I feel like I'd be totally fine with ads that can be controlled user end. Like, what if there was a little switch by the video you're watching to enable ad breaks, directly supporting the creator and the instance. (As long as they're not baked into the stream so instances can't force them to be always on.)

First, please clarify what sort of non-ad monetization you are talking about.

Second, we don't need monetization. The commercialization of the Web, while handy for a while, is exactly why it's decayed so much. We don't need to import the cause of web rot here.

Unfortunately, Content Creator is not likely a solid long-term career. Don't take this as dismissive of the effort that goes into quality videos. Some people really do treat it legitimately as a craft. However, the vocation was basically created through heavy subsidies from tech/ad companies, trying to get eyes on the ad space that they want to sell. Due to Chicago School economics (line must go up), and the fact that there is only so much ad space, tech companies are going to look to remove the cost of these subsidies, likely through a combination of generated content and removal of payouts, so that myopic investors can be happy.

So, how can you support yourself while still creating videos, etc? Well, if you don't have a production company supporting you, you'll need to learn business yourself or sell your talent to someone who is running a production company. As much as I would like for people to be able to do whatever they want with their lives, we're currently stuck in a neoliberal hellscape where a working artist has to work and also be a business person.