Mental Health Streaming.
2024 was a bit of a burnout year for me. Def felt like my content wasn't bad, but wasn't great, and a lot of that felt like it stemmed from being in a not great place mentally in regards to my job. Wanted to share a few tips with others on what absolutely helped me work through some of the burn out, without completely abandoning the job.
1. Find another hobby that gets you out of the house or away from the internet. I'm a big sports guy, and for a long long time my out was watching Basketball in the Summer during the playoffs. 2 years ago, my team got eliminated immediately. I had put all my eggs into following this team. It was super clear to me that I needed to find some other hobbies where I could meet with people and get away from anything related to streaming. For me, that hobby was Poker. Sitting around a table with random strangers and meeting people of all shapes and sizes was extremely beneficial to me. I occasionally talked about my job, but for the most part I disconnected from the internet and used it as a way to get to know people and keep my brain from thinking about streaming and what I needed from that. Whether it's working out, joining a book club, playing a sport, or joining a group of people who like to hike, meeting people that aren't connected to anything stream related is a huge huge positive in helping you show up to stream fresh and ready to do your thing. I realize this can be a challenge for a lot of people, but it's one I truly believe is worth pursuing in this industry.
2. Commit to at least ONE day off and actually take the day off. I recently started taking TWO days off streaming so that I at least still have a day where I can work on some projects of stream. I only just started it and I can see the difference in the work week for me when it comes to the hours that I show up on stream. As much as I love streaming, there's a light at the end of the tunnel on weeks where I'm putting in a lot of time. There's a checkpoint that I know I can get to to recharge my mental battery to be in a place it needs to be to deal with streaming consistently every day. We trick our minds into thinking off days are bad in that people will disappear. The reality is, as long as you consistently show up when you say you will, your viewers will be there. It also creates a healthy separation and gives time for people to get excited for your content to be back. It also creates time for you to actually be available for friendships, relationships, hobbies. These things are important just in general, but having these things be healthy with your job are beyond important.
3. Create a schedule and stick to it. I've always seen my best growth on the platform when I'm live at the time I say I'm going to be live at. Cutting short is fine, but being there consistently helps with my own mental health and routine. I can't speak for everyone, but routine has helped me so much when it comes to how I show up on stream. It affects my sleep schedule in a positive way, I'm more on task with chores and errands I need to get done around my house and outside of it, and it creates a healthy boundary on when I'm going to be live for my audience. It's very easy to get locked into our jobs, but consistency isn't just about growth, it's about mental consistency as well.
4. Get social Media off your phone. I'm going to be honest, I really hate social media in general. The idea of always on, always reading is just super bad for the mental when it comes to this job. But you're suppose to be, in order to grow! Taking Twitter, Bluesky, Facebook, off your phone is one of the best things you can do. You DONT need to be always connected. You don't need to always be on. I always install Twitter when I'm about to go on a trip because I'm away from my PC. The moment I get home, it gets turned off. It'll help you out more than you know.
5. Organize some time to spend with other streamers outside of the job. I have a ton of friends who stream. And some of my favorite moments and best mental rechargers was going on a trip and just connecting with them on a personal level away from the camera. Sure we talked shop, and discussed things related to streaming, but we also did a ton of other things and connected with each other on a personal level. It's important to be able to talk with people who relate with the job. Just make sure you have some time to do it where there aren't cameras and it's not "networking" first.
6. And Finally, reward yourself for your accomplishments. We don't do this one enough. I think it's really easy to get in the mindset of accomplishing something and immediately going onto the next project. Take the time to celebrate the wins, big and small. Give yourself some time to actually be happy for things you've done. This job can be stressful, but it's suppose to be fun. And if you're not taking enough time to celebrate the fun, the burnout will hit stronger and stronger each time. It's a marathon not a sprint in this industry!
I made it a goal of mine to have 2025 be the best year of streaming for me mentally. That doesn't mean im going crush it as a streamer in every metric, it just means I'm going to have more fun and be in a better mental place than I have in the past few years. I hope this little post encourages a few others to pursue the same!