11 Reasons Why I [Heart Emoji] Tim Denning

How And Why He ROCKS Medium

“One raving fan is worth a thousand followers.” — Tim Denning

When I first joined Medium a couple of years ago, I thought it was just another way to get some more traffic for my company’s blog. I didn’t get it.

Flash forward to a few months ago when I lost that job. I still didn’t get it, but I started poking around, reading articles, and doing some research to figure out how Medium works. How it really works.

Admittedly, I am not a great writer. I think of myself instead as a marketer who also writes. As such, I thought I’d be a natural at writing for Medium. So far, I have to say, that has not been my experience.

To date, I have been rejected repeatedly by many of the top Medium publications. Even my articles best have made only a few bucks.

Let’s just say, these were not the results I wanted.

So I asked myself, what do the popular Medium writers have that I don’t?

So I started reading other people’s stuff. That’s when I first discover Tim Denning.

As Maya Angelou said:

“At the end of the day people won’t remember what you said or did, they will remember how you made them feel.”

This was certainly the case with Tim, I don’t remember which of his pieces I read first, but I remember how he made me feel: hopeful.

I can certainly see why Tim is one of the 50 biggest writers on Medium. His mix of humor, personal experience, and advice tends to land just right with me.

I am not suggesting that I — or anyone else — should try to be more like Tim Denning. On the contrary, I think of him as an example of many talented writers on Medium who have discovered their own voices.

And — in Tim’s case, built a massive following in the process.

Having spent the last 27 years working for other companies, I realize that I’ve never really written in my voice for work. Now that I am just me, starting my own business, I’ve had to face a daunting learning curve.

On Medium, I have found the support and encouragement I need to reinvent myself as a digital marketer and writer with his own voice.

As an expression of thanks, I’d like to blow a little smoke at Tim by sharing some of the things I’ve learned from (and about) him below.

Tim Had Me at Hello

1. He’s popular

Call it an unfulfilled desire to be popular in school if you want, but I still want to be one of the cool kids. If there is such a thing on Medium, with 100M+ views, Tim Denning would be the prom king or the star quarterback.

Although you can’t see how many people follow him on Tim’s Medium profile, as of December of 2019, he had 160,770 followers (he wrote a post about it). He’s also on other channels, including:

• Twitter: 16.3K Following 18.5K Followers
• Instagram: 1,682 followers 1,036 following
• LinkedIn: 500+ connections
• Published elsewhere: Business Insider, CNBC, Addicted2Success (apparently, this blog kickstarted his success and helped him find his voice), Entrepreneur, Mamamia, Thought Catalog, Cheddar, Thrive Global, and Ladders.

2. He’s Humble

Humility is a funny thing. Most people who claim to be humble are not. I love Tim because he’s never claimed that his success is entirely undesired. Instead, he suggests there is a reciprocal relationship between ambition and humility.

As Tim explained in his free ebook, “Draw people into your community by giving them value and not trying to take anything away for yourself.”

According to Tim, “For the law of reciprocity to work, you must filter out from your online presence any trace of selfishness or suggestion that makes people think it’s all about you.” He added, “Online influence is built by doing the exact opposite and making it not about you.”

When I write, I try to remember Tim’s simple advice: “Medium is not about you; it’s about the readers and their hopes and dreams.”

3. He’s Funny

Without trying too hard, Tim’s irreverent, self-deprecating humor and frequent references to his “chubby cheeks” makes me laugh out loud.

In one of his recent posts, he referred to himself, “As the resident douchebag that is asked to give social media advice to every man/woman and their dog — because of a tiny bit of success online that was mostly an accident — it literally kills me to have the conversation.”

4. And Brutally Honest

In the same piece, he explained how he gets asked for social media advice from “dudes in suits” looking for “my secret to social media so they can make money from it.”

“Their intention is selfish, which is part of the problem,” he said.

And then he lays them out cold with:

These questions make my eyes bleed and my tongue slide to the back of my throat, blocking my airway and causing a resuscitation event to occur.

First of all, strategy kills social media.

Second, the word content takes a beautiful piece of art and turns it into a lifeless, soulless, dry, cold, heartless act that blocks the world from ever hearing what you’re trying to say.

5. He’s Not Perfect

Tim openly admits he’s not perfect. Not only does he accept it, but he also encourages imperfection. In one recent post, he said, “Show yourself you’re human by being intentionally imperfect. The posts I’ve created, that cut deep, all have errors in them.”

In his ebook, he goes as far as to recommend using “the least perfect photo of yourself to use on your profile.” I wonder what Martha Stewart would say about that?

For someone like me, a perfectionist who tends to take himself too seriously, I need to hear that kind of advice frequently. Tim helps me not only to be imperfect, but he also encourages me to be myself.

6. He’s Prolific

Tim recommends posting daily and not asking yourself why.

As he said, “Every day, post something.”

“It can be a few words that took you five minutes to write or somebody else’s piece of content that you’ve carefully curated. The time taken isn’t important; it’s the habit you build by posting daily that counts.”

In the last 30 days, I calculated that Tim had published 48 articles. Here is my rough calculation of his results:

• The average number of claps: 2,516
• The average number of comments for the last 30 days of posts: 25
• Most comments are to tell Tim why he is right or wrong. Some comments ate extremely positive, but just as many are negative. Not often do you see a neutral comment that says, “Nice article.”
• Interestingly, his response to negative comments is to like everything.

7. He Gets Rejected

Somehow, knowing that Tim gets rejected makes it hurt less when it happens to me.

He advised, “If you write, you’ll get rejected, a lot. Rejection is a fact of life. The key is to get used to the rejection. You gain mastery when you fall in love with rejection.”

He admits facing rejection is not comfortable, saying, “It’s easy to be disappointed or throw a tantrum.” At the same acknowledging, “If I don’t get rejected by publications then I’m not growing.”

8. He’s a person, not a brand

In a world already overcrowded with self-promoters, I see Tim as more of an anti-influencer.

I like to imagine at his computer, pattering away on the keyboard.

Then maybe he’d look up and say something reassuring like, “Don’t worry mate, I’ve got your back.”

As he wrote in his ebook, “What you WON’T need The last thing on the planet you will need to write on Medium is a ridiculous personal brand.”

Then, he drives the point home saying, “Hear me loud and clear: nobody cares who you are or what your brand is. All anybody cares about is how you can be helpful. They want to be inspired, taught, shown, entertained, and made to laugh.” [Emphasis added]

9. He’s Super Helpful

Navigating the world of social media and blogging isn’t easy. Tim is like a super helpful personal guide. Like Pocahontas.

Tim is an open book in many ways. He shares in equal parts about his writing process, personal struggles, failures, and achievements. In doing so, Tim offers free advice that helps guide and inspire me and many others.

As he says repeatedly, “if I can do this, so can you.”

10. He’s Unconventional

As Tim said, “Cookie-cutter social media posts are everywhere.” In a recent post, he also said, “You become one of the herd when you say, do, and talk like everybody else.”

I couldn’t agree more. What I dislike the most about digital media today, especially digital marketing, is all of the sameness. It’s as if every online marketer downloaded and is working from the same outdated templates.

I think Tim would agree, the world desperately needs more originality.

For his part, Tim’s stated goal is to inspire the world through personal development and entrepreneurship.

As a marketer, I am fascinated, the powerful work that Tim and many other top writers are doing on Medium today. In many ways, it previsions — and indeed is shaping — the future of digital media and communications as a whole.

In my estimation, Medium is quickly becoming “Netflix for readers.”

In a time where consumer audiences of all stripes are becoming increasingly immune to marketing, Medium, rather than being a digital marketing channel itself, provides a model for elevating digital marketing by infusing storytelling with expertise and brand promise.

10. He’s Not Selling Me Anything

As a mid-career professional and starting my own business, I make a pretty good mark to many predatory online experts who want to help me.

In some ways, on Medium, we are all selling something, Tim included, but what I love about him is he does it without making me feel used. While I did pony up $20 for his ebook, since then, I have not gotten even one drip email from him. Not one. For the record, the ebook was worth it.

TBH, I spend more on Starbucks.

I follow lots of thought leaders, but Tim is different. Following him is like dating a guy with many lovers, yet he somehow manages to satisfy all of us and still make each one feel special. Sure, we all know he has other lovers. We don’t care.

11. Tim Completes Me

Think more like Austin Powers and Mini-Me than Tom Cruise.

Tim and me. Video from YouTube.

Finally, let end by saying, Tim, if you’re reading this, you had me at hello.

Full disclosure: I have never met nor communicated with Tim Denning (though I would enjoy meeting him).

About Me

I am a veteran marketing guy with extensive experience in marketing high-value enterprise technology who recently turned free agent.

I write about business marketing trends and my adventures as a genuine oddball in the corporate world. You can follow me here or sign up for email updates at Trojan Rabbits.