It’s Been 60 Days Since I Posted on Medium— Here’s How It Set Me up for an Amazing 2023
Doing more doesn’t always get more done
New beginnings don’t always line up with new years.
We put so much pressure on ourselves to change come January, that any progress made often falls to the wayside within a few months.
It’s why I don’t generally set New Year’s resolutions.
That said, the beginning of 2023 has serendipitously lined up with a litany of recent changes to my writing journey.
Here’s why taking a hiatus from Medium (and all other social media) was the best decision I made all year. And how it set me up for perhaps the most profitable year of my life.
In 2022, I reached my limit.
I’m not one for New Year’s resolutions.
Instead, I try to implement changes as they come— without waiting for inspiration or the right moment to strike. As Steven Pressfield writes in “The War of Art”,
“The professional has learned that success, like happiness, comes as a by-product of work.”
Perhaps the biggest lesson I’ve learned throughout my journey of writing online, is the that myth of timing is just that — a myth. Sitting down to write each day is progress, no matter the words you write. And a step forward is a step forward, regardless of when it’s taken.
When trying anything new, it’s in our nature to procrastinate — to wait for the perfect moment. Something Steven Pressfield, in the same book, calls “Resistance.”
So, midway through 2022, I swore to begin making changes swiftly and ruthlessly, without falling prey to daily Resistance.
This shift in mindset allowed me to realize my full potential — and find my limit.
2022 was a year of firsts for me. I:
- Created my first digital product — creating a total of 10 in 2022
- Started an email list from scratch — moving from 0 to 1,000+
- Started a YouTube channel — something I’ve always dreamed of
**And, most notably, I finally took a leap of faith into writing full-time, quitting my 9–5 in mid-April.
With each of these achievements, I felt a weight lifted from my subconscious.
My goals moved from one day to today.
But, as is the reality of life, when things become real, they become… well, real. And each step came with a new workload:
- Creating digital products meant I needed to learn how to market them
- Starting an email list created the expectation to write newsletters
- Beginning my YouTube journey meant developing an entirely new skillset
**And, most daunting of all — writing full-time brought with it the necessity to consistently make money from my words.
By year’s end, I had reached my limit.
I was posting consistently on 6 different platforms and creating 150+ pieces of content per month. I was managing, but each week, my burning passion for writing dampened.
I needed a hard reset.
I had thrown all my spaghetti at the wall — it was time to see what would stick.
I was heading in the wrong direction.
One of the biggest lessons I’ve learned since beginning my writing journey, is that wrong turns are much more important than right ones.
They teach you where you don’t want to go and allow you to hone in on what’s important to you.
But, much like throwing spaghetti at the wall, it takes time.
You first must select your noodles, then boil them. If you cook them too long, they will become mushy and unappetizing. Not long enough and it’s back to the pot they go. So, with an overflowing pot and a brain reaching mushy exhaustion, I decided to take a break.
To see what writing platforms I wanted to pursue long-term.
Since I first discovered Medium and decided to go all-in on the platform, my goal has been the same:
- Write on Medium
2. Talk about it on YouTube
This simple 2-step business model provides an outlet for creativity, the tools to grow an audience, and the ability to monetize my words.
But, somewhere along the way I got lost in other people’s dreams. Seeing so many others share their goals, and their wins, our paths intertwined. I began:
- Trying new business models to see if I liked them
- Posting on social media to build and understand my audience
- Chasing the money, and the satisfaction that came along with likes, shares, follows, and views.
What I learned is, with each new path came a new turn — something else to explore. Before I knew it, I wasn’t writing anymore. I was spending 90% of my days marketing, repurposing content, and creating social media posts.
I lost sight of my path — why I wanted to write in the first place.
The truth is, I just like writing — and want to be the best writer I can be. And, not to get too futuristic, but it’s my belief social media will soon become an automated process.
The skills that matter are those that are inherently human:
- Storytelling
- Conveying emotion
- Making sense of complicated ideas
All of which compile to produce the craft of writing — real writing. Not creating content in the niche of writing.
So, in November of 2022, I put out a post on all of my social media platforms announcing I was taking a break.
Then, I took one.
It’s been 60 days since I posted on social media.
After taking a week to rest, I used the money I had earned from… well, chasing the money to book a trip to Colombia.
For 3 weeks, I explored the country, sun-soaked and full of inspiration — free from daily social media commitments. During this time I wrote… like actually wrote:
- I journaled
- I wrote about my experiences
With no audience but myself. And, as I quickly felt lost without a routine, I began using my newfound time to explore new areas of writing:
- I started writing on Newsbreak (news articles)
- I made YouTube videos (video scripts)
I’m most definitely revealing myself as the word nerd I am, but, it was genuinely the happiest I’ve been in years.
I’d wake up, write for a few hours, explore the city, take a nap, and mull over my day’s experiences through nightly walks. Often stopping to record my thoughts on my phone.
Experimenting with a new form of writing (journalism) put me in a mode of objective observation. Instead of inserting myself into life, I could let it unfold around me, while taking notes.
After 2 weeks of writing on Newsbreak, and gaining over 1 million impressions, I met all the requirements for monetization:
- 10 articles
- 100 followers
I’ve applied and am now patiently waiting to be approved. I’ve heard it can take 3–4 weeks. 👉 You can check out my profile, here.
Although my journey to YouTube monetization has been much slower, I’ve been enjoying the process. And can feel myself becoming a more confident speaker with each video. 👉 I’d love for you to subscribe, here.
Here’s how it set me up for the most lucrative year of my life.
Life’s a puzzle — the first step is collecting all the pieces.
Refreshed, renewed, and after reconnecting with my creative self, I’ve begun remembering old quotes from classic books on writing.
One that’s currently resonating with me is from William Zinsser’s “On Writing Well”,
“Most first drafts can be cut by 50 percent without losing any information or losing the author’s voice.”
Often in life, we believe doing more is the key to getting more done. But, what I’ve learned is that doing more merely reveals what needs to be done.
To cook the perfect pot of spaghetti, you must first learn what noodles you need and how long to cook them — barring a cookbook this can only be learned by throwing many batches against the wall to see what sticks.
After trying every writing platform under the sun, I’ve found my next path — one that will bring me to the next level. For now, that means pursuing platforms that pay me to develop as a writer — opposed to promoting myself as a content creator:
Although I do believe social media is a vital aspect of any entrepreneurial endeavour, I’m taking a step back for now. One of my bold predictions for the future is that re-purposing content and creating social media posts will be primarily handled by AI. So, I’m exploring that too.
Luckily, my time spent exploring different writing paths in 2022, allowed me little pockets of financial cushioning. From my online store that gains new customers each day to my library of Medium articles which have begun supporting me through passive income.
So, as much as I don’t like waiting until the start of a new year to make changes, it’s lined up that way, in 2023.
Final thoughts: my writing goals for 2023.
This wouldn’t be a true New Year’s post if I didn’t include a quick reflection on last year’s goals before setting new ones.
So, here goes…
In 2022, these were my 3 main writing goals:
- Create my first digital product ✅
- Start writing fiction ❌
- Record audio ✅
My goals for 2023 are to:
- Write a book (I’ve already started)
- Start utilizing AI to help me focus on writing
- Get monetized on YouTube (👉 I’d love for you to subscribe, here)
Although I enjoyed my time away, it feels good to be back. Let me know, what have you been up to?
Hi, I’m Hudson. I hope you enjoyed this story. If you did, consider becoming a Medium member. For $5 a month, you’ll get unlimited access to stories like this one. Plus, you’ll be helping support me as a writer, as I will receive a portion of your membership fee at no extra cost to you. Click here to get started. (+1,000 karma points). ❤️🙏