It’s a bird, it's a plane, it's actually a reptile. During COVID many people were looking for companionship due to social isolation. From what I witnessed, COVID led to growth in the pet hobby industry, including exotic animal husbandry. I, myself, purchased a reptile during the lockdown. I learned quickly that one of the best YouTube channels to learn about reptiles is Wickens Wicked Reptiles; Adam’s videos have been a huge help in ensuring I provide proper care of my leopard gecko (her name is Ember). In the podcast, we spoke about the process of starting a YouTube channel and how hard it is to make the jump to being a content creator full time. Running a channel is very similar to running a business because there can be serious money involved, opportunities to work with investors, and listening to your clients (viewers) is extremely important. Adam discusses the tools and processes required to work with his community and ensure a positive “work culture” or in youtube terms discord/comment section. Just like many start-ups, Adam talks about when he is planning on hiring his first employees and how he has turned his hobby into a complete multi-faceted business from selling merch all the way to the reptiles themselves.
