8 Lessons I’ve Learned From Publishing on Medium 100+ Times
#8. This is only the beginning
What a journey it’s been.
I still remember when I was a clueless kid online with a Wordpress blog writing anime reviews. Don’t worry, I’m not going back to that now.
In all honesty, I never thought I’d get to 100 blog posts on Medium. I found the platform in 2018 and never got serious about it until September 2019. I’ve grown so much.
But enough about me. Here’s some advice I would tell any aspiring blogger that isn’t sure if Medium is worth it or not.
1. If you’re in it for the money, stop right now.
Pretty self-explanatory.
Every successful writer has said this on multiple occasions and it’s 100% true. If this isn’t something you are willing to write at least 100 blog posts for, you won’t last long at all.
If you just want the money, I hate to break it to you but you won’t make a dime unless you produce content every day.
Out of the 100 blog posts I’ve posted, only 4 have been curated. That’s completely fine with me, if one person looks at my writing, I’m happy.
But if that’s going to piss you off, especially if you don’t have any previous writing experience, get ready to make a dollar for 6 months.
If that doesn’t bother you, welcome to Medium.
2. You HAVE to write at least one article every 2 days to be successful.
My best month on Medium was February 2020.
That was a grind month for me. And I mean GRIND. Some days I put out two articles, but I made sure to write at least one per day.
After that month, I couldn’t believe my eyes. I made over 100 dollars. I heard only about 8% of writers on Medium earn over 100 dollars. I felt on top of the world.
So write like your life depends on it.
3. You have to develop you’re own signature style.
I’m still working on this.
But one thing I’ve learned from studying all of the successful writers on here is that they all have their own signature style. It’s so unique to the point that whatever they post is going to be awesome.
They put their spin on things and they’re not afraid to speak their mind. It’s inspiring.
Out of the four posts I’ve made that were curated, I thought they were terrible. My “worst” one ended up being my most viewed article. But as I looked back again and again, I figured out what made it so special.
A helpful personal story.
For example, my most successful blog post was about waking up early in college. All I did was state all of the benefits I got from that routine.
To be honest I thought it was nothing special. I wasn’t even in a hurry to put it out, I remember calling it my “shit post” because I just didn’t believe in it.
Fast forward a few months and it has over 10,000 views.
That just goes to show you need something that readers remember you for. Something that will grab their attention and keep them hooked on your writing. Everyone resonates with their audience in their own special way.
All you have to do is find your way.
4. You have to take risks, even if they fail.
I took a lot of risks with some of my posts.
I experimented like hell sometimes and things still didn’t work out. I tried jazzing up my titles, writing on different topics, and making stuff I thought was unique.
A lot of those articles flopped. But do I regret it? Hell no.
Writing is writing at the end of the day, whether it’s good or bad.
Growth is growth, no matter how big.
5. Trolls don’t even post, you’re way above they’re league anyways.
I’ve learned this a few times on my Medium journey when I look at other writers’ negative comments.
Then I click on their profiles only to find out they have 15 followers and one post up. Can’t say I’m not surprised.
Don’t let people like this bother you. Trust me, they’re not even worth a response.
6. You’re writing isn’t terrible.
Let me backtrack a little bit.
Your first blog post is going to suck. Point blank. But does that mean you should hold on to the belief that your writing will always suck?
I mean, don’t get cocky like you’re the second coming of J.K. Rowling, but you need that confidence in yourself to keep going.
Every article you make has a chance of being successful. Remember that.
7. Pay attention to yourself more than others.
Everyone’s going to have a different experience on this platform.
Mine might be completely different from yours. You might have more or less articles than me, you might make more money than me, you might have more followers than me, etc. That’s fine.
There are some incredibly successful writers on this platform and you should do your best to learn from them. But just because you learn and try to replicate their success, it doesn’t mean you’ll have the same results. Your growth might be faster or slower than someone else’s. That’s also fine.
It goes with my previous point about finding your own unique style.
Don’t worry about what everyone else is doing, it’ll only make you more self-conscious about your growth. Just post like hell and see what you learn on the way. Be yourself. That’s what people love on here.
8. This is only the beginning.
It’s only the beginning. I get chills saying that.
I have so much more to go and so much more to learn. It’s crazy I’ve gotten this far. I feel like I’ve improved a lot as a writer over this bumpy journey.
Whenever I read successful writers on here like Tom Kuegler, Matt Lillywhite, Shannon Ashley, etc, they make me realize I have a lot to learn. I still read them and I say “I want to write like that one day” like a little kid.
I don’t know, maybe that’s the nerd in me. Anyways, get hungry.
Always crave more growth and knowledge as a writer. Never settle for anything other than greatness in your writing. And support other writers!
Who knows, you might have an aspiring writer getting pumped by your work too.
Welp that’s 100 down. Only infinity more to go.
