“there's there's this common misconception that oh you just get monetized on YouTube and then you're the AdSense pace for everything in life and while AdSense can be significant... the majority of creators who are full-time on YouTube the majority of their income comes from sources outside of just YouTube AdSense”

Treat AdSense as the floor, not the wage

Don't price your creator business around platform payouts. AdSense at ~$5 RPM means a 1,000-view video pays ~$5 — enough to validate a niche, nowhere near a salary. Stack affiliate, sponsorship, and owned-product revenue on top from day one and treat AdSense as proof people watch, not the line that pays rent.