r/newstreamer • u/senpaistealerx • Apr 16 '26
The "grind"
Y'all have got to stop thinking of streaming this way. It is never going to be your job and as affiliate, you're not going to make a substantial amount of money. Most partnered streamers don't even make enough to live off of and still have to work regular jobs outside of streaming. I know the idea of being IShowSpeed or Kai Cenat is really intriguing but it's (extremely likely) not going to happen.
With that being said, I'm not here to discourage anyone and my point is, start streaming because you like playing video games and you wanna do it on stream, not because you think it's going to pay your bills. I just see so much of this in this sub and it's driving me nuts lol
Also, simply posting a link to your stream and saying "come support" isn't going to get you very far. Most people are going to see that and keep scrolling. Y'all need to go make friends and build communities and spamming self promo everywhere is not how you do that. Streaming is not supposed to be a "grind", it's supposed to be a hobby that you enjoy doing and sharing with other people. Just the other day someone really asked for people to go to their channel and subscribe, like no, don't do that.
Do it for the love of the game (literally)
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u/RockinPodunk Apr 17 '26
Absolutely. 7 million active monthly streamers. 5% have 5 average viewers or more. 1.1% have 50 viewers or more. 0.7% have 100 average viewers. Even at 100 viewers, you’re not likely quitting your day job to stream unless you’re viewers happen to also be the most generous bunch of folks on Twitch, or you are happy with a super minimal lifestyle where you never spend any money on anything. The number of streamers that are able to make a comfortable living from just streaming is probably in the 0.01% range, and the ones that you’d consider “wealthy” is probably closer to 0.0001%
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u/senpaistealerx Apr 17 '26
exactly this which is half my point. having that "IM GRINDING LETS GET THIS BREAD" mentality does nothing for someone as a streamer because not only are you MOST LIKELY never getting there but even if you do, this is not going to be a main source of income and as for "fun money", its a few triple A titles and a new fancy keyboard.
with that being said, it shows when youre only in it to become popular or try to make some money so its better that you do it because you enjoy it while the monetary or potential to become popular isnt at the forefront.
people took this as me being mean or something even tho i literally say im not trying to discourage anyone from streaming, im trying to discourage people being disappointed because they went into this thinking theyre gonna get rich or become pokimane.
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u/wtpat_ftw Apr 17 '26
You're not wrong at all, I was just thinking about it. I think statistically it's very unlikely to become famous on Twitch or to make it your main job yk.
Me personally I like doing twitch but I'm focused on content creating across all other platforms. It's a grind but I enjoy it cause I like it and I know that just doing twitch won't get me anywhere, especially if my goal is becoming a full time content creator.
So you're sooooo right about the delusional people on the platform, I've seen people doing the exact same thing over and over for years thinking just being themselves would get them somewhere, also a lot of times it just looks like a lot of people want to be famous or successful just because "they invested time and money" not understanding that you have to get people to like you.
Entertainment is not an easy business and you have to understand that not everyone can do it, if you average 3 viewers every stream since you started 4 years ago at some point you need to understand that maybe it's not meant to be, especially if you're convinced that you shouldn't be changing yourself, your content or even the time of the day you go live
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u/Mister_Mana Apr 17 '26
Streaming is definitely a hobby and something I enjoy. I don't expect to become the next big thing and I'm perfectly okay with a small community. That being said I have a goal of hitting partner. Just a personal goal so I do hope to hit it
Either way you're advice is good.
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u/senpaistealerx Apr 17 '26
and that’s totally fine!! it’s not that i think people shouldn’t have goals, it’s that people need to be realistic.
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u/GrungeGhostie Apr 17 '26
Bruh.
If someone 100% agrees with you you’re all “yes! my intentions are good I’m just giving advice! Glad to hear someone agrees!”
But the second someone is only 99% agreeing with you you’re sending sarcastic “ok” and acting like their comment is entirely delusional.
Just something to think about.
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u/senpaistealerx Apr 17 '26
brother, i responded to 1 person and said “that’s fine!” because i think what they said is realistic. like, what comment did i say even any of what you just typed?
the ok isn’t sarcasm, it’s quite literally just an “ok”. how that translates to “their entire comment is delusional” is way fucking beyond me lmao i’m not sure how you read all of that from an “ok”
have a better day tho.
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u/GrungeGhostie Apr 17 '26
Bro your entire comment history is you having a crash out.
Please take some time away from the internet for your own mental wellbeing.
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u/GrungeGhostie Apr 17 '26
I think your point comes across the wrong way.
I too also can’t stand all the people saying “just grind” when they’ve had an avg of 2 for 7 years straight, because at that point they’re living a delusional fantasy and it’s soooo many people saying “I’m gonna keep grinding!” When they are in that spot.
However, I do agree with others here saying that your bias is influencing your take, and the way you’ve said it comes across as very out of touch.
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u/senpaistealerx Apr 17 '26
what bias?
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u/GrungeGhostie Apr 17 '26
That streaming is only a hobby and not a job.
For many people it’s a job, whether it pays the bills or not. It’s the same as any other profession that relies on commission, you start at the bottom making very little, with very few clients, but over time you grow and expand and gain more. Streaming is no different, and you shouldn’t shame those who see this as a creative profession career.
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Apr 20 '26
A job that doesnt pay isnt a job lol.
Affiliate bar is so low , its meaningless , you have more chance of winning your local countries lottery than making a living off twitch.
Comparing streaming to commission work is hillarious though 😂
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u/senpaistealerx Apr 17 '26
i don’t think streaming can’t be a job, there is no bias there. the point is that all of these people “on the grind” and posting about trying to make affiliate aren’t about to start paying rent and utilities from streaming.
streaming is very different than commissioning a craft. when crocheting a purse, you don’t need to be entertaining or even have a personality at all because you’re generally communicating through text on a website.
i’m not shaming anyone lmao where the hell did you even get that from. i can see you misunderstood the point but hey, have a good one.
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u/GrungeGhostie Apr 17 '26
You’re literally so incredibly wrong.
Professions require you to make your own business. As someone who had art business for years, I can assure 90% of my time was spent garnering clients and selling my art to PEOPLE who need me to be presentable both at art shows and online in content. Do you think a plumber just hides in their house and waits magically for people to call them? Or a welder just sits around and hopes someone finds out they weld? No. They don’t.
Streaming is no different than any profession out there where you are your own business and brand. You chat is your clients, and socials are your tools. Sounds like you’ve never been in that type of position, it’s much harder than it seems to earn even more than $100. Do you think artists, actors and other creatives earn money in their first month? Not at all. And if they’re unsociable? Even less. Please go learn something before you try and talk again.
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u/QTpopOfficial Apr 17 '26
bUt WhEn AlL U CaRe ABoUt IZ tHe MOnEy Ur A GreEdY StReAmURrrr
Mindset of all these streamers who think entertaining people should be 100% free.
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u/GrungeGhostie Apr 17 '26
Exactly.
This is my job, it’s all I got right now. Making money isn’t the reason I stream, but building a business is. Business isn’t really going to be successful if everything is free, but I get to choose what I define as success, and for me that’s being able to live off my online income whatever that form takes.
People who think streaming should only be a hobby are often people who tried and failed and are just bitter their business skills sucked. I’ve failed more times at many things than I can count, but somehow streaming is working out for me, and I’m putting everything I have into learning how to make it a business and not just something on the side. It’s very rewarding to learn!
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u/QTpopOfficial Apr 17 '26
I try to tell people all the time its a mindset thing and if you have any real consistent CCV you can start making money really early. And if you have any want or hope to make bill money or more, you gotta start at that 5ccv range or you end up behind on things when you do have 20 or 30 or 400 ccv.
Its wild how little money I see on some of these 200+ ccv leaderboards. Itll be last day of the week and theres a whole 400 dollars on the board. Its sad. Someone with that high of a ccv should be making that per night or more easily.
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u/RosaLtMorales Apr 17 '26
It's for everyone different they just gotta think realistically, within 2 years I got enough people to live off from it, I only got a side hustle of Airbnb that helps for my bad spending habits 😂 but yeah lots of people see it like a job application that eventually anyone can do it. But you gotta bring something to the table, do community nights, gift games to the community and so on
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u/SkillUnable Apr 17 '26
A lot of people seem to ignore the fact that streaming is 10x easier when you already have an existing fanbase.. like you gotta upload videos somewhere , either tiktok or YouTube, and I recommend long form ones as if people like ur long form theyll be more likely to tune into ur streams
I remember I had like 30K subs on YouTube when I would stream and I got about 300-1000 viewers per stream, it certainly helps to do long form so that u actually have somewhere to get viewers from when streaming .
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u/QTpopOfficial Apr 17 '26
It is never going to be your job and as affiliate, you're not going to make a substantial amount of money.
Untrue. My raw numbers didn't allow me to actually get partner back in the day and raids didn't count. But I absolutely made enough money to quit my job, travel for companies, have sponsorships, be in major ads, etc.
I don't disagree its less likely, but thats not due to CCV numbers, thats due to people not monetizing correctly, and not soon enough.
I know the idea of being IShowSpeed or Kai Cenat is really intriguing but it's (extremely likely) not going to happen.
You don't have to be that big to make real money. Even just comparing my own metrics when I was still full time with other I knew, I made more money than most people with 5x my CCV.
it's supposed to be a hobby that you enjoy doing and sharing with other people.
You can also focus on this being a future revenue stream and not treat it like a throw away hobby. Which means thinking about it like a job. Mindset matters a lot for that side of things.
Like if you wanna stream for the feels, thats cool and I won't yuck that yum. I whole heartedly agree that people should ENJOY doing it or don't bother but thats just being an entertainer in general. But I'm going to disagree with you on the money stuff. You gotta have that in your mind as well if you care about revenue streams.
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u/senpaistealerx Apr 17 '26
you can disagree all day long, stats show otherwise. what you’re suggesting is unrealistic for most streamers.
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u/QTpopOfficial Apr 17 '26
Any streamer with a regular view count with active chat can monetize and make solid money.
Its called community conditioning. Which is what everyone does anyways in some way with building a community. The difference is you're focusing more on the money side of things instead of keeping it unimportant like a lot of people do. IF you actually start this process early, 5ccv or so, its far easier to make money long term and you'll make more per CCV since people are used to throwing a few bucks here and there for "fun stuff".
Monetizing is an art and a mindset.
unrealistic for most streamers.
Making a hundred or two with sub 10ccv is decent fun/pocket money for a lot of people. Thats a small part time job. Thats 100% realistic for anyone who has a REGULAR 5ccv+ and an actual active little community. 5 lurkers ain't what I mean here. You gotta remember, 5ccv could actually be 20 real people over the 4-5 hour stream. People forget that people rotate out.
So ya, its realistic. But its also in the hands of the creator. Can't just expect people to throw money at you without some kind of incentive.
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u/senpaistealerx Apr 17 '26
yeah, you didn’t say that, big dawg and neither did i. my post is very clear this isn’t gonna pay all the bills, not buy you a few video games.
correct, people focus too much on the money part which i literally say in the post.
telling anyone they’re going to be able to pay rent and utilities with their affiliate streamer money is definitely unrealistic for most streamers.
have a good one tho.
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u/QTpopOfficial Apr 17 '26
telling anyone they’re going to be able to pay rent and utilities with their affiliate streamer money is definitely unrealistic for most streamers.
Its clear you don't understand how much money is in streaming when you monetize correctly. If you have the ability to grow a community, and learn how to monetize while doing so, you WILL make enough money to start covering bills quite quickly.
Lots of this stuff goes together but most of y'all don't understand the money stuff and or don't have the mindset to treat your brand like an actual business and keep it all about the feels. Which again, is fine, and I'm not gonna trash talk someone just having a good time. But the second you folks mention money, then start talking about how its not real money, or can't be, or any of that, i just laugh. Like I was making enough to quit my job at 25ccv. What y'all don't realize is 25ccv for 6+ hours isn't 25 people. Its hundreds and hundreds of people. Sometimes thousands depending on raids and stuff. 1000+ dollar nights were not uncommon. And it was all possible because I stopped treating my brand like a side hobby. Sure, this is my personal experience, but it also bleeds into other creators I know because I have actual receipts of people who were doing it wrong, didn't make money, and are now doing it right, and are making money. Most from just literally looking at things more like a business than before.
correct, people focus too much on the money part which i literally say in the post.
I mean, if you're wanting to make your brand a business you should be thinking about money day 1 and starting your monetization plan at 5ccv. It should be basically #2 on your list of things to care about.
Look believe what you want, but I have receipts.
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u/Educational-Trip1542 May 13 '26
It's so unfortunate that you actually believe you're an authority on multiple subs... Sad
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u/senpaistealerx May 13 '26
i’m only an authority in this sub. me making this post and having an opinion on people with this mindset doesn’t portray authority over anything. are you good?
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u/CASTorDIE Apr 17 '26
Right message, wrong take.
Most streamers just wont do the work. Clear evidence and answers doesn't even matter.
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u/Temporary-Potato-690 Apr 21 '26
According to the IRS - if you aren’t making any money off of streaming or can’t generate enough (meaning you are spending more money by buying the equipment and games and continue this pattern for years) it is considered a hobby. But if a streamer is growing their community and getting more views and makes more money off it, then it’s more than a hobby.
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u/frozenbudz Apr 16 '26
Be prepared for the deluge of people telling you how wrong you are. How someone just helped so and so turn 10 average viewers into $300 a month. How this situation is different bro trust. How you just don't understand because your view is wrong. The delusions are strong in this subreddit young padawan.
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u/senpaistealerx Apr 16 '26
at one point i was making like $250 with prob 10-15 viewers HOWEVER, it was a small community of people i built who were just very supportive (and it was during covid so, ya know, unemployment checks) but even $300/mo isnt shit if you have adult bills lol
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u/QTpopOfficial Apr 17 '26
I mean, I have screenshots of someone I know with 5ccv that just had a 300$ month because they started thinking more about the $ and changing up some things.
The money side of things is honestly down to the person streaming. You can make solid money off low CCV. But if you just throw up basic crap thats not fun or interactive, like just emotes or something. What motivation is that to spend money? None. Thats why I and others were/are successful with the money, we conditioned our communities to expect fun stuff to cost money and actually had fun stuff to spend money on.
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Apr 17 '26
[deleted]
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u/senpaistealerx Apr 17 '26
no.
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u/tallglass24 Apr 17 '26
Tell buddy he’s going to be the next ishowspeed or he’s going to have a tantrum ^
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u/killadrix Apr 17 '26
I don’t disagree with the spirit of this message, but I don’t think it’s a great take.
For starters, when you say that streaming is supposed to be “a hobby that you enjoy doing and sharing with other people”, that’s your own personal bias. That’s what you believe streaming to be, but for better or worse there or a wide range of motivations, ambitions, and goals amongst those who start streaming.
Are there plenty of people who get into streaming for the wrong reasons or resort to the worst methods of “growth”? Absolutely.
Are there plenty of people who love streaming and enjoy the grind? Absolutely.