what the biggest creators understand that everyone else misses
and how they build long-term careers beyond brand deals
Last week I shared the things I’ve consistently noticed about the creators who build careers that last. They work incredibly hard. They invest in personality-led content (often within long-form). And they surround themselves with people who challenge them, support them and help them think bigger.
But there were a few things I couldn’t fit into one post. So here we are.
Because when I look at the creators who are still thriving five, ten, even fifteen years into their careers, there are a few more patterns that come up again and again. The biggest one - at some point, they stop thinking like creators and start thinking like business owners. The audience sees the content. They don’t see everything sitting underneath it. And that’s usually where the biggest difference is.
They build systems before they need them.
Let’s use a podcast as an example. Most people focus on the creative. The concept. The guests. The artwork. But behind every successful podcast are dozens of commercial decisions that nobody listening ever thinks about.
Who owns the IP?
Are you paying a producer a flat fee, or do they have skin in the game?
Are you partnering with a network?
Should you keep ownership, or does it actually make sense to give some of it away in exchange for bigger distribution?
There isn’t one right answer.
If Spotify came to you with a huge exclusive deal, a massive marketing campaign and billboards across the country, maybe giving up some ownership is completely worth it. But those are conversations you want to be having before you sign anything.
That’s where great management becomes so valuable.
Not because they’re negotiating an extra few hundred pounds on a campaign.
Because they’re helping you make decisions that could shape your career years from now.
They’re thinking about your long-term vision, not just what’s exciting this month.
They’re obsessed with protecting their time.
The other thing the biggest creators have is operations. Proper operations. Because your time is your scarcest resource. You can only be in one place at one time. The more successful you become, the more valuable those hours become too.
So the question slowly changes from “What can I do myself?” to “What should only I be doing?”
Maybe you love editing your own YouTube videos. I completely understand that.
But can someone else organise your inbox? Can someone schedule your content? Can someone handle gifting? Can someone make sure clips are uploaded while you’re filming the next episode? Eventually, the goal is that the business keeps moving even when you’re not sitting at your laptop.
That’s not about becoming less involved. It’s about building something sustainable. Because if everything relies on you, you haven’t really built a business. You’ve built yourself another job. And no creator can work seven days a week forever.
The strongest creators build brands, not just audiences.
One of the things people have said to me more than once is that when talent join TBH, their brand suddenly becomes much clearer. I love hearing that because it’s such a huge part of what we actually do.
Yes, we negotiate deals. But we also spend so much time talking about positioning.
What do you want to become known for? What makes sense together? What does the next five years actually look like?
The best creator brands feel connected.
Take Sophia and Cinzia. The Girls Bathroom makes sense. Their brand Rooms and their product lines makes sense. Each project strengthens the next because they’re all coming from the same place.
Or Mia McGrath who introduced the idea of “Frugal Chic” so early in her career that it became part of her identity.
It gave journalists something to write about. It gave audiences something memorable. Even now, it’s still one of the first things I associate with her. That’s what a strong brand does.
When people think of you, what do you want them to think?
Because that association becomes incredibly powerful over time.
You have to protect the person behind the creator.
The last thing I’d add is probably the hardest one. You need an unbelievably thick skin. I genuinely don’t think I’ve worked with a hugely successful creator who hasn’t been criticised online at some point.
Sometimes it’s completely unfair. Sometimes it’s cruel… and that’s the reality of building your career in public. And while I truuuuuuly truuuuuly wish it wasn’t, I also think it’s something we need to address about more openly.
The creators who last don’t pretend it doesn’t affect them. They build support around themselves. They have therapists. Good friends. Family. People who remind them who they are outside of the internet.
Because if your entire identity becomes wrapped up in audience opinion, you’re putting your self-worth in the hands of strangers. And that’s never going to end well.
The creators who build careers that last know the difference between feedback and identity. They know that their comments aren’t character references.
So if I had to add three more things to last week’s list, it would be these.
Build systems.
Build a brand.
Build resilience.
Because the creators who build careers that last aren’t just making content.
They’re building businesses.
And businesses need strong foundations.
Tbh... I could probably write a part three.
Let me know if you’d like one.
Verity x