Swagat Gyawali's YouTube career began during the pandemic. Still, the 25-year-old tech content creator has already amassed over 130,000 subscribers, earning a Silver Play Button in less than three years of creating videos.

Like most, Gyawali was looking for new ways to spend time inside his room during the lockdown, away from his family, in Banglore. That was when he decided to start a YouTube channel and share what he had learnt all these years with the world. His first video on YouTube was The Secret Way I Use To Make Money Online In Nepal, where he talked about the freelance platform Upwork. Currently, the video has over 500,000 views. He also gained over 5,000 subscribers in the first three months of his journey.

Gyawali first uploaded a video on the site when Covid-19 struck the world, and he was locked in his room with spare time. Being an IT engineer, he was also working from home for Amazon at that time.

Today's world has an overload of information. While most creators focus on pumping out many videos without caring about the quality of the content, Gyawali is one of the few who prioritises content integrity. To make sure the knowledge he imparts is reliable, he looks for official declarations regarding certain events from the relevant authorities. "If there are no official statements, I turn to articles from reputable news outlets. Occasionally, I also listen to interviews with the relevant individuals to obtain the information I require", he explains.

Gyawali usually covers financial independence, freelancing, online income, e-commerce, and the share market. In recent videos, he has talked about mobile device management systems (MDMS), building global brands, the dark reality of fantasy gaming apps, and life insurance.

Initially, Gyawali worked on scripting, recording, post-producing and creating the graphics all by himself. Now, he has a team of three individuals assisting him in these tasks. Creating a video takes them between seven to 10 days. First, he decides on a topic and gathers information regarding it, arranging the information to create a video script. Once the script is written, he records the video in his room. After that, the video is sent to the editor for post-production. In the meantime, the graphic designer sketches a thumbnail for the video. Then he receives a video draft from the editor, which he inspects, and redrafts if necessary. The video is then finalised and uploaded on Gwayali's YouTube channel.

Gyawali thinks finding a content idea is relatively easy, as his niche is diversified. His contents vary from technological developments and personal finance to investigative videos. He believes the audience gets bored watching similar videos from a creator, so he makes an effort to incorporate fresh elements in his videos, be it using different video themes, editing styles, animations, sound effects, or video backgrounds. Occasionally, he experiments with slightly different topics out of his channel's niche like: Can Sagar Be The Youngest PM of Nepal, Are You Addicted Too, My First Visit to Goa, Nepal in 10 minutes, and Unboxing videos, among others.

Creating videos like these is his way of understanding what people look for in his channel. Gyawali states that he is candid and passionate in his videos, and his primary focus is making engaging and informative content. In his career as a YouTuber, he has often looked up to Mrwhosetheboss (aka Arun Maini) and James Jani, who he considers "the best in what they do".

There are many challenges Gyawali has to face as a creator. The major challenge is to provide quality content consistently. Like most creators, he deals with hate comments and negative criticisms. Usually, he receives criticism in videos where he talks about multi-level marketing, online job scams, and betting sites. He claims that those involved in these betting sites or pyramid schemes do not appreciate someone speaking out against their business, leading them to leave irrational and harsh negative comments. He further adds that he has learnt to ignore them and focus on the myriad of positive comments he gets.

What he also finds challenging is income inconsistency. "There are months where I make crazy amounts and months that pass with minimal income," says Gyawali, stating that this irregularity makes it difficult for him to pay his team and keep the channel afloat. The channel earns primarily through YouTube Ads, sponsorships, affiliate marketing, and merchandise. "Being a YouTuber may pay off, but it depends on the niche, audience size, and monetisation strategies used for the channel," he expresses.

However, Gyawali has learnt not to rely solely on his YouTube revenue and currently takes freelance projects alongside his channel. He has been freelancing for over five years—even before he started the YouTube channel. Although he is not as active in Upwork, at the moment, he still receives work inquiries via email and WhatsApp from his past international clients because of the positive relationship he built with them. He also offers freelance services like social media marketing and website development locally in Butwal. Whatever it be, Gyawali and his team never disappoint their followers, churning out a new video every week.

When the Post asked Gyawali if he had evolved as a YouTuber, he responded with a definite yes. He replied, "YouTube is a platform where every creator has to evolve. If you fail to evolve with time, you have a high chance that you will fail to survive in this space. Sometimes trying a different format and style or change in production quality using better recording equipment, I have evolved remarkably. I have learnt to carry out more thorough fact-checking than before. As the channel has grown significantly and its viewership has skyrocketed, I feel a greater responsibility for the content I present. In general, both the channel and I as a creator have undergone changes and developments in one way or another."

According to Gyawali, the rewards of creating content are genuinely astounding. The rewards can be significant if you put in the effort and specific hacks. The fact that YouTube allows individuals to share their ideas and talents with a global audience freely makes him optimistic. He finds the work special, like bumping into his audiences in person and having them appreciate his work. It motivates him to continue and pushes him to look for ways to improve his channel.