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For many people, entering the world of developer content is a strategic decision, but some stumble upon it almost by accident. Often, these individuals achieve unparalleled success. Lucas Santos, who Jerzy Jarzębowski speaks with in the latest episode of the podcast, is the best proof.
As he says, "Content creation is a lot about feeling." People can sense authenticity and passion, both of which Lucas has in abundance. However, behind his strong online presence lies a great deal of hard work.
In the conversation, he reveals the pitfalls to watch out for when engaging in content creation, how to maintain a balance between personal life and educational activities, and how ADHD partly contributed to his start in teaching others. Dive in and draw precious insights from his captivating story.
Key Insights from the Conversation:
Learn by teaching: When you explain concepts to others, you reinforce your own understanding and discover new insights. If you stop teaching, your learning may stagnate, and this can hinder your professional growth. Therefore, embrace the dual role of teacher and learner to continuously enhance your skills.
Be mindful of the hidden effort behind the scenes: Creating high-quality content involves significant effort beyond the final product. Hours of planning, recording, re-recording, and editing are necessary to produce a fifteen or twenty-minute video. Repurposing content from long articles to social media snippets, videos, and even books can maximize your efforts. Remember, the process itself is valuable for personal growth, even if the immediate response is underwhelming.
Diversify your platforms to protect your digital presence: Relying solely on one social media platform for your content can be risky. Platforms can decline or disappear, taking all your hard work with them. Use social media to amplify your message, but always maintain your own channel or website. This ensures that your content and audience are secure regardless of changes in the social media landscape.
Leverage Developer Programs to boost your reach and network: Developer programs offer significant benefits, including networking opportunities, content amplification, and event participation. Programs like Google Developer Experts help share your content with a wider audience and provide support for attending international events. These connections and exposure can be invaluable for your personal and professional development.
Prioritize Wisely: Fit content creation around your life, not the other way around. Don’t be afraid to drop projects that don’t make sense or bring you joy. Free content is done for personal growth and community, not for meeting specific expectations. Focus on what truly matters to you.
Conversation with Lucas Santos
Jarek Jarzębowski: Hello and welcome to the Advocu Podcast.
Lucas Santos: Hello! Super nice to be here. Thanks a lot for inviting me. I'm super thrilled about what we're going to talk about.
Jarek Jarzębowski: Normally, we live quite close to each other in terms of geographical dimensions. But currently, you're in Brazil, so it's like recording from the other side of the world for me here in Poland. But I'm wondering, apart from the weather that we have been talking about before the recording, do you see differences in terms of the developer community environment between South America and Europe or the USA? Can you see the differences between these worlds?
Lucas Santos: Yeah, a lot. When I moved to Sweden two years ago, I didn't engage much with developer communities. In Brazil, I organized many, mostly related to Node.js, JavaScript, and TypeScript. When I moved to Sweden, I wanted to see how the environment here is. From what I observed, most of the ideas were similar, like the meetups are still meetups. However, in Brazil, people attend meetups to socialize and eat, while in Europe, they focus more on content.
Most meetups I attended in Europe had substantial content; if the content was lacking, people wouldn't just show up to chat and have coffee, especially after the pandemic. Before the pandemic, that might have been different. The biggest difference I noticed is that people in Europe are more practical in a developer environment, not only at meetups or events but also in company culture and general work practices.
In Brazil, meetups often involve a lot of theory and conceptual discussions, with some examples and code demonstrations. In Europe, the focus is on practical aspects, like how to do X or Y, the pros and cons of different approaches, and technical details. Conceptual topics are usually clearly labeled as such. Most discussions are translated into projects or code that is actually feasible and visible. This focus on practicality allows for testing and trying things, seeing how they work, and iterating if something goes wrong.
This try-and-learn culture is very prominent in Europe. In Brazil, due to the job market and historical challenges, people are more afraid of making mistakes and losing their jobs, so they aim to get things right the first time. This fear of failure limits experimentation. In smaller countries like Sweden, with fewer people in the job market, there's more tolerance for mistakes. This has been developing in recent years, unlike in the past, when the job market dynamics were different. The biggest difference I see is the practical versus theoretical approach and the acceptance of trial and error.
Jarek Jarzębowski: Thank you, it's really interesting. We'll get back to that, but first, I would like to talk a little bit more about you. On your LinkedIn, I can see that you're an engineer, a book author, a course instructor, and a community ambassador. How do you combine all of these roles?
Lucas Santos: My secret is that I do everything poorly. No, the thing is that I do a lot of stuff. I really like technology in general. One of the things I like most is teaching, so most of those things can be combined into one. I wrote a book a few years ago about Kubernetes, and I'm writing another one in a few months. Today I'm focusing on teaching people TypeScript, so I have a course that I sell mostly to the Brazilian community, which doesn't have a lot of content in Portuguese.
Basically, I like to teach, and that's why I learn as well. I write a lot, have a blog, a YouTube channel, and social networks. Most of my content is technologically deep, which is not very usual in today's world - like creating RSA keys from scratch and doing security, fundamentals of computing in general. I try to manage them all by trying to do one thing that works for all the others.
The TypeScript course is one thing: based on the content for TypeScript, I create blog posts and YouTube videos. I basically multiply the content by using the same thing in different places in different ways. For example, in the blog, I write a very long article with a lot of details, but for a YouTube video, I usually compress this into 20 to 30-minutes and lead people to the blog content.
On social networks, I have snippets of those videos, so I can reuse the same content. I wouldn't say it's not time-consuming or life-consuming - quite the opposite.
It doesn't give me financial benefits; I don't get paid to get likes, I don't earn money by doing blog posts or YouTube videos. YouTube has a monetization platform, but it's irrelevant for my size. I do it because I like it, but it also takes a toll on my usual life. I am an engineer in a startup company called Openvolt in Europe - that's what actually pays the bills, and everything else is a sidetrack.
Apart from simply liking teaching people, that's actually how I learn. If I stop teaching, I'm going to stop learning new things, and if I stop learning, I'm not going to be a good professional in the future. So basically, that's what keeps me going. So do the awards like Google Developer Expert, Microsoft MVP, and TypeScript Champion, because they make me build content for them as well. For the GDE and MVP platforms specifically, you have to contribute a certain number of times a year to keep the title, which is nice because it gives me more purpose. I post a lot of those on Advocu.
Sometimes I think I should stop a bit and relax, because that’s what I hear from my parents and friends. I work most of my day - like thirteen to fifteen hours a day. After my 9 to 5 job at Openvolt, I start my second one, which is basically social and creating content and planning.
A YouTube video that you can watch in 30 minutes took me 16 hours to make. I made this video two weeks ago when I came to Brazil. I don't have my equipment here, so I needed to record it previously. Scheduling and planning is what I rely on a lot. I have Notion pages for calendars and stuff.
Today, I have the luxury of someone helping me with the social aspects, especially with the course and everything else. Before this, it was a mess. I can't fully explain how I manage everything; I just do it because I enjoy it, and it comes naturally to me. However, it's not always easy. When people ask, "How can I be like you?" I tell them, "Do it because you like it, not just to create a lot of content." My main advice is to be inspired by others, but never try to copy them. Be yourself, and you'll find your balance
Jarek Jarzębowski: I know that creating content takes a lot of time. As a content creator myself, I understand the effort behind writing an article, creating social media posts, or recording a video. People usually see only the final product, like a fifteen or twenty-minute video, but they don't realize it involves hours of planning, recording, re-recording, and editing. Many think it's a simple side job, but they don't see the everyday work that goes into it. I'm glad you're highlighting this. You've also mentioned a smart way of repurposing content: starting from a long article, then adapting it for social media, videos, and even book writing. How did you learn to write these bigger pieces of content and repurpose them? Was it something natural, or did you learn it somewhere?
Lucas Santos: I would say both. I've been creating content since 2015, so it's been nine years. Most of what I do now is because of my ADHD. It's challenging to deal with, and I lose focus quickly. To maintain focus, I need a structured way of thinking. I like to learn by reading and doing, but my memory is terrible. If I do something, I'll forget it two hours later.
I started making notes on my GitHub account ten years ago to help me remember what I learned from books, articles, and courses. Instead of just copying course content, I rewrote it in my own words. In Brazil, we have a major platform for courses with code snippets you can copy and paste, but I prefer typing everything out myself to understand it better.
People liked my notes because they found them relatable. Someone suggested I start a blog, which was a great idea. I began using Medium and similar platforms. I didn't start creating content to be a content creator; I did it because I forget things easily. It's funny because sometimes I search for something and end up reading my own content to help me.
Writing has always come easily to me because I need to write everything down. If I don't, I'll forget. Since I was little, I've made task lists and used notepads for more complex tasks. I read a lot, so writing isn't difficult. However, making videos and public speaking were challenging. I started giving talks before the pandemic, which helped me learn how to present topics without making them too boring or technical.
I also learned from friends. One of them is a well-known content creator specializing in Node. He's more famous than I am and was my goal. We had a friendly competition, producing content and learning from each other. Another friend works as a developer advocate, creating content full-time. He taught me not to create something new every time. It's unsustainable to create unique content for each platform.
Instead, view your platforms as one entity. For example, I wrote a detailed article on creating RSA keys using cryptography standards. It took 16 hours to condense 30 years of knowledge into a 30-minute read. From that, I made a 20-minute YouTube video, created snippets, and posted on LinkedIn and Instagram. This approach maximizes the value of one piece of content.
Not all content will be popular. Complex topics reach fewer people. But content creation shouldn't be about vanity metrics like views or followers. It's about the content itself. Over time, you'll create viral content, but not everything will be a hit. The key is persistence. I often consider quitting, but I always come back. Creating content is part of who I am.
The downside is that not everything you create will be popular. For instance, some complex videos might not reach a wide audience because they are difficult to grasp. But you shouldn't focus on views or followers; it's about the content itself. If you keep at it, you'll eventually create content that goes viral. However, this success is temporary, and you'll experience highs and lows.
I've thought about quitting many times, but I always come back because creating content is a part of me. Sometimes, you put in a lot of effort, like 32 hours of work, and no one seems to care. But those 32 hours are valuable because you learned something new. Creating content is about personal growth, not just about reaching viewers.
If you want to work in social media professionally, there are more structured ways to approach it, using metrics and tools. Personally, I create content because I enjoy it and hope people like it, but that's secondary to my own satisfaction and growth.
Jarek Jarzębowski: I'm also wondering whether your blog being a central piece makes a difference. Some people focus on social media platforms. When you do that, it's almost natural to focus on views, comments, likes, and so on. But when you create your own piece on your own blog and use other platforms just to repurpose this original content, I think it might be easier to acknowledge that you're doing it for yourself.
You're not doing it for the platforms or the giants of this world, but for your own growth. Then, you use the platforms just to share it further. I don't know if you've ever thought about it. There's a saying that if you're writing only on social media platforms, it's basically building on other men's land. Have you ever thought about it? Your own media versus borrowed media like social media platforms?
Lucas Santos: Yeah, constantly, to be honest. I was born in '95, so there weren't any social media platforms. MySpace was the thing we had, so I grew up initially in a world without the internet at all here. In Brazil, some things got delayed. There wasn’t TikTok, Instagram, or Facebook.
I'm extremely averse to social networks. I don't like being on them, especially because, with ADHD, it causes a lot of anxiety. You involuntarily compare yourself to others, like my friends who have thousands more followers and way more reach. At one point in my career, I felt like I would never be like them. You get depressed, and it spirals. You can't create content because you're depressed, and you're depressed because you don't create content.
The truth is, you don't need social media platforms. Like you said, you can use them to amplify your ideas, but you shouldn't ever focus on one. Let’s say you have a big Instagram, and you focus all your efforts on that. If Instagram fails like MySpace and disappears overnight, all your work is gone. Use them as tools to amplify, socialize, and make people know about you, but never create your content only there.
My first jobs were in consultancies and hospitals. Hospitals have a thing where you can't have external servers, so patient data needs to be stored locally. There wasn’t AWS or any cloud back then. They had their own servers. Even if other services were better, they couldn't move out. That’s the restriction. Today, we have a lot of places to write and post things—thousands of social networks. They are powerful tools to amplify your reach, but eventually, I think people should move to their own place where they own the content. If the company hosting your content fails or goes bankrupt, you don't have to worry about your content disappearing.
When I worked at Microsoft, they had a platform called Channel 9. I did an entire Kubernetes course there, which was free. In 2021, they discontinued the platform and deleted everything, so I lost all the content. One of my students had downloaded everything to watch on the bus and sent it to me. I uploaded it to my YouTube channel. While YouTube isn’t perfect, having your own blog or site where you fully control your content is important. If you rely on social networks, they will eventually break your faith. No social network lives forever. Facebook, once considered the most stable, is now mostly for selling used stuff and messaging. Platforms will shift, but you should have something you own.
That's a super interesting topic. The approach to content creation, publishing, and distribution is something that people should think about. I see some developer advocates and people in developer relations creating content because they want to share their knowledge and passion. But they sometimes forget about what comes next and what might happen afterward.
Jarek Jarzębowski: I want us to talk about another topic because you mentioned that you're part of the Google Developer Experts program, Docker Captains, Microsoft MVP, and an Impulser expert. Have I forgotten anything?
Lucas Santos: I recently got another one from the Deno Foundation, which is the TypeScript Champion. It’s a very early access program now. We are the first group, so I haven’t even shared this yet. If you're listening to this, it's a spoiler.
Jarek Jarzębowski: Okay, so how do these programs differ from each other? How similar or different are they? Some people might be interested in how these programs are different based on your experience.
Lucas Santos: I didn't initially aim to be in these programs. I didn't even know they existed, but they came up and provided a nice boost to my morale. These programs do three things well.
First, they offer an excellent community of remarkable people. You can meet many interesting and clever individuals, some of whom might align with your content, allowing you to collaborate. Networking in these programs is amazing.
Second, they help amplify your content. The Google Developer Experts program, for example, has YouTube and Twitter accounts where they repost your content, helping you reach a broader audience.
Third, Google Developer Experts, unlike Docker and Microsoft, help you attend events. If there's an event outside your country, you might travel with some benefits like covering expenses. This is great because it allows you to share your content in places you couldn't afford to go on your own.
However, you shouldn't create content just to earn these awards. If your goal is to become a GDE or MVP, you'll lose motivation once you achieve it because your initial motivation was the award itself. These programs are recognition for what you already do well.
I know many people who create incredible content without being in these programs. Eventually, these programs invite them because of their amazing work. These awards boost morale because they show that someone notices your efforts, which is important, especially when creating unpaid content.
Moreover, these programs support content creation with workshops and other resources. Google and Microsoft, for instance, provide early access to tools through internal alpha calls, allowing you to create content about features not yet released.
The difference between these programs lies in their goals. Google Developer Experts and MVPs are similar, with GDE created as a competitor to MVP. MVP has been around since 1993, and GDE since 2005. I've been part of both since 2017. Docker Captains started around 2017 or 2018, and the TypeScript Champions program is only about three months old. Every major company has ambassador programs to advocate for their products naturally. They don’t force specific content but amplify what you create.
Each program has its focus. Docker is more infrastructure-focused, while Google and Microsoft cover various categories. I'm in the web category for both Google and Microsoft. TypeScript Champions focuses on TypeScript and Deno. It's crucial to create content for the right reasons, not just for awards, as these programs have guidelines to ensure authenticity. They look for long-term content creators, not those seeking quick recognition. Being part of these groups is one of the best experiences, opening many opportunities, including participating in podcasts like Advocu.
Jarek Jarzębowski: Your LinkedIn says that you're also a JS Community lead internally. I'm wondering how your experience in all those community programs, teaching, public speaking, and content creation translates to your day-to-day job, like a normal engineering job in your company.
Lucas Santos: I wasn't just a community lead back at Klarna, my previous company, but the experience actually helps me a lot. Creating content teaches you how to effectively share and distribute that content. As a community lead, you want people to talk, create, and share their ideas. Creating content yourself gives you insight into how it spreads among people, so you can encourage others to create and share too.
At Klarna, we had meetups and brainstormed how to organize internal and external events and sponsorships. Being a community lead often means representing the company at events. Think of someone like Scott Hanselman at Microsoft. He’s been talking about C# and .NET for 25 years and has become the face of Microsoft's development environment. When he appears at an event, it signifies Microsoft's presence.
Sharing expertise serves two purposes: first, it inspires others to write and create content because you’ve inspired yourself. You can help people understand why, how, and when they should write, and what objectives they should aim for. Second, you can mentor people because you've already gone through the process. At Klarna, I mentored many people in giving talks, reviewing their presentations, and conducting dry runs. Public speaking and content creation are challenging because you’re putting your work out there for everyone to judge. Many people fear public speaking because they worry about being laughed at. To be a community lead in any company, you must be a content creator or actively sharing content elsewhere. It's essential for your expertise.
Jarek Jarzębowski: I want to circle back to time management. You've mentioned that you work thirteen to fourteen hours a day. You also mentioned that your family and friends think it might be too much. How do you stay sane when trying to do your normal job while also growing your online presence, learning, sharing, and contributing to all these programs? How do you manage that?
Lucas Santos: It's a very difficult task. I've had two phases. The first phase, which I'm in now, involves chilling a bit, focusing more on my job and what I like to do. I'm not creating as much content as before, especially because I'm traveling, which makes it harder.
The other phase involved scripting everything. I had a calendar where I scheduled every task. I knew exactly when I would work, have breakfast, rest, and create content. This structured approach worked well for several years, but life is unpredictable, and you can't script everything. Unforeseen things happen, so you need to leave room for life.
I plan content ideas using post-its and a Notion page. Whenever I have an idea, I write it down. When I'm ready to create, I look at the list and choose what I'm feeling at the moment. My goal now is to stop working 14 hours a day and focus on fewer, more impactful things. It's important to balance doing what you enjoy with making an impact.
You can post content regularly, but remember it won't pay your bills initially. Prioritize your main job, the one that pays the bills, and create content if you have time. Today, I have a more solid base and a company to run, so I prioritize accordingly. Don't be afraid to drop something if it doesn't make sense. When I started, I thought every piece of content was important, but sometimes you need to focus.
Free content is just that—free. No one is paying you, and there's no responsibility to meet specific expectations. Fit your content around your life, not the other way around. Work-life balance is crucial. Taking breaks is important to avoid burnout. If you're just creating content to keep awards, it won't bring you joy. Prioritize your life first and then fit your content into your schedule.
Jarek Jarzębowski: And I think that sometimes we are our own worst bosses. We should cut ourselves some slack and make space for random things.
Lucas Santos: It's weird because sometimes you're not even expecting something to happen, and then it does because you're just doing it. I got here in 10 years because I wasn't actively trying to. I started creating content, writing things down, and people started liking it. I never thought I'd be a developer expert or anything. I didn't even know these things existed.
The weirdest lesson is that when I started doing things aimed at a specific goal, things didn't work out as well as when I did things randomly. Passion for something you genuinely like is more captivating than doing something just to achieve a specific goal. People can tell when you're doing something just for a goal. Sometimes randomness is better than trying to control everything. Content creation is a lot about feeling. If you're teaching something you truly like, you're more enthusiastic and pass on the message better. People are more open to receiving it. If someone hired me to talk about Java, I wouldn't know anything about it, and it would be robotic. It wouldn't be good content for me or the audience.
Jarek Jarzębowski: Yeah, let's hope that not only we but also anyone listening will find a way to combine the professional side and the passion in content creation and do it in a sane way. Thank you, Lucas, for sharing your experience and approach. If someone listening wants to find out more about you, where should they look?
Lucas Santos: I have the most common name in the entire Brazilian community. Lucas was the most common name the year I was born, and Santos is the most common surname in Brazil. So, I compete with a lot of people, including two football players. It's very difficult to find me on social networks. Finding usernames is impossible. So, I started using DNS. If you want to find me, I have a domain: Lsantos.Dev. You can put any social network in front of it, like github.lsantos.dev or linkedin.lsantos.dev. If you're not sure, just go to lsantos.dev, and it will take you to my landing page. Everything is there.
When people reach out, I usually check all platforms. I take a while to respond, but I always do. LinkedIn is easier, so drop me a line there. The one I respond to directly is Telegram. You can reach me there because it notifies me, unlike the other platforms. If you have any doubts or anything, just talk to me. I love talking to people and creating things. If you have content ideas, I'm open to that. I'm always there to help. If you have event possibilities or anything you want to do, I'm super into it. I'd love to hear what everyone's thinking. So those are the ways to reach me. It's pretty easy: lsantos.dev.
Jarek Jarzębowski: Yeah, you made it easy, and I'll make it even easier by putting the link in the show notes. It will be easy to reach you. Once again, thank you very much, and I hope to talk to you again.
Lucas Santos: Certainly! I'll always be looking forward. If you want anything, just call me up, and I'll always accept, no questions asked.
Jarek Jarzębowski: Thank you.
Lucas Santos’ background
As a software engineer, Lucas Santos has been navigating the intricacies of coding since 2011. He is a prolific content creator, known for his engaging articles, videos, and public talks on JavaScript, TypeScript, Node.js, Docker, and Kubernetes. Originally from Brazil, he has been living in Sweden for two years, working as a software engineer for Openvolt.
Lucas, which functions in digital space as LucasSantos.dev, believes that the process of teaching keeps him at the cutting edge of technology. In addition to his technical expertise, he is deeply involved in community leadership and developer programs.
Closing Thoughts
Looking at his story, Lucas Santos seems to have worked out the recipe for digital success — but the truth is, it was more of an aftermath of passion and hard work rather than a calculated strategy. The approach he took can serve as an example for any aspiring content creator, emphasizing the most important aspects of this kind of work: passion, hunger for knowledge, honesty, and social media openness.
Social media opens up great new opportunities for developers who want to create a community and give back to it with their time and knowledge. However, having your own place on the Internet is equally, or even more, important. Diversification and thoughtful prioritization — these are the foundations for any developer interested in expanding their digital presence and building communities.
