5 Harmful Mistakes Most New Medium Writers Make and How to Avoid Them
#2. They obsess over their stats.
Most new writers are trying to succeed on Medium and failing. Why?
Because they repeat the same mistakes others before them have already made. It’s a cycle.
I wasn’t any different.
I, too, was wide-eyed, hopeful, and expected to succeed on Medium in my first few months of writing. Other new writers have made it to the top in a short span of time. What’s stopping me?
Many things, of course, and I had to find out about them the hard way.
More than 100 articles, to be exact.
That’s how much and how long I’ve been writing here. It was only two months ago that I broke through my first $100 month on Medium.
Before that, I toiled just to earn my stripes. However, I wasn’t spared from making the same mistakes many new writers make in their first few months.
The same mistakes you’re probably making right now.
You see, it wasn’t luck that made other new writers succeed off the bat. Most of them just knew what to write. Specifically, they knew who they were writing for.
This is important because if you don’t learn it, you’re bound to make the first common mistake new writers make. In fact, here’s what will actually happen.
Nobody will read your stuff.
You could only be so lucky to get a handful of views a week. However, most of your articles will flop.
You won’t grow. You’ll become miserable because you’re not growing.
You’ll see other writers skyrocket, while you’re left to stagnate. While they soar, you’ll fall fast.
Because with each passing day you’re not getting the results you desire, your resolve will weaken. You’ll fall to the point where you’ll quit altogether.
Your writing career will fail before it even began. And that’ll be a shame.
Fortunately, it’s not yet too late. How do you avoid this? Read on.
1. They Don’t Write For The Reader
Instead, they write for themselves. This is the most common piece of advice, and yet, it’s also often overlooked.
When I was just starting, I failed to know this. Besides college, writing has always been personal for me. It’s my way to confront my thoughts and feelings and give them structure.
Of course, that was a mistake. To succeed on Medium, my writing shouldn’t be about me. It should be about my reader — always.
You’re not reading this article because you particularly like me or know me. You’re here because you want to learn something.
And that’s fine. We’re all in the same boat.
People only read your stories to see what they can get from them.
Ironically, however, most new writers are too self-interested to know that. So they fail to deliver anything valuable to their readers.
First and foremost, your writing must always answer an important question.
What’s in it for them?
Are you here to provide solutions to their everyday problems? To inspire them to be better than they were yesterday? To inform them of something important?
If you answer that question, you’ll experience massive growth in no time.
2. They Obsess Over Their Stats
The fastest way to fail on Medium is to obsess over your stats. Been there, felt that, done that.
Seriously, I was crazy over my stats in the first few months. I clicked on them every few minutes, just waiting and hoping for them to change. Ironically, I wasn’t getting anything done.
And that was the problem. I was waiting like I was owed something.
I wasn’t. And you’re not.
We don’t owe you views. Medium doesn’t owe you anything.
Similarly, you don’t deserve more views. However, we do deserve more articles from you.
And I learned about this the hard way.
So instead of obsessing over your stats, write your next article. And when you’re done with that, write some more.
Because the only way to get those stats up is to release many quality articles. And you won’t learn to write quality articles if you don’t practice.
That’s where your action should be, not in the delusion of numbers.
That way, you’re going to get so great, we can’t possibly ignore you. If we do, however, that shouldn’t stop you.
Keep writing, and the rest will easily follow.
3. They Think Size Matters
Publication size doesn’t matter. I want to hammer this point because it’s the most common mistake every new writer makes.
They think a big publication with a massive following will help them reach more readers. Theoretically, it can. But so does every publication out there.
Medium has over 60 million monthly readers.
Imagine 60 million people reading your post. You can succeed in a small publication just as much as a big one.
Don’t believe me?
The Startup is currently the biggest publication on Medium with over 700K followers. But my articles in a relatively smaller publication like Age of Awareness have seen more success than all of my Startup articles combined.
(For comparison, Age of Awareness only has 41K followers to date.)
Rather than size, think about how it’ll fit you. I didn’t intend for that to sound crude, but I’m right.
There’s always a home for your articles. It’s just a matter of finding the right fit for it.
If not, then publish naked. Many self-published articles do well and get noticed by many readers and Medium editors alike.
Of course, aim to get published in reputable places like official Medium publications, Mind Cafe, The Ascent, etc. This will give you more authority as a writer. And that’s important, too.
The idea is to get your work out there. As much as possible. As soon as possible.
4. They Fail to Be Consistent
The more you write, the more you write.
I wish I thought of this gem, but I got this from Nicolas Cole.
It makes sense. My worst performing month was when I failed to consistently write on Medium.
Are you starting to get it?
Everyone will experience success at different times. However, the one thing all successful people share in common is their consistency.
And for writing careers, routines make up consistency.
However, consistency doesn’t mean doing the same thing over and over again, hoping for different results. That’s insanity.
Instead, learn from every article you publish. And apply everything you’ve learned until something sticks.
You can fail consistently. But you’ll only truly fail when you’re not consistent.
5. They Like to Get Rich Quickly
There’s nothing wrong with wanting to get rich quickly. I want to get rich now. However, this mindset may not work well on Medium.
It’s simple. You don’t succeed if you don’t put in the work. Like most things, Medium will take time to grow.
I’ve read somewhere that you need to write your first 50–100 articles before you expect anything here.
This isn’t a get-rich-quick scheme. It’s a process.
However, new writers are already complaining about their results when they haven’t even completed their first full month.
Take it easy. Learn the platform. You need to learn how to walk before you can even run.
I’ve been here about 7 months, and I’ve written over 100 articles under my belt. I’m only starting to make a substantial amount of money now.
What about you?
Are you going to keep whining or are you going to start working?
The Bottom Line
I’m not going to sugarcoat it for you.
It’s going to be so difficult before it gets easy. And even then, you’ll have to stay consistent with your writing, otherwise, you’ll lose any momentum.
Trust me, I know. It’s much harder to start back up again once you’ve stopped. That’s what I kept doing in the past few months.
If I learned these earlier, I would’ve been further up the ladder already. However, I don’t regret the path I’ve taken and the mistakes I’ve made.
I’ve got a long way to go, but every day, I’m a step closer to getting there.
You will, too. As long as you show up, make progress, and not lose heart.
At the end of the day, that’s what your reader needs from you.
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