In a recent interview on Earn Your Leisure, Ian Schwartzman offered a powerful insight that every creator should take seriously.
He challenged creatives to ask themselves a fundamental question:
Am I chasing likes, or am I building a business?
While social media encourages creators to focus on views, likes, and viral moments, these metrics alone don’t create sustainability. Chasing likes prioritizes validation and short-term attention. Building a business prioritizes ownership, systems, audience trust, and monetization.
The difference matters.
Creators who focus on business think about platforms as tools, not goals. They build email lists, websites, products, services, and intellectual property. They understand that attention only becomes valuable when it converts into something they own.
Your answer to this question determines how you move forward — how you create, what you prioritize, and whether your work leads to longevity or burnout.
So ask yourself honestly:
Are you chasing likes… or building something that lasts?
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