In this episode, Justin and Grace sit down with JC Rodriguez to break down how creators should be thinking about building multiple income streams to thinking about cash flow, taxes, and long-term financial stability as a creator.
Inside:
Timestamps:
00:00 – Intro & JC Rodriguez’s background
05:30 – How JC thinks about creator income streams
12:10 – Revenue, profit, and cash flow for creators
19:40 – Monetization timing mistakes
27:15 – Taxes, savings, and reinvesting creator income
35:00 – Risk management and income diversification
42:20 – Long-term financial planning for creators
48:10 – Closing thoughts
🎙️ Hosted by Grace Ling & Justin Nguyen
📍 How Creators Make Money — the podcast where we unpack the real strategies behind today’s smartest creators.
This episode breaks down the real world of UGC. How creators with tiny audiences are making six figures, why most creator panels are useless, and how brands actually manufacture viral moments on TikTok.
Grace also dives into portfolio mistakes, agency vs. direct pricing, and what Handshake looks for when hiring UGC creators.
Inside:
Timestamps:
00:00 – LA stories, gyms & party culture
02:40 – Audience vs. brand: why community matters
07:00 – Faceless brands & creator-led design
10:20 – Reviewing niche creator content formats
12:50 – Repurposing content authentically
18:10 – TikTok Shop, creator education & events
20:00 – Why most creator panels suck
26:05 – What comedians teach creators
32:20 – UGC portfolios: who’s making real money
36:40 – UGC content types + what performs
41:30 – Who dominates UGC demographics
43:00 – Agency vs. direct pricing
49:05 – Handshake’s UGC hiring criteria
52:15 – Brands flooding TikTok
56:00 – AI clipping tools vs. organic virality
🎙️ Hosted by Grace Ling & Justin Nguyen
📍 How Creators Make Money — the podcast where we unpack the real strategies behind today’s smartest creators.
Inside This Episode:
This one goes deep into the creator × career crossroads — how personal branding actually impacts job offers, whether “dream jobs” are real or a scam, and what Grace & our guest learned from breaking into tech, navigating identity shifts, and growing online while working full-time.
Plus… the Lucy Guo saga, getting into VC-backed startups, and the real game behind “prestige hiring.”
⏱ Timestamps
00:00 — Imposter syndrome & your online reputation
02:45 — How personal branding actually gets you hired
05:30 — Why top-of-mind beats résumés
07:50 — Inside his new role + onboarding realities in tech
10:45 — Why relationships are the real promotion engine
12:30 — The job market is brutal… here’s how to stand out
15:00 — Biggest mistakes people make when building a personal brand
18:00 — Niche vs broad identity: how Grace pivoted 5+ times
21:00 — Do “dream jobs” even exist? (debate gets spicy)
26:00 — When a job isn’t a step down for creators
29:30 — What you actually learn from a W2 that creators miss
34:00 — Systems, tracking, and how corporate teaches discipline
39:40 — Lucy Guo breakdown: career path, scaleAI, Passes, PR spin
44:00 — The VC “hack”: big-name → startup → equity route
48:30 — Why clout still rules hiring (and how to leverage it)
52:00 — Breaking into VC-backed startups without pedigree
55:00 — The truth about early career, prestige & portfolio plays
🎙️ Hosted by Grace Ling & Justin Nguyen
📍 How Creators Make Money — the podcast where we unpack the real strategies behind today’s smartest creators.
Most creators think you need a massive audience to make real money. Phil Pallen is proof you don’t.
He will finish 2025 close to 7-figures in revenue — while barely having 6-figures in followers across platforms.
In this episode, Justin and Grace break down how Phil built a highly profitable creator-consultant business by positioning himself correctly, charging like a strategist, and letting his content do the inbound work for him.
Inside:
💡 The 3 pillars of a personal brand that actually sells
📱 Why follower count ≠ revenue (Phil is the perfect example)
💸 How he prices strategy, consulting, and brand builds
🔄 Rebranding yourself after a pivot (and why most people do it wrong)
📈 How Phil structures his business to stay creative and profitable
Timestamps:
00:00 – Phil Pallen’s business model
06:12 – Why most personal brands fail
12:45 – The 3 pillars of a high-trust personal brand
20:10 – Follower count vs. credibility (Phil’s anti-vanity approach)
26:30 – Creating content that attracts inbound leads
34:15 – Pricing yourself as a strategist, not a freelancer
41:20 – How to rebrand after a pivot
47:50 – Building an agency that scales your creative work
53:10 – Final takeaways
🎙️ Hosted by Grace Ling & Justin Nguyen
📍 How Creators Make Money — the podcast where we unpack the real strategies behind today’s smartest creators.
From affiliate YouTube empires to billion-dollar creator platforms, this episode dives into how creators are turning strategy into scale.
Justin and Grace break down the real business behind money-making on the internet — from finance creators earning millions off links to brands like Adobe rebuilding their image around creators.
Inside:
💸 The truth about OF and the “1%” income curve
🎯 Why vice-based content (betting, thirst traps, alcohol) always wins attention
🏙 SF vs. LA creator culture — how environment shapes identity
🎨 Adobe Max’s rebrand into creator-first marketing
🤝 How to get into the right invite-only brand rooms
📈 Charlie Chang’s $4M/year YouTube machine and affiliate strategy
🔁 Recurring revenue from affiliate deals (and how creators can copy it)
Timestamps:
00:00 – The economics of OF and vice-based content
07:28 – SF vs. LA culture and how it shapes creator identity
13:42 – Adobe Max: how Adobe is reinventing for creators
20:30 – Creator-first branding and event strategy
27:03 – Inside the “real” brand parties and how to get invited
29:46 – Charlie Chang’s $4M affiliate empire
38:02 – How to actually make YouTube affiliate content work
41:24 – ChatGPT affiliate ideas + AI product monetization
43:20 – Closing thoughts
🎙️ Hosted by Grace Ling & Justin Nguyen
📍 How Creators Make Money — the podcast where we unpack the real strategies behind today’s smartest creators.
From Reddit money threads to Wall Street creators, this episode breaks down the real side of personal finance.
Justin and Grace unpack the creator money game, what actually matters when building wealth, and why increasing your income beats budgeting every time.
Inside:
💸 Why “saving $3 a day” advice doesn’t work for creators
📈 How to actually increase your income (before worrying about taxes)
🤖 The Reddit flowchart thats better than most financial advisors
🚨 Why YouTube finance advice can be a red flag
Timestamps:
00:00 – When parents start charging rent
05:30 – The struggle of money management as a creator vs. employee
14:00 – Finance YouTubers and the clickbait dilemma
18:30 – Why Reddit might be the most honest finance platform
22:00 – The real truth about financial advisors & commissions
27:40 – Save vs. earn: what actually matters first
33:00 – FIRE, FAT FIRE & the rise of creator early retirement goals
39:00 – Vivian Tu’s rise and what creators can learn from her branding
46:00 – The game of perception, headlines & making people care
52:00 – Final thoughts: pay more taxes → make more money
🎙️ Hosted by Grace Ling & Justin Nguyen
📍 How Creators Make Money — the podcast where we unpack the real strategies behind today’s smartest creators.
From Ryan Trahan’s $1M YouTube sprint to Crocs pulling 64M views in a single campaign, brands and creators are rewriting the rules of influence.
In this episode, Justin and Grace break down the money, the strategy, and the clout hacks behind some of the biggest creator-brand plays today.
Inside:
💰 How Ryan Trahan made $1M+ in 50 days from one YouTube series
🎮 Why gaming companies spend $800K+ on creator sponsorships
👟 Anthpo’s Crocs collab - 22 videos, 64M views, viral genius
📊 CPM vs. RPM explained (and why finance creators earn 25x more)
🚪 Using clout to get into rooms and open doors
Timestamps:
00:00 – Ryan Trahan’s $1M+ YouTube sprint
10:45 – Gaming companies dropping $800K+ on sponsorships
23:00 – Anthpo x Crocs: 64M views in under a month
30:00 – CPM vs. RPM and why finance creators cash in big
48:30 – Success metrics: views vs. money vs. impact
53:45 – Clout hacks: getting into rooms that matter
🎙️ Hosted by Grace Ling & Justin Nguyen
📍 How Creators Make Money — the podcast where we unpack the real strategies behind today’s smartest creators.
From near-death travel stories to $600K journals, this episode dives into how creators are monetizing in surprising ways. Justin and Grace unpack the risks, niches, and products that actually scale in today’s creator economy.
Inside:
🌍 Justin’s wild Guatemala trip & the risks creators take IRL
🪵 The rise of niche creators - woodworking, gardening, golf & beyond
📈 The journal creator making $632K from a simple product
📱 Why Bobby Approved is crushing creator apps
🥩 Grocery store prices, U.S. food culture, and what Europe gets right
Timestamps:
00:00 – Near-death experiences & Guatemala travel story
15:00 – Going all in vs. gradual growth as a creator
23:00 – The fall of lifestyle creators & rise of niches
47:00 – Bobby Approved app breakdown & why it works
54:30 – Food culture, grocery prices & Europe vs. U.S.
59:30 – Could Bobby Approved become the next big food label?
🎙️ Hosted by Grace Ling & Justin Nguyen
📍 How Creators Make Money — the podcast where we unpack the real strategies behind today’s smartest creators.
What happens when creators stop being the face of their own businesses?
In this episode, we dive into the new wave of creator-led companies, how investors think about exits, and why the strongest creators build cults instead of just audiences.
Inside:
🏗️ Building creator brands that can outlast the founder’s face
📈 VC vs. cash-flow businesses — what investors really want
🔥 Measuring “cult-like” followings in the creator economy
💡 Why niche and “unsexy” industries are blowing up on social
🎟️ The rise of side events vs. big conferences like VidCon
Timestamps:
00:00 – Creator brands vs. personality-driven businesses
08:45 – The new wave: Joyride, Nami, and faceless creator CPG
19:00 – What does a “successful exit” look like in VC?
28:30 – Cult followings & how to measure them
45:00 – Unsexy industries turning into creator niches
53:40 – Events: side meetups vs. VidCon & SXSW
🎙️ Hosted by Grace Ling & Justin Nguyen
📍 How Creators Make Money — the podcast where we unpack the real strategies behind today’s smartest creators.
From vegan popcorn to TikTok beauty brands, creators are finding new ways to launch products that feel more like movements than businesses.In this episode, Justin and Grace unpack the strategies behind viral CPG plays, scam-exposing influencers, and the health trends shaping what people buy next.
Inside:
🍿 Daddy Snacks - the vegan popcorn brand born from satire
🕵️ Baller Busters, Coffeezilla & the rise of scam-exposing creators
🍵 Nami Matcha and why timing is everything in CPG
💜 Ube, Thai tea & what the next big drink trend could be
🪧 Why a $150 Times Square billboard looks like a $69M flex online
Timestamps:
00:00 – Daddy Snacks & vegan popcorn strategy
6:00 – Scam exposers: Baller Busters, Coffeezilla, Jideon
16:30 – Nami Matcha & the timing of creator CPG
25:20 – Predicting the next drink trend (ube, Thai tea, etc.)
57:00 – Times Square billboards as the ultimate creator hack
🎙️ Hosted by Grace Ling & Justin Nguyen
📍 How Creators Make Money — the podcast where we unpack the real strategies behind today’s smartest creators.
Description:From intermittent fasting experiments to vegan cults, this episode dives deep into how creators turn extreme lifestyles into cash.We cover:🥗 Justin’s 3-day fast gone wrong + why he’s trying intermittent fasting now💸 How mukbangs, thumbnails, and even Cameo gigs can stack six figures🎬 Why Supersize Me would’ve killed on YouTube today👕 The $800K streetwear drop from Mai Pham and how she built a private “cult” brand⚡ What makes a true movement vs. just selling a productTimestamps:00:00 – Justin’s 3-day fasting experiment (and why it failed)25:00 – Mukbangs, shock thumbnails, and monetization tactics33:00 – Why Supersize Me would have been a viral YouTube channel41:00 – Mai Pham’s $800K streetwear drop + building a private “cult” brand52:00 – Movement vs. product: what really keeps people buying🎙️ Hosted by Grace Ling & Justin Nguyen📍 How Creators Make Money — the podcast where we unpack the real strategies behind today’s smartest creators.
From Big Tech to burnout to building a million-dollar creator business, Zach Wilson has seen it all. After stints at Netflix, Meta, and Airbnb (earning $600K+ a year), Zach left it behind to go all-in on content, education, and his own platform.
We dive deep into what it really takes to transition from employee to full-time creator, and the business models that actually work.
Inside:
💻 How Zach went from Airbnb staff engineer to 150K+ LinkedIn followers in 1 year
🔥 The burnout that landed him in the psych ward, and the lessons he learned
💸 Building Data Expert Academy — cohorts, subscriptions, and a $400K month
🛠️ Why creators fail with too many income streams and how to focus on what scales
🤖 Using AI avatars + platforms to fight burnout and expand globally
Timestamps:
00:00 – From Big Tech engineer to creator: Zach’s backstory
05:00 – Burnout, breakdown, and lessons from saying “yes” to everything
10:00 – Growing on LinkedIn and becoming the #1 data engineering voice
20:00 – How the LinkedIn algorithm changed and what still works today
28:00 – Quitting Airbnb → first $0.19 TikTok paycheck → $50K cohort beta
34:00 – Building multiple income streams: cohorts, subscriptions, newsletter
41:00 – Platforms that convert (LinkedIn, YouTube, Instagram) vs. ones that don’t
53:00 – AI avatars, teaching at scale, and the rise of one-person billion-dollar companies
🎙️ Hosted by Grace Ling & Justin Nguyen
📍 How Creators Make Money — the podcast where we unpack the real strategies behind today’s smartest creators.
Run clubs are blowing up, not just for fitness, but as the new way Gen Z is meeting people IRL. Grace shares her experience running with groups from LA to SF (and even almost making the Olympic team), while Justin breaks down how sponsorships are turning these clubs into real businesses.
We also dive into:
🏃 How college athletes went from banned to banking big with NIL deals
💸 Why pro runners struggle financially compared to football or basketball players
📹 Ryan Trahan’s wild leap from D1 runner to full-time YouTuber
Creators, athletes, and entrepreneurs are rewriting the playbook on how to monetize passion, and we’re here to unpack it.
🎙️ Hosted by Grace Ling & Justin Nguyen
📍 How Creators Make Money — the podcast where we unpack the real strategies behind today’s smartest creators.
Followers don’t always equal influence. Some creators with millions can’t sell a thing, while others with smaller audiences spark entire movements.
In this episode, Grace and Justin talk through the messy business of being an influencer today: culture, money, and what “influence” really means in 2025.
Inside:
📉 Why follower count ≠ influence (and why some launches flop)
🏙️ L.A. vs. Austin creator culture. Exclusivity, wellness, and ambition
🎲 The rise of La Bubus, blind boxes, and gambling culture for kids
💡 How environment shapes ambition, community, and creator careers
🎙️ Hosted by Grace Ling & Justin Nguyen
📍 How Creators Make Money — the podcast where we unpack the real strategies behind today’s smartest creators.
We looked into how much money Morning Brew brings in by just sending emails... it's insane.
In this episode, Grace and Justin break down:
📰 How Morning Brew makes millions from newsletter ads
👤 The “identity crisis” creators face when building a personal brand
💳 Why designer credit cards are as much about persona as perks
🎙️ Hosted by Grace Ling & Justin Nguyen
📍 How Creators Make Money — the podcast where we unpack the real strategies behind today’s smartest creators.
For more creator insights, make sure to subscribe to our newsletter: www.howcreatorsmakemoney.com
In this episode of How Creators Make Money, Justin breaks down how he's used credit card rewards to travel the world in business class.
But that’s just the start. We also dig into creator monetization strategies, growing authentic communities, and share some more LinkedIn viral content hacks.
Inside:
✈️ Turning credit card points into luxury trips
📈 Community growth strategies that actually work in 2025
🎥 Real examples of LinkedIn growth hacking
🎙️ Hosted by Grace Ling & Justin Nguyen
📍 How Creators Make Money — the podcast where we unpack the real strategies behind today’s smartest creators.
Make sure to subscribe to our newsletter: www.howcreatorsmakemoney.com
Oba’s story is equal parts hustle and adventure.
After leaving a private equity career in New York, he’s been traveling across Eastern Europe. From Hungary (where locals dubbed him “the Hungarian Fortnite”) to spending Romanian Robox he has found a way to build his brand while traveling the world.
You can check out Oba's content here:TikTok: https://www.tiktok.com/@obatriedInstagram: https://www.instagram.com/obatriedLinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/ajayioba/Travel IG: https://www.instagram.com/oba.travels
We get into:
✈️ How he’s funding his travels while unemployed
🚀 The story behind Headstart and how he continues his entrepreneurial mentality by applying to Y Combinator
💡 The content strategy to becomming the Prime Minister of Romania
🌍 Why travel can actually make you sharper in business
🎙️ Hosted by Grace Ling & Justin Nguyen
📍 How Creators Make Money — the podcast where we unpack the real strategies behind today’s smartest creators.
Make sure to subscribe to our newsletter for more interesting creator stories!www.howcreatorsmakemoney.com
What happens when your Discord admin accidentally deletes 20,000 members overnight?In this episode, Grace and Justin unpack the chaos of losing an entire year of community growth in one click and how to turn Grace's crash-out moment into a growth hack advice.Inside:⚡ The “Great Discord Purge” and what actually happened📈 Grace’s plan to rebuild 20K members🛠 Why creators should share their failures and their fixes in public📊 A mini LinkedIn algorithm update straight from the LinkedIn teamWhether you run a Discord, a newsletter, or a podcast, this one’s about resilience, building in public, and keeping your cool when things blow up.🎙️ Hosted by Grace Ling & Justin Nguyen📍 How Creators Make Money - the podcast where we unpack the real strategies behind today’s smartest creators.Make sure to subscribe to our newsletter: www.howcreatorsmakemoney.com
What happens when your favorite design tool goes public?
In this episode, we talk through the chaos of Figma’s IPO and how Grace tried to throw $10K into it at $33.
We also unpack:
🧃 Prime’s brand hype and sudden sales collapse
🚫 Whether creators can ever really get canceled
📉 When a single TikTok shuts down a restaurant
🎙️ Hosted by Grace Ling & Justin Nguyen
📍 How Creators Make Money — the podcast where we unpack the real strategies behind today’s smartest creators.
Make sure to subscribe to the newsletter for more creator insights: www.howcreatorsmakemoney.com
Private equity is moving into the creator economy in a big way.
In this episode, we break down:
💰 What PE actually is (and how it’s different from VC)
📉 How PE can supercharge or completely wreck a creator business
🏀 Real examples: Dude Perfect, Blippi, Cocomelon & more
🕹 The “rise of the nerds” - how nostalgia-fueled creators like Quinton Reviews are making millions deep-diving Nickelodeon, MapleStory, and childhood culture
🎙️ Hosted by Grace Ling & Justin Nguyen
📍 How Creators Make Money - the podcast where we unpack the real strategies behind today’s smartest creators.
Make sure to subscribe to our newsletter at: www.howcreatorsmakemoney.com