BUS: 180 Philosophy of Business and Effective Management

Professor J. Davison
Mr. Beast Final Paper
Due: December 2023
Julianne Dorman

The Power of the Internet

The sensation that is the internet is fast-past and ever growing. The lives of so many

individuals rest in the hand of multi-billion dollar online companies. Google is a

powerhouse that plays God in the virtual world known as the World Wide Web. It’s

scary to think that one day our lives may be completely contained within a tiny

microchip. However there is some light and a jovial spirit harnessed by some. Guides in

our adventure into the darkness of the interweb. And to include the media can be a

HUGE tool bringing light into so many people’s lives. Because of its ease of access and

its almost limitless uses, people rich and poor alike can receive the same “education”,

and because that information can travel across the globe in a matter of seconds there is

a power to know someone who you may never have encountered otherwise if “real”

travel was not feasible. The gift of harnessing the ability to communicate through a

screen is surprisingly difficult. Very few people have the ability to captivate an

audience and hold its attention, especially in today’s day and age. There is however one

man who has destroyed all odds of internet attention spans and created a universe of

his own that brings over 200 million people together in a way that shows some hope of

a caring and genuine future to our planet. And it all started with the ability to post a

video from your home.

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 Beginnings in the Basement

James “Jimmy” Donaldson was an average kid living in the rise of the tech age. He

loved video games and obsessed over the algorithms of YouTube and other online sites.

He grew up in Greenville North Carolina and had a typical education at a private

Christian school. And like most young people with a flair and desire to innovate and a

pioneering spark in their will he didn’t last long in college. He dropped out of East

Carolina University to pursue “internet” full time. What made him different from most

college dropouts was the fact that he had a willingness to pursue his passions and the

motivation to never stop working, his work ethic was and still is unmatched. He began

by posting Minecraft videos, an extremely popular thing at that time on YouTube was

to watch people play games, living vicariously through others brought enjoyment to

young audiences who wished to improve their own skills in the game. Jimmy was one of

thousands, maybe millions to post these style of videos on the internet, which made it

extremely difficult to gain traction, and with larger channels being a top name on

youtube it was hard for little, at-home upstarts like Jimmy and his MrBeat6000 channel

to take off. However Jimmy wasn’t deterred. Taking a step away from the gaming he

looked into brainless obvious Adams style videos. The fascination with counting to

extreme numbers and the capacity of our brain excites Jimmy, this is what led him to

counting to 100,00 OUT LOUD and posting it ALL on his YouTube channel. This was

the start to an empire, this little almost stupid video gained thousands of views.

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The Game Show of YouTube

After Jimmy gained a swell of followers and the algorithm started to kick-in he

needed a game plan and fast! To have gained such a large following practically

overnight with no sign of warning he needed to take the next steps extremely carefully.

He had to ensure that his audience was hooked and would keep coming back for more

content. He couldn’t continue with counting videos, that would be extremely trendy for

a bit and then crash. So he decided to focus on the one item that all humans have some

sort of tie to: Money. Every person on this planet has that one thing in common, the

fascination with a bartering good that can get you anything. Money has the ability to

get you whatever you want and humans all desire to attain what they wish so therefore

money is a powertool. Jimmy honed in on this ideology and RAN. Because of his quick

start he hadn’t had the time to form a team and he was still at the point where he

wasn’t making enough money to hire a staff of people to film and produce his videos for

him. So with the help of his childhood friends he had characters to add to his platform,

being an engaging addition for his viewers and so the spotlight slowly started to move

away from MrBeast himself and more to his brand.

Jimmy began with simple videos, an escape for viewers to feel happy and a part of

something. Seeing events play out before you that could in reality happen to the viewer

is always extremely attractive. MrBeast would use his meager YouTube paycheck to tip

random pizza delivery guys $100 or he would give away money to his mom or a random

person at the supermarket. Towards the start of his career in YouTube he wasn’t

making enough money to sustain his channel at the rate that it was growing. So he

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started making brand deals and gaining sponsorships. There’s a story where a man

offered him $5000 dollars for an ad, however Jimmy begged for him to double it and he

promised he would turn around and give it to a homeless man. At first the business

man wouldn’t buy it but Jimmy convinced him that it would gain more attention as the

title of a YouTube video and that the man’s business would gain more traction because

of it, and in the end the man decided to give him $10,000 and it worked! As an

upcoming businessman Jimmy showed the admirable trait of honesty. In each and

every one of his videos he never once catfished or used a title as clickbait. Every single

title says exactly what the contents are going to hold. In an interview with Colin and

Samir, videographers and in the marketing of YouTube and influencer analysis

business, Jimmy describes that every video should be overly simplified, he wants to

produce videos that don’t require a whole lot of thought to watch and so that it is

purely entertainment for the viewers. He wants a platform where people can escape

from the real world and find true joy. And the aspect of his channel makes it feels like a

gameshow, one where the viewers feel involved and actually have the potential to

compete!

How Many Ways Can You Recycle!?

Jimmy has a love for the planet and for the people and creatures on this earth. His

brain works in a way that always wants to use everything to its full potential with

ZERO WASTE. MrBeast outwardly is in the entertainment business however the

majority of the revenue he builds goes straight into his philanthropy. Whether it is for

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his videos or for his Beast Philanthropy it is being put to good use. He is the founder of

many great organizations including Team Trees and Team Seas, where he uses views to

raise money and awareness to help better our planet. This tactic is great to build his

name but to reach audiences beyond the target, including a wider range of generations.

Not only does he recycle literally, but he recycles figuratively too. The money he gains

from every single video is poured back into the business. He hardly ever uses it for

personal gain, he doesn’t have a fancy car or nice mansion or yacht… he would never

even use them because he’s working so much! The business is his joy so what better

investment than to pour your income into your passion.

Beastification

MrBeast is arguably the most influential YouTuber of ALL TIME. As soon as his

Squid Game video was released within hours of being uploaded to the video platform

millions of people had viewed it. This video was the biggest item to hit the internet.

Because his spinoff from the popular Netflix series was such a huge success and he

began growing at such a rapid pace many Youtubers began to take a closer look at

Jimmy and his channel and how they could perform at such an intense rate. They did

everything in their power to imitate the man: posting similar video ideas, creating

thumbnails that mimicked his style, for some time every Youtube video intro sounded

exactly the same, no idea was original anymore. And for a lot of influencers this plan

worked, however I truly believe that this is the demise of YouTube or at least plays a

role in it. MrBeast’s ideas are extremely easily unique however if every other youtuber

adopts these methods it's going to become the status quo, and YouTube is known for

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its diversity in video style. We are starting to see youtubers aspire to be like MrBeast

but nobody can BE him. We’re seeing people like Ryan Trahan, Mark Rober, Airrack

and even Jubilee stray from their original ideas and into more of a MrBeast-esque style

of video, which is highly entertaining but becomes boring after some time.

We have also seen an uptick in the term coined “Beastification”, after MrBeast

himself. If Jimmy namedrops another YouTuber or mentions an item or brand, there is

an immediate surge of interest in said platform or brand. People beg to have MrBeast

recognize them or use every means they can in order to get in touch with the dude. It

shows admiration on Jimmy’s part for creating and being such a huge disrupter in

innovation of the internet and in particular YouTube.

Market and Expansion

Because of the attraction to his name and the weight it holds, Jimmy has prospered

greatly from many different areas of interest, and not only within the YouTube

community. Entrepreneurs and businessmen in all areas of interest gravitate towards

his methods and business practices. He’s reached large audiences all over the world.

His drive and determination and honesty and constant work ethic are traits that so

many aspire to gain however so few of today’s generation uphold patience. They

“require” breaks, they long for vacation and time to veg. Even if they did realize what it

takes to attain Beast standards, would they ever go for it 100%? I don’t think so. That's

why Jimmy stands out. He’s unlike the rest of his generation. He loves work and not

many people can say that. They want the world handed to them and Jimmy won’t have

it that way. He’s set right now, he could stop what he’s doing and live in pure luxury for

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the rest of his life, but never would he dream of stopping. Work is his peace, despite it

being stressful and he does go home and cry sometimes(said in podcast sited) the grind

never easing, he loves what he does. And very few individuals can say that.

He is also always expanding. He realizes and admits that YouTube will not last

forever, he’s seen the impact he’s made on YouTube and outwardly it has been

successful however, the ideas are starting to stale. Reels and short form content are

taking over and he doesn’t seem to hold the same attention span as well as he used to.

Viewers want shorter and shorter videos and the money gained isn’t as prominent. This

isn’t only a MrBeast channel problem but it's a problem within the culture and style of

entertainment as a whole. Even movies and the cinema industry in Hollywood is

dropping. But MrBeast is one step ahead of everyone else. He sees YouTubes potential

demise. And like a chess master MrBeast made a swoop ahead of the game. Back when

his videos were still highly increasing(they still are increasing in views however there is

looming darkness in the failure of his platform), he decided to dive into the food

industry. With his brands Feastables and BeastBurger, he could take the time to expand

the idea because it wouldn’t just be a fad. Food is a necessity and will always be so. And

taking the time to improve upon his chocolate and burger joint while his name is still

booming in the media he can use his own beastification technique on himself and grow

from his own influence. Then if(and more than likely when) his channel starts to

decrease or the platform overall deteriorates, he’ll have a fanbase for his other

businesses.

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Means of Improvement - Drucker Style

Here are a few modifications and ideas using Drucker as an inspiration that I

personally would suggest to Jimmy:

1. Managing people

MrBeast works with many different people on a daily basis. Because of the style of

videos he is producing he is working with a lot of fans. Most shows hire paid actors but

these fans are living a dream by being able to compete in some of these videos. And the

experiences they are receiving aren’t always necessarily good. I would suggest that you

take the time to treat your contestants like the people you are helping in third world

countries. Show every individual the same respect and hold them above yourself and

you yourself will gain more respect. Treat others with dignity and prove you are worthy

of being more than an icon but truly human yourself.

2. Inward focus

Take time for yourself and “slow down”. Maybe some time away from work would help

to regenerate your body and turn your focus elsewhere. Taking a brain break is helpful

so as not to result in burnout. There has been a lull in 2023 as far as quality MrBeast

videos are concerned. If he were to take a breather maybe his brain would stir some

new ideas for a groundbreaking video.

3. Does what the world thinks matter?

Yes, it most certainly does. However when it comes to being compromised because

something doesn’t fit a certain ideal then maybe you’re taking criticism too harshly.

MrBeast has refrained from some video ideas because they may be too complex for the

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majority of his viewers to understand. However if he took the time to create a really

enjoyable video not only in the processing but in the execution, maybe he would make

himself more proud. And not only that it would be a new style of content for maybe a

new style of audience to appreciate. This could create new channels or branches of the

preexisting channel.

Beast Mode

Use your money for your own sense of good and virtuous acts and pleasures. Put

your money into something you genuinely care about and for the good of the

community. MrBeast has made an incredible impact on the world and we could use his

methods to better both our entrepreneurial lifestyles and our personal ones as well.

Stay true to character and it’ll take you far. The future of the YouTube industry is

looking dim however if we take the philosophies of Jimmy Donaldson we can impact a

business sect and create a huge dent of an idea in the business world.

1) [Link] Lex Fridman interview

2) [Link] Full Youtube documentary
3) [Link] Money explained
4) [Link] Business Ventures
5) [Link] Colin & Samir Podcast pt. 1
6) An Unfiltered Conversation with MrBeast Colin & Samir Podcast pt.2