic community and just keep smiling and enjoying what I do.
And, I hope that you will continue to support me and be alongside me for the next 10 years! Let’s do this!