Jonathan Kogan

April 8, 2022

The Creator Economy and The Future of Software Democratization

What is the Creator Economy?

The Creator Economy is the idea that anyone can make money from their passion.

At a time when digital transformation seems to be happening around us faster than ever, it’s easy to feel that everything is out of our control and that we’re just along for the ride. However, through the Creator Economy, we have a new opportunity where everyone has equal access to both earn an income and build the future they envision.

Anyone can become a creator — you don't need to be an engineer or designer. Using tools like Adalo, even if you don't know how to code, you can create products and services for yourself or for others.

How did the Creator Economy evolve?

The Creator Economy started with the internet. It was accelerated by social media and supercharged by technology and has been democratized by no-code and low-code software and blockchain technology. The cumulative innovation of these technologies has evolved into what I call the Ownership Economy.

A lot of this stuff is pretty new, so it can be hard to wrap our heads around it. Let's take a look at each component of this evolution with some examples from history to see how we got here.

Who are its biggest players?

  • Substack: a platform that allows writers to publish an email newsletter which their fans can subscribe to.

  • YouTube: a platform for hosting and sharing videos.

  • James Clear: a writer-turned-entrepreneur who turned himself into one of the leading names in self-improvement/habit forming by publishing on his own blog and then publishing books like Atomic Habits, which became The New York Times Best Seller.

  • Joe Rogan: a podcaster and former stand-up comedian whose show, The Joe Rogan Experience, has become the most popular podcast in the world. Rogan signed an exclusive deal with Spotify in 2020 to have his content hosted exclusively on their platform.

  • Casey Neistat: filmmaker and vlogger; widely considered the “father of vlogging”; created daily video blogs (or “vlogs”) as early as 2010, before YouTube had grown into what it is today; now making content exclusively for HBO Max.

How will the Creator Economy continue to change?

The Creator Economy is already the primary way people earn money in some fields. In the next five to ten years, it will become the primary way people earn income in many more fields. The creator economy will become a natural career path for people with all sorts of passions and skills. It will become a way for people to earn a good income, monetize their true passions, and focus on what they do best: creativity.

There are tens of thousands of careers that could be created in the next decade, and many more beyond that. Software democratization is making it possible to create anything you can imagine without having to code. As you build your career as a creator, you have access to an entire infrastructure that allows you to focus on what matters most: creation instead of mundane tasks like billing or accounting

What's next for the Creator Economy?

The Creator Economy is here to stay. But, the way we approach it today won’t be the same in the next few years.

  • A rise in creator marketplaces: Log into a marketplace and connect with a graphic designer to create a logo for your new business, or hire someone to write copy for your website. Only pay for what you need and get things done faster than ever before.

  • Greater adoption of creator tools: Most people don't want to learn how to code, so they can build websites using no-code platforms like Webflow, or design logos using Figma. With all the fun and powerful tools currently at our fingertips, we'll find more creative ways to solve problems without having to "go back" to school, or hire someone full time on our team (especially when operating on a shoe-string budget).

  • The rise of local communities: The traditional career path will be replaced with what I'm calling "creator journeys." People will follow their interests, build skills along the way by participating in workshops or doing online courses, and join local groups filled with creators who share their passions (like podcasters getting together for monthly meetups). This is already happening in cities around the world! For example, London-based Graphic Design Meetup has over 400 members who get together every month for socializing events like movie nights and art shows.

Creativity will become a financial asset in the coming years.

The Creator Economy is about more than just a few people earning money from the internet. Studies have been showing for years that our jobs are becoming increasingly creative in nature. Software democratization makes building a business easier, which means it won’t be long before we all work for ourselves. As more and more people start their own businesses, creativity will become more valued because it is the currency of entrepreneurship.

The Creator Economy combined with crypto creates ownership like we have never seen before.

NFTs are crypto-based and will revolutionize the concept of ownership. Many people involved in the blockchain industry believe that NFTs are the next frontier of ownership, as they will become more prevalent in the future. As a result, we will see some changes to the meaning of ownership and how NFT use cases explode in gaming and art. All these changes will enable equal access to opportunity for everyone regardless of where you were born.

In my opinion, this is the social purpose of decentralization.

How do I monetize my passion in the Ownership Economy?

Here are 3 ways to make money with your passion:

  1. Create a community around that passion.
  2. Create a product or service (real or digital) that benefits that community.
  3. Sell the product or service to your community and make sure they are happy in the process!

The next generation will be infused with creativity and this is why it's important

The next generation will be infused with creativity, and it's important that we continue to nurture this in children, because of the essential role it plays in their development.

There's a common misconception that one is born creative or not. This isn't true. Creativity is a skill that can be learned, taught, encouraged and developed, just like any other ability.

As with any skill, your child may need some extra help at times to bring out their inner creativity—that doesn't mean they're not creative! A golf coach doesn't mean you're bad at golf; it means you want to get better at it."

Creators and Bitcoin will change the world.

The Creator Economy will not only help you make money, but it will also help you find work. Many big companies are moving to the creator economy model - where talent solves problems, and the best talent wins. In the traditional world of work, raw creative talent often loses out to those with more connections and access to information.

In a free global marketplace with no barriers, creativity can be bought and sold directly between buyers and sellers, allowing companies to more efficiently find great people who can help them solve problems.

In the traditional world of work, raw creative talent often loses out to those with more connections and access to information. In a free global marketplace with no barriers, creativity can be bought and sold directly between buyers and sellers, allowing companies to more efficiently find great people who can help them solve problems.

About Jonathan Kogan

Host, The Jonathan Kogan Show. https://jsk.transistor.fm/subscribe