Summary

The author of the article expresses their disappointment at not being selected for Medium's Creator Fellowship Program but remains optimistic about their writing future on the platform.

Abstract

The article discusses the author's recent experience with Medium's Creator Fellowship Program. Despite being invited to apply and feeling confident about meeting the criteria, the author was not accepted into the program. The author reflects on the initial disappointment but finds encouragement in being considered and the recognition that comes with it. They acknowledge the financial security the program would have provided, especially as a father of two with a full-time job. Nevertheless, the author takes pride in their past success on Medium, including being in the top 1,500 writers and receiving bonuses. They resolve to continue writing and improving, using the rejection as motivation to prove their worth and achieve their financial goals independently. The author emphasizes self-reliance and views writing on Medium as a long-term endeavor, committed to their craft regardless of program inclusion.

Opinions

The author believes that being invited to apply for the Fellowship Program is a sign that they are doing something right on Medium.
They express that the guaranteed minimum amount from the Fellowship Program would have been beneficial for their financial stability and writing consistency.
The author is encouraged by their previous achievements on the platform, such as receiving bonuses and gaining followers, which indicates that they are engaging and growing their audience.
They admit to feeling disappointed but are determined not to be disheartened or let this setback affect their writing ambitions.
The author sees the rejection as an opportunity to prove that Medium's decision was incorrect and is motivated to achieve their desired financial success without the program's support.
There is a concern that guaranteed payments might lead to complacency, and the author acknowledges the potential benefits of not being included in the program in terms of personal growth and maintaining a drive to improve.
The author reaffirms their commitment to writing on Medium, viewing it as a long-term game and expressing their intention to continue striving for inclusion in future writers' programs.

MEDIUM THINGS

I Wasn’t Accepted Into The Creator Fellowship Program And It’s OK

It’s OK to be disappointed but always try to not be disheartened

A few weeks ago, I wrote about the new Creator Fellowship Program that Medium is rolling out for the next 3 months, starting August. It essentially is a program where writers who are enrolled will be guaranteed a minimum amount every single month — starting at $200.

You can read all about it from the link below.

Medium Just Announced The Creator Fellowship Program For Writers

For the next 3 months, this program will be replacing the bonus incentive

medium.com

If I’m to be totally honest, I was expecting to be selected as I feel I meet all the given criteria. However, I also knew that because I was only invited to APPLY, it wasn’t a given that I’d get it.

Medium spelt it out clearly in the invitation email and I guess I am one of those who did not get in for this round.

As disappointed as I am right now, there are quite a few things that I can learn from this rejection.

I passed the first hurdle

Despite not being selected to be part of the program, I was invited to apply for it. Meaning that I was at least considered. Meaning that I’m currently doing something right for the people of Medium to take notice and wanted to gauge if I was a suitable fit for the program.

I’ll take encouragement from that and hope that future programs where it will benefit writers, I will be selected to be part of that.

I’m still doing OK and will continue to do OK

The fact that I won’t be guaranteed a minimum amount for the next 3 months is for me, the most disappointing part of this whole thing.

Being a father of two, working a 9–5, that guaranteed amount would have done me a whole lot of good in keeping me writing consistently on the platform. Seeing that my full time job is starting to pick up a bit in terms of work, I may struggle a little to find time to write as much as I would like in the next few months.

However, the fact that I’ve been part of the top 1,500 writers on the platform over the last 3 months (I got the $500 bonus for April and June, and $100 for May) tells me that I’m doing OK on the platform.

It means I’m being read by readers and am engaging enough to keep growing. I’ve also recently hit 3k followers which is great.

If I’m entitled for the last bonus for this month, then I know that I’m still doing OK and that I will continue to do OK.

I won’t let a little disappointment set me back at all.

And this is all it is — disappointment

I’m disappointed, I am. But I won’t get disheartened just because I wasn’t accepted into a program that is going to last for all but 3 months. If this program was a lifetime (until Medium cease to exist), then maybe I would feel a little disheartened.

If anything, I think it has given me a reason to prove that Medium made the wrong choice by not accepting me into the program.

And it has given me a reason to go on and achieve the financial amount that I want to achieve without the guaranteed amount. I need to use this disappointment to my advantage.

Plus, there are probably a lot more writers out there like me too — who were invited to apply but didn’t get in.

No use crying over something that I have no control over but to try my very best in things that I do have control over.

The best help is self-help

As nice as it would have been to get the guaranteed minimum amount from Medium, there was always going to be that risk of being overly reliant on that for the next 3 months.

For example, if I was guaranteed a minimum of $200 a month, I’d probably just do the bare minimum to get it.

There’s always the risk I’d get complacent and not try to improve and be better. Who knows how that would impact my writing after 3 months. While I believe that I won’t be like that but there isn’t a guarantee that I wouldn’t.

Although I’ll never find out now, I have no choice but to just keep improving and to keep going after my financial goals on Medium the best I can now.

Moving forward, I will miss the extra bonuses which I’ve been fortunate enough to qualify for and I will rue the miss opportunity to be part of the Fellowship program.

But I’ve always said that for me, writing on Medium is a longterm game and I’m in it for as long as the platform is here and serves me well.

So far, it has served me well and I’m gaining more from it than I am losing.

Fellowship program or no, I will keep writing, editing, publishing, and keep going for as long and as best as I can. The only thing I can do is to make sure that for future writers’ programs, I’m at a point where they have no choice but to include me in it.

That’s the aim.