Upload More than You Download

A simple entrepreneurial principle which seems like it can help you become more successful is to upload more than you download.

Assymetry between downloading and uploading

I think for most people, we usually download more than we upload. In fact, most of us don’t upload that much. Yet we stream gigabytes of Netflix and online media. There seems to be an assymetry here.

Why upload more?

I think most of us stream shows and media because we’re bored and want to be passively entertained. But what if we switched the switch, and instead, we uploaded more of ourselves for our own active entertainment?

For example, almost all of us have smartphones or digital cameras which can shoot very high quality video. Yet why do we watch so much YouTube, but don’t contribute as much video substance ourselves?

What if we spent 90% of our efforts uploading media, and only 10% of our efforts downloading media? What would happen if that were the case?

Active entertainment

One of the main reasons I love photography so much is because it is one of the most fun and entertaining forms of “active entertainment.” Entertaining ourselves by making photos and artwork is far more interesting and fun than just passively being entertained.

Create your own TV show

For example a lot of us watch cooking and restaurant/food shows. Why not just visit the places ourselves in real life (at night), bring along the camera, and document it ourselves?

Don’t strive towards “professionalism”

What holds us back from creating more of our online content and substance? I think a lot of us are intimidated by thinking we must do fancy editing with video.

I say screw that; just shoot raw footage, don’t edit, and upload it directly! This will help you live more, experience more, and spend less time in front of a computer and more time experiencing interesting and novel things in real life!

Create and own your own platform

Don’t just upload all your stuff to Facebook and Instagram. Create your own self-hosted blog (1and1.com and install WordPress.org), and start uploading more of your own photos, ideas, information, and knwowldge to your own blog/website/platform! This will give you more freedom, control, joy, happiness, and long term success with your online entrepreneurial goals. Don’t get suckered into becoming a digital share-cropper for these “free” online social media platforms.

Seize the power with your own hands!

ERIC