How Jessica Lanyadoo set the tone for her community

Jessica Lanyadoo is an astrologer, psychic medium, and animal communicator who also hosts the weekly show Ghost of a Podcast. She shares how a case of burnout helped her show up authentically to her members and guide the type of community she wanted to build, featuring animation by Sophie Ansari.

In 2020 when I really committed to my Patreon, I was on Zoom all the time, and I hated it. It started to really burn me out... I just couldn't stand looking at my face on video all the time.

So I discovered that I could use filters. I could turn my face into a tampon, a lemon, or a planet. Some people thought it was funny, but a lot of people were like "Wait, what? Why is this happening?"

Eventually I just showed up as myself on a video and explained why I was using the filters — how it was for my own mental health and made it possible for me to create more content.

It ended up being a really valuable experience because I was allowing people to peek behind the curtain of my process. It was unusual for me to share something personal. When I did, it made me feel better. And it made them feel better and closer to me.

It was kind of a turning point in my Patreon, because I was sharing more of myself with people and they had greater context for my own creative process. Because everyone can relate to being burnt out by social media.

When it comes down to it, Patreon is my happy place on the internet. Because it's my house, it's my place, and anyone who wants to be there is paying and choosing to be there. I really do believe that on your Patreon page, in your house, you can build a real community.

So, what kind of community do you want?