Avoiding Creator’s Block: How to Stay Creatively Fulfilled While Scaling Your Channel

Avoiding Creator’s Block: How to Stay Creatively Fulfilled While Scaling Your Channel

Creator’s Block is rarely about being out of time and more about being out of energy. More specifically, the kind of energy that comes from making things you love. In an era where creators are constantly pushed to perform for the algorithm, the question becomes: how do you stay creatively fulfilled while scaling your channel?

In a wide-ranging conversation with Colin and Samir, Jack Conte, Patreon co-founder and longtime creator himself, shared insights that hit at the core of this dilemma. Drawing from his decades-long experience with Pomplamoose, Scary Pockets, and supporting thousands of creators, Conte helped surface a hard truth: "Over 80% of creators right now are talking about this feeling of burning out and where that comes from is this tension of feeling like I have to make for the algo as opposed to making for myself."

Let’s unpack how the best creators balance creative fulfillment and productivity in today’s algorithm-shaped ecosystem.

1. Separate Creativity from Strategy

During the conversation, Jack said it best: "There's two things that are distinctly different but have been misconstrued as the same thing which is strategy and creativity."

Too often, creators attempt to be strategic and creative in the same breath. They’re writing titles, thumbnails, and scripts while dreaming up big ideas. But conflating the two creates pressure. Professional creators know when to toggle between modes: ideate first without judgment, then strategically shape and refine.

A repeatable system helps. Jack called attention to the power of formats: "A format unlocks the world... It's consistency." Once Pomplamoose committed to a song-per-week format, it not only reduced decision fatigue, but also opened up new creative pathways.

2. View Taste as a Long-Term Strategy

Jack noted, "Taste is a long-term strategy. Choose what you like. You may get fewer people, but you filter for the people who love what you're doing more."

When you pursue work that aligns with your personal taste, you build a more loyal audience. Even if growth feels slow. Yes, algorithmic volatility will always exist. But as Jack phrased it, "The only way to last a decade is to keep wanting to swing." Get more at bats and enjoy the swings you take during your creative journey.

3. Build a System That Lets You Keep Swinging

The goal isn’t to win every video. It’s to stay in the game long enough for your hits to compound.

That means:

• A personal idea bank you revisit
• Constraints that help generate ideas instead of stifling them
• An editorial calendar that balances bangers with "just for fun" videos

In Conte's words: "When I look at our career, I look at it in the context of how long can I have my creativity be responsible for my bills and my employees?"

The key isn’t output alone. It’s endurance. And endurance requires infrastructure, and systems to help support you on your creative journey which is why we’re so excited to be building Spotter Studio to help creators like you have strong ideation systems in place where you can bring ideas to life that are creatively fulfilling to you that resonate with your audience, get more views and give you more income.

4. Create a Show, Not Just a Channel

Colin and Samir call this "the shift from channel to show." Jack agrees: "A good YouTube channel is a show... Formats are the key because session time matters."

This mindset shift not only creates consistency, but it allows your audience to develop trust. Viewers know what to expect. You know what to deliver. And you have a repeatable frame to innovate inside.

Just like network TV had programming schedules, creators who treat their channels like dependable shows earn long-term attention.

5. Embrace Discovery Without Losing Direction

Short-form is now the new top of the funnel. Jack explained: "If you want to just compare being a creative person now to 20 years ago... today is the best day in human history to be a creative person."

Shorts and Reels are powerful tools for exposure. But they’re not the business. As Jack warns, "If you’re at the top layer of the internet, you’re more subject to the whims of the platform."

Discovery gets them in the door. Long-form builds the house. Use short-form to test tone and ideas quickly. Then transition to longer formats where fandom grows and deeper creative satisfaction lives.

6. Understand Your Creator Profile

From working with thousands of Patreon users, Jack surfaced three creator archetypes:

• The craft-first artist: wants nothing to do with business, just wants to make
• The outcome-driven operator: sees metrics and moves accordingly
• The hybrid: balances love of making with a love of building

Knowing who you are helps define your limits, build systems that support your energy, and avoid comparing yourself to creators on a different spectrum.

7. Optimize for Memorable, Not Just Clickable

"If they don’t click, they don’t watch," says Colin. But as Jack reminds us: "There’s a real danger to focusing on number one without putting number two in: respect their time."

You can game your way into clicks, but can you build memory? Do people come back? Will they share your work because it moved them, not just because it tricked them?

In a creator landscape that increasingly favors "forgettable views," making memorable content isn’t just noble, it's strategic.

Final Note: Creative Fulfillment Is Your Best Growth Hack

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"Every video is a swing. Some swings hit and some swings don’t. But the 10-year portfolio of my swings… does that compound into something I'm proud of?"

That question from Jack Conte is a powerful frame. Platforms will change. Formats will evolve. Platforms  will shift. But the long-term value of your work, to you and your audience, comes down to this:

Can you keep swinging?

With the right systems, formats, and focus on creative fulfillment, you can.

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