“It is incredibly hard”, I told P. “Sometimes I simply want to stop writing.”
“Yes, it is incredibly hard being a creator, trying to put content out there every week”, she said. “I would know, I have been doing this for years now”.
Being a content creator, at the mercy of likes and subscriptions, shares and comments, ever-changing third party algorithms defining and redefining what success looks like with every passing day, is tougher than it looks, takes a toll larger than is apparent.
Today I bring to you an interview with a multi-faceted content creator who has been in this for longer and deeper than me. Let’s hear in her own words what Paromita Deb Areng (P / Paro) has to say.
Paro - tell us about yourself. Who are you? What have you done in the past? What are you upto now.
This is the most difficult question I have encountered all my life.
Am I a small town girl from Meghalaya raised in a mixed culture household with equal agency as my brothers (a rarity in my country)? Am I a management graduate from a premium institute with a decade and a half of experience in people management? Am I someone with varied hobbies and interests and indulgences?
I tried calling myself a jack of all trades but many see it as being master of none. After much thought and some imposter syndrome, I feel most comfortable saying…
I create.
I create art to express my deepest feelings. I create content to educate people on skin care and makeup. I create write-ups to build communities and generate awareness about the world at large.
I am a creator.
You are a creator. Now, thats really interesting. What made you walk down this path deviating from the successful corporate career that you had?
I feel joy when I create.
Even though I have had a successful corporate career, there came a time in the past two years when I realised I lack joy at work and it was time to listen to my inner self.
Letting go of a stable pay check is a scary feeling but what’s scarier is not being true to myself. This isn’t the first time I thought of following my heart (cheesy!) but this time the voice was stronger, more forceful, making me re-evaluate my priorities.
So here I am, fortunate enough to be able to sustain for some time without a monthly salary, experiencing the roller coaster ride of being a gig worker.
What have been some of your best moments as a creator?
I was an online creator before “content creation” became fashionable. I discovered the peace I got from blogging and pouring my heart many many years back, even though there were fleeting moments when I wondered, “Who would want to read about someone else’s story?”
But apparently, they do. I made friends with complete strangers, both from blogging and my time on Twitter. And that gave me a large social circle that got augmented by my tryst with photography when I founded a photographers’ club along with like minded folks.
However, I am an accidental artist. I wasn’t really good at art as a child but I really did not want to disappoint my mother, so I worked consciously towards improving my art. And then life happened and my fingers didn’t encounter a brush for decades.
It was only during the pandemic the I rediscovered the canvas. It’s been a fulfilling 4 years of rediscovering various forms of art – acrylic pour, watercolours, impasto. Makeup is an extension of this love, for it is the beauty of colours, only on a different canvas.
When I build something from scratch, it makes me feel like I can fix anything in my life.
Have you ever felt the energy ebb / low down as you create content almost every day? Why?
Have you ever seen a hamster on a wheel? That is what the life of a creator is today. We are running to catch up with algorithms.
Take Instagram for example. Unless we feed the algorithm content every day we will not see much traction. That actually gives rise to mediocrity as creators are not keen on / able to perfect content every day of the month.
Sometimes our best work doesn’t get adequate “ views” and likes while ‘15-second reels’ with nothing to show get much more traction.
It’s difficult, when you don’t see ROI on your efforts & time and it often impacts mental health, making us question our own self-worth.
How do you manage it and move on?
I try not to create Instagram content every day. I plan my content on a weekly basis as I need to also catch onto trending topics / music etc. I shoot Instagram / Youtube content 1 or 2 days a week and post that throughout the week. I take breaks in between to recharge and read and research.
I paint once a week at least, or crochet sometimes, when I want to bring mindfulness into my routine.
Have you faced any issues as a female creator online? How do you deal with it?
As a female wedding photographer, I used to get unsolicited calls from sleazy men but then a block or threat to complain helped resolve the issue. On Instagram I often get “fraandship” messages. I block and report most of the time and sometimes have my husband pick up my calls. I have been much luckier with hate / fat shaming messages too but then those messages jump exponentially with a much larger base of followers.
What are your top three advices for people who might want to walk down this path?
Don’t wait to find your niche – start with creating what takes your fancy each day. With regular practice you will find your calling and even if you don’t, you are doing good so long as it brings you joy. However, monetising online presence does require one to specialise / find a niche, and is a long game of patience and consistency.
Create a content calendar and allocate time for research and creation. I created a fulfilling photography career while working 6 days a week with the right time management.
Protect your mental health and keep your therapist close 😊
You can check Paro’s work here.
If you are a content creator and have stories to share, do post in the comments or respond to the newsletter on email. Waiting to hear from you all!