Summary

The article emphasizes the importance of consistency in blogging, particularly on Medium, and how it led to the author's financial success after an initial period of doubt.

Abstract

The author shares their journey of blogging on Medium, detailing the initial struggle of low readership and earnings, which almost led to quitting. However, persistence in writing daily posts resulted in a significant increase in income by the fourth month. The article highlights the challenges of blogging, including the technical aspects like SEO and website maintenance, which the author found overwhelming. Medium is presented as a user-friendly platform that allows writers to focus on content creation without needing technical expertise. The author encourages aspiring writers to commit to writing consistently for a year, as advised by fellow writer Tim Denning, to build a reliable audience and achieve success.

Opinions

The author believes that financial reward is a significant motivator for writers and is a personal goal.
Despite considering themselves an average writer, the author advocates for consistent writing as a path to improvement and success.
The author values the ease of use that Medium provides, contrasting it with the complexities of managing a personal blog.
The article suggests that a dedicated readership is built over time through regular content delivery.
The author expresses that the initial lack of immediate success and the learning curve of blogging can be discouraging, but perseverance is crucial.
The author shares a personal revelation that a year-long commitment to writing without obsessing over immediate metrics can alleviate pressure and lead to better writing habits.
Success on Medium is attributed to showing up consistently and providing content that readers can rely on.

Blogging 101 — The Power of Consistency

Medium for beginners.

Alas, the cave of darkness is the only path to producing the best work; there is no easy path, no shorter path, no path of less suffering. — Jim Collins, Author of Good to Great

Last month I had my biggest monetary win on Medium so far, in just four months of writing. For a writer, it’s rewarding to get paid. That is the goal.

That is my goal.

I won’t mince words.

I want to be paid for my time, and I have something to say.

I’ll let you in on a little secret.

After three months of writing consistently on Medium, when month three brought a dip in my earnings, I almost gave up.

That’s right. I wanted to throw in the towel. Never go on Medium again. Not even to read.

I had been writing a lot — every day.

I was looking at Unsplash, reading books, listening to Podcasts for ideas, regularly reading other — more successful — Medium writers, staying off social media so all my time could go to cracking the Medium code of success. I was living, breathing, eating Medium morning, noon, and night.

So when month three’s earnings came in, I was let down. I felt defeated. I wanted to quit.

I took at few days off, and they went back at it.

I rallied and kept going. After all, in the grand scheme of life, three months is nothing. It’s not long enough to define as the maximum time you’ll give yourself to accomplish your dreams.

So rationally — after some thought — I kept up with my goal of writing one post a day, and you know what, my earnings quadrupled the next month. I couldn’t believe it.

It’s a good thing I didn’t stop.

Before I started writing on Medium, I created two blogs.

I posted my first post with high hopes. I thought I’d get one or two readers right away. Nothing. My second post, nothing. Third post, crickets.

By my tenth post, I had maybe two or three readers.

I loved those readers. I thought those readers were fantastic. I had so much gratitude and appreciation for those three readers, really, two, because one was a good friend of mine, so, not sure if she counts.

I felt blessed, but at the same time, I wasn’t sure I knew what I was doing. I still don’t know much about SEO.

Blogging is a lot of work, with few tangible results. And I’m not talking about the “creating content” part.

Writing comes easily for me; it’s the other stuff that doesn’t.

I’m talking about the coding, and choosing the right fonts, the SEO, and Google Analytics, and, what is Yoost for anyway? — the techy stuff.

All the little details you put into a blog — the decisions you have to make — in addition to writing content can be overwhelming with little impact. Either it is a time suck or a money suck. I eventually chose to hire someone to build my website while not making any money.

That’s no fun.

I don’t want to use mental energy figuring out how to build a website. I’d rather concentrate on what I love — writing.

Medium can act as a blog for you without having to get technical. You can start a publication on Medium, which works as your blog. If you are a decent writer, you’ll get followers.

While I do still blog, Medium is giving me an income in the meantime, which was relatively easy to come by.

The more work you put into it, the more success you see.

Show up.

I was able to start earning money in a few short months because I show up. I show up every day. I show up every day and put myself out there. I show up even on days when I don’t want to show up.

When you show up and put your work out there, someone will show up for you. Readers will find you.

I know if I can do it, you can too.

I don’t think I am a great writer, or even a good writer, right now, I would say I’m average, and there are many writers better than me and I aspire to their success.

The only way I will get there is to keep writing.

Recently, I read something Tim Denning wrote; he said, start to write and give yourself a year. Don’t worry about stats or claps or followers. Just write for a year and see where you are at the end of that year. See if you’re able to put in the effort it takes to write consistently for one year.

Check yourself first; see if this is really what you want to be spending your time doing.

Tim’s advice brought a calm over me. It took the pressure off. Oh, I can do that. I can put in the effort for a year and then reassess.

I needed to hear that advice just then.

The writers who are read frequently on Medium share a common thread — they show up and write consistently. Everyone gives this same advice because it’s true. Consistency is one key element behind success.

Your audience wants to know they can rely on you. What does your audience rely on? That you have something to say.

Why do they depend on you? Because you keep showing up.

Click here to get my 100 Things to Get Started on Medium Now

Jessica is a writer, an online entrepreneur, and a recovering Type A personality. She lives in Los Angeles with her extrovert daughter, two dogs, and two cats.