No One Owes You Attention
Obsession Over Visibility Is Killing Your Creativity
You hit publish. You wait. And then… nothing.
A couple of likes. A comment from your one supportive friend. Maybe a bot trying to sell you crypto.
And it hurts, doesn’t it?
You spent hours on this. You cared. You put your best into it. And the world just kept scrolling.
Here’s the hard truth:
Nobody owes you attention.
And honestly… That’s a gift.
On the Create.Repeat Podcast, I sat down with musician Daniel Allan, and he said something that I think about way more than I’d like to admit:
“If you post something and it gets low views, that just means… no one saw it.”
That’s it. No deep meaning. No secret conspiracy against your work. Just math.
Yet, when something underperforms, we don’t see it that way. We treat it like a verdict—like the world saw our work and rejected it.
You suck!
But rejection requires awareness. And most of the time people just didn’t see it.
It’s really that simple.
In Outliers, Malcolm Gladwell introduces the 10,000-hour rule—the idea that mastery isn’t about talent. It’s about reps.
Enter: The Beatles.
Before they became the biggest band in the world, before The Ed Sullivan Show, before they changed music forever—they were just another band playing in a bar.
They spent years grinding in Liverpool and Hamburg, playing in dingy clubs six nights a week, sometimes for eight hours a night.
They weren’t special yet. They were just working.
And that’s what made them great.
By the time they hit American television, they weren’t lucky kids who stumbled into fame.
They were ready.
The worst thing that can happen to a creative is going viral before they’re good.
If you blow up too soon, you don’t have time to develop. You don’t get the space to experiment, fail, and figure out who you are. The world locks you into an early version of yourself, and suddenly, you’re playing defense instead of evolving.
But when no one is watching, that’s when you’re free.
Free to experiment. Free to make bad work. Free to get good without an audience picking apart your every move.
That’s a gift.
Steve Martin once said:
“Be so good they can’t ignore you.”
Most people don’t want to hear that.
They want the shortcut. The algorithm hack. The one weird trick to blow up overnight.
But attention is cheap.
The real flex is making something undeniable.
Something that demands attention—not because you asked for it, but because it’s too damn good to ignore.
So if your work isn’t getting seen, don’t take it as a sign to stop. Take it as a sign to get better.
Tyler, the Creator started Odd Future with a group of friends, releasing mixtapes and DIY music videos that barely got attention—until one day, they did. But by that point, he had already built his sound, his vision, and his world.
Stephen King has thrown away more stories than he’s published.
Virgil Abloh had thousands of unfinished ideas.
Phoebe Bridgers played in small clubs for years, self-releasing music before Stranger in the Alps made her a breakout star.
You’re not behind. You’re just in the work phase.
If you post something today and no one sees it? Good. That means you still have time.
Time to get better. Time to refine. Time to build something that isn’t just seen—it’s felt.
Because when your moment finally comes, you won’t need to go viral.
Your work will already speak for itself.
Keep creating and repeating,
– Zack
Links keeping us creative:
🔭 Space Type Generator: A playful and interactive tool for experimenting with type and motion.
✈️ Flying in 1979 – It Was a New Experience: A look at air travel through a 1976 commercial by David Hoffman.
🦧 Creativity in the Age of AI: A short film by SPACE10, Joss Fong, and Áron Filkey explores the role of AI in creativity.
🎬 Why Modern Cinematography Looks So Different: A deep dive into why so many films today feel visually uninspired.
Last week, we launched Take It or Leave It—our new exclusive weekend newsletter. It’s part advice column, part mood board, and part behind-the-scenes look at the creative process behind Create.Repeat.
This is a Substack exclusive, so you won’t get extra emails unless you want them. More importantly, it’s the best way to support us as creators and help keep this going. Every subscriber makes a difference.
Want to submit a question? Join our Substack chat!
This Week, We’re Happy to Spotlight Parsa Sabet—a singer, producer, and storyteller with a sound that’s entirely his own.
Bringing His World to Life:
Parsa Sabet doesn’t just make music—he builds sonic landscapes that reflect his journey. Born in Iran, raised in Malaysia, and now based in France, his work is shaped by movement, resilience, and reinvention. Every song he writes, produces, and releases is a testament to the idea that no matter where you start, your voice deserves to be heard.
For Parsa, creativity isn’t about following trends or chasing approval. “Try only to impress yourself & make your own rules,” he says. Music, to him, is about freedom—the ability to carve out a space that is entirely your own, no matter where you come from.
The Power of Persistence:
Parsa’s next single, Valery, drops in February, leading into his first full EP in April. “Going from being a refugee to making music is still insane to me,” he says. But that’s exactly what makes his journey so powerful—he creates with gratitude, excitement, and the belief that every step forward is worth celebrating.
His philosophy? “Hold strong beliefs, but always stay open to doubt.” Growth isn’t about knowing everything—it’s about staying curious, evolving, and pushing past limits you once thought were set in stone.
The Takeaway:
Make your own rules. Stay open to the journey. And above all, create for yourself first. The world might not always understand what you’re building—but if it moves you, it’s worth making.
Create.Repeat is a community for creatives.
The Create.Repeat Substack is a project designed to be a weekly diary on creativity. Sharing inspiration for artists to keep creating and repeating.
Written and curated by Zack Evans & James Warren Taylor
Each week we will be sharing recent thoughts on creativity, some links helping us stay creative, and a talent show featuring an artist from the community. Thank you for engaging with us.
History repeats. Create the future.
