In short
Pokimane discusses sustaining an authentic self on social media/streaming, and how “fitting in” differs from “belonging.”
Guest
Pokimane (content creator/streamer) shares her upbringing in a stricter, culturally/religiously different household, feeling she didn’t fully relate to peers, and later finding solace through online gaming communities.
Key claims
belonging requires people who understand you “to your core,” not just being socially acceptable; cultural/racial similarity affects belonging; content creation involves trial-and-error feedback loops, but creators must avoid losing touch with what they enjoy versus what audiences want.
Notable examples
restrictions on sleepovers/trips; bonding over gaming online; using a “Venn diagram” of audience wants vs personal desires.
Written by AI. May contain mistakes. Listen to the episode to check what was said.
Chapters
Tap a time to open that second in VOPersonal Struggles with Belonging
0:45 to 2:51
Lewis and the guest discuss feelings of loneliness and cultural differences while growing up.
“And did you ever feel alone while you were streaming to millions of people?”
Fitting In vs. Belonging in Streaming
2:51 to 5:07
Exploration of the difference between fitting in and truly belonging in the streaming world.
“They understand like your decision making, your purpose in life.”
Fitting In vs. Belonging in Streaming
5:20 to 5:36
Exploration of the difference between fitting in and truly belonging in the streaming world.
Transcript
Automatic transcript. May contain errors.0:00Pokimane:Hey, Chicagoland. Wayfair's Black Friday in July sale is coming to the Wayfair Store. From July 23rd through 27th, you can score up to 80 % off everything home in person. Like up to 80 % off area rugs, up to 60 % off outdoor furniture, and up to 60 % off mattresses. Take home the small stuff that day and get the big stuff shipped fast and free right to your door. Shop the sale July 23rd through 27th at the Wayfair Store at Edens Plaza in Wilmette. Wayfair, every style, every home. Hi, my name is Lewis Howes and welcome to the Daily Motivation Show.
0:41I'm curious, did you ever feel alone yourself growing up? And did you ever feel alone while you were streaming to millions of people? For starters, growing up, I feel like I was lucky in the sense that I'm a very extroverted person. I love to talk to people. I find great interest in other human beings. So it's very easy for me to talk to others. But I felt it was very, very difficult to feel like I belong anywhere. Really? Absolutely. And I think that's something that I've struggled with, frankly, most of my life, even though I have good friends. You know, I learned a bit more about this sentiment year over year.
1:18And I found that a large part of that, especially growing up, was due to my upbringing being very different than my friends. I grew up in a more like cultural, religious, strict household than most of my friends did. So things like staying out late, sleepovers with boys, going on trips, those were not things that I was really allowed to do or were common practice for us. And so I'd find myself kind of going to school and having some friends and getting along, but not necessarily relating on a very deep or fundamental basis. and I also missed out on a lot of like the bonding experiences that they might have been able to have that I wasn't allowed to experience.
2:02Being culturally different from people and not finding many people similar to you makes it hard. You want to fit in but you in a sense will never be able to because no matter how hard you try to be like another group per se, you can never fully become that and you always end up being somewhere in the middle. I also feel like my whole life I've had this sentiment of being very indebted to my parents for the sacrifices that they've made and that's just not something that someone can really relate to especially when like you're in middle school you're in high school some kids are just like what do you mean like your whole life is about making your parents proud like you just maybe don't get it I think that's what personally made me feel lonely initially but I found so much solace and like comfort in bonding over gaming with people online actually yeah now fitting in and belonging what's the difference for you i think fitting in is being like socially acceptable you know it's like i walk and talk the part i am easily digestible to others but belonging is more so the people around me understand me to my core, to my soul.
3:19They get where I'm from. They understand like your decision making, your purpose in life. That's more so belonging. And I am lucky enough to have like built at this point in my life, some really deep friendships. Why when I'm around these people, I feel like I belong. I think another part of that is that there is such a cultural and racial aspect to belonging. When people around you don't talk or look like you or come from a background like you, it's hard to feel like you belong. Interesting. So how did you learn to fit in and belong in the streaming world when maybe not everything in the streaming world or the gaming world also fits into your cultural values?
4:05I think for all content creators, it's a bit of a trial and error process. It's just a feedback loop. And you want to make that feedback loop as positive as possible. Initially, at least, right? You're just like, oh, I think I'm doing the right thing. How do I optimize those positive reactions? But sometimes, somewhere along that path, you start thinking, wait, am I even enjoying what I'm doing? Am I losing touch of what I want to do versus what I know my audience wants me to do? Did you ever feel that way? Of course. I'd assume most content creators do at some point. I do think luckily for a lot of my career, it was just so exciting that I didn't think too much about that until someday you burn out and you're like, hold up, let's take it back a couple steps and reevaluate.
4:56And since then, I've just come to view it more so as you need almost like a Venn diagram. What do people want from me? What do I want to do? let's make sure I'm focusing on what I want to do and maybe that middle part are the things that you do the most right
5:19I have a brand new book called Make Money Easy and if you're looking to create more financial freedom in your life you want abundance in your life and you want to stop making money hard in your life but you want to make it easier you want to make it flow you wanna feel abundant, then make sure to go to makemoneyeasybook.com right now and get yourself a copy. I really think this is gonna help you transform your relationship with money this moment moving forward. We have some big guests and content coming up. Make sure you're following and stay tuned to this episode of the Daily Motivation Show.
6:01Thank you so much for listening to today's episode of The Daily Motivation, and I hope you have an amazing rest of your day. If you enjoyed this episode, make sure to click the link in the description. That will take you to the full episode of our main podcast on The School of Greatness. And if you are loving The Daily Motivation, please follow us over on Apple Podcasts and Spotify and leave us a review over on Apple Podcasts right now. And if you want more exclusive content and ad-free listening experience, make sure to subscribe to our Greatness Plus channel on Apple Podcast right now. And if you want to get even more inspiration from our world-class guests and learn how to improve your life and take it to the next level, then make sure to sign up for the Greatness newsletter and get it delivered right to your inbox over at greatness.com slash newsletter.
6:51Again, have an amazing day, and I'll see you tomorrow with another episode of the Daily Motivation Show.
7:02Pokimane:Hey, Chicagoland. Wayfair's Black Friday in July sale is coming to the Wayfair store. From July 23rd through 27th, you can score up to 80 % off everything home in person. Like up to 80 % off area rugs, up to 60 % off outdoor furniture, and up to 60 % off mattresses. Take home the small stuff that day and get the big stuff shipped fast and free right to your door. Shop the sale July 23rd through 27th at the Wayfair store at Edens Plaza in Wilmette. Wayfair, every style, every home
From the publisher
Leave an Amazon Rating or Review for my New York Times Bestselling book, Make Money Easy!
Check out the full episode: https://greatness.lnk.to/1443DM
Gaming personality Pokimane distinguishes fitting in, feeling socially acceptable, from truly belonging among people who understand your soul. She recalls always lacking deep bonds growing up due to cultural and religious differences that often excluded her socially. Pokimane explains this fostered a lifetime feeling of never quite belonging, with obligations intensifying that sentiment and loneliness. She shares how bonding online helped, but eventually realized occasional disconnect between fans' desires and her own priorities. Pokimane emphasizes needing self-awareness to reevaluate during burnout, seeking to overlap what she enjoys creating and what her audience craves for sustainable balance.
Sign up for the Greatness newsletter!
Hosted by Simplecast, an AdsWizz company. See pcm.adswizz.com for information about our collection and use of personal data for advertising.
