Summary

The author is grappling with an addiction to Medium, acknowledging its impact on their productivity and outlining a plan to manage this dependency.

Abstract

The author confesses to a growing addiction to the Medium platform, which has begun to overshadow their other projects. They describe a routine of obsessively checking notifications, engaging with comments, and analyzing reader interactions, which consumes their time and distracts from their writing goals. The author experiences a mix of satisfaction and regret after spending hours immersed in reading and interacting on Medium, often neglecting their own writing. To combat this, they propose a three-step plan: drafting in a word document to avoid the platform, ignoring notifications until writing is complete, and limiting reading time to one hour a day with a timer. The author also invites readers to support them through membership and coffee donations.

Opinions

The author enjoys the positive feedback on Medium but consciously ignores negative comments.
They express a dependency on the platform's engagement metrics, such as reads, claps, highlights, comments, and follower count.
The author feels a sense of personal connection and validation from Medium's curated content feed and the community's interactions.
Despite the enjoyment, they recognize the need to balance their engagement on Medium with their own writing productivity.
The author views their Medium usage as an addiction that requires active measures to control.
They plan to enforce discipline on their Medium usage to prioritize their writing and maintain productivity.

It’s Official — I’m Addicted.

And I kinda like it.

Seriously, since joining the Medium platform I am not getting a lot else done with my other projects.

They have fallen by the wayside.

That’s when I realized how dependant I have become.

When I wake I’m checking my Medium notifications.

Have I had any more reads since the last 24 hours have passed? (Seriously?)

Any claps? Any highlights? Any Comments?

I reply to the comments. They make me feel good to hear the good stuff. I ignore the bad stuff, who wants to hear that anyway.

I check out who has clapped and why they only left one clap. (Seriously)

I check out who has highlighted.

I can’t wait to see how many new followers do I have?

I go to look at their profiles. I read some of their stories. I sometimes follow them. Sometimes I don’t. It depends if we connect.

Then I look at my stats.

One day I will understand them (Seriously, stats are not my thing, words are).

I check my MPP earnings. Like I am expecting some miracle seeing as I haven’t published as much due to my newfound story addiction.

Then I read some of the newest stories that have been recommended on my feed.

Like I am someone special. Medium has selected stories that I should read based on my reading history, people I follow. My interests. It gives me a warm glow like Medium cares and wants to help me feed my addiction.

By now, I am lost in a myriad of words. I have given in to my story addiction. There is nothing that can save me. I have succumbed.

Several hours later I emerge. Satisfied. Spent. Filled.

Still in my dressing gown.

I am on my (..) th cup of coffee. (I’ve lost count)

Where has the day gone?

And the worst part is I’ve written nothing.

Seriously, I will have to break this addiction.

If I am going to write, as planned to do when I started here.

…

Here’s What I Plan to Do to Break This Addiction

#3 Write Drafts in a Word Document

This will mean I cannot even look at Medium until I have completed my daily writing.

#2 Do Not Look at My Notifications Until

I have completed my daily writing.

#1 Set a Timer When I Start to Read

I will limit my reading time to an hour a day. During this time, I will read stories I have booked marked. I will comment on a minimum of three articles a day. I will probably comment on more. I just can’t help myself. I will check out the profiles of new followers and read and comment on their stories.

Thank you for reading.

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