I think there’s merit in considering this point even if it’s “uncomfortable” with the folks who are on the bootstrap/content entrepreneur bandwagon side. I can only get a good idea of such things from people I know in real life, and very few fit this trope of all it takes is grit and hard work. Yes it requires it, but that’s no guarantee. It’s not helpful that the overwhelming majority of those who give it their all and fail, self select out of the data because they simple are not visible. Unfortunately too many of the people I personally know, outright lie about their “success” because it’s nearly impossible to prove otherwise online. There’s a whole industry out there to buy influencer status. You can buy everything you need- followers, downloads, comments, views, shares, etc. Fewer than one quarter of one percent of YouTube creators make more than $50 a month. Not well known since you gotta dig for that sort of data. The few more successful folks I know enough about firsthand, have gotten a big step in content creatorship mainly by being early into their respective platforms and shoveling tons of content out there before even knowing if any of it will get a return. Jack’s said quite a bit about that. It’s not a popular point but luck definitely figures into it too.

I'm one of those people....