Could You Make a Career Out of Medium? — Part Two

Let me tell you how to make the big bucks.

A few weeks, ago I published a story called “Could You Make a Career Out of Medium?” where I planned to do my best to turn the “more relational” Medium into a career.

I figured I am a regular person, and if I could turn Medium into a career, any ordinary person could do it. I would be the guinea pig in the experiment and regularly report about my progress and challenges.

Before starting my project, I got sick from the second shot of the Covid vaccine and decided to take a couple of weeks off. No, problem, I will begin my new job as a guinea pig a little late. I was all ready to go. I was feeling great. And then I got sick again.

I’ve had intermittent nausea and intestinal distress, which caused me to lose nearly ten pounds in less than three weeks. The weight loss part is needed as I am on the “chunky” side, but the way I’m losing the weight isn’t enjoyable. I was told that these uncommon side effects could last another few weeks. If it goes beyond that time, I will see a specialist.

Anyway, I have had a lot of time to think and, more importantly, to read Medium since I haven’t been up to writing. I’ve been immersed in the Medium universe just like I was for more than a year before I started writing on Medium. It’s much easier to see how things work when you are outside looking in than when you have been sucked into the world of stats and the Partner Program.

The Partner Program is like a giant magnet that pulled me away from the things that I originally planned to write about on Medium and how I planned to write. It has sucked me into the world of Medium, Medium, Medium. Medium stats, Medium money, Medium drama, “more relational” Medium, everybody’s views have dropped on Medium, Medium publications, courses about how to make money on Medium, I work 7 minutes a year and earn three-trillion dollars a month on Medium, here’s how I gain 72,000 followers every day on Medium by sitting in my beanbag and eating bonbons. Even I am starting to find it to be tedious, and that is saying a lot.

Things didn’t follow the plan that I had for Medium and me. I was planning on writing personal essay type of stuff. That didn’t happen. I got sucked in by the giant Partner Program magnet. I’m not trying to blame anyone. That’s my fault.

By nature, I am more of a Shannon Ashley type of writer. No, I am not comparing myself to Shannon Ashley. There is only one Shannon Ashley. Everyone needs to travel their own path on Medium. She is traveling her path, and it has changed the life of her and her daughter for the better. That is a wonderful thing. She doesn’t pretend to have some secret formula that will cost you $497 to determine the key to her success. She works hard, is persistent, and writes from her heart. People like that, and they read what she writes. That’s how she earns the big bucks.

Most writers who earn the big bucks on Medium do not operate like Shannon Ashley. Maybe they will throw a little bit of personal stuff in here and there, but not too much. Here’s their formula: You must be a decent writer. You must write something that readers will be interested in. You must have engaged readers. Do this repeatedly over time. That’s how you make the big money. That’s the formula. I just saved you $497. Let me break it down for you.

First, you need to be a decent writer. That means use spell check and Grammarly or something like it. Your writing needs to be coherent. Pretend that you are reading your article to a fourth-grader. If a fourth-grader would look at you and say, “what the hell are you talking about,” your writing probably sucks. Don’t be afraid to take an introductory writing class online or read some basic writing books. Remember, knowledge is power.

Second, you must write something that readers will be interested in. If you want to get some extra points, tie in some personal stuff about yourself to draw in the reader and make them feel like they know you. Don’t expect to get many reads when you write about the plight of the iguana during the Irish Potato Famine. No one cares. Ask yourself “who cares” when you are writing. If your answer is “nobody,” write about something else.

By the way, do you even know the demographics of the typical Medium reader? Go look it up. Do you know what is trending on Medium? Go look it up.

And for some odd reason, listicles seem to be effective no matter how much I hate them. So, if you want to make the big bucks, it doesn’t matter that you hate what you have to write about. Your job is to serve the reader, not yourself; that’s how you earn your money.

Third, you need engaged readers. It doesn’t matter if you have 2,000 followers if only 4 of them read what you write. It doesn’t matter if your story is in a publication with more than 300,000 readers if only 23 of them regularly read the publication. It’s hard to be “more relational” when there is no one to be “relational” with. Engaged readers are what get you paid.

Fourth, and finally, you need to do all of this repeatedly and over an extended period of time. That’s what I call “persistence.” Consistency over time is persistence.

That’s the basic formula that I come up with again and again.

I guess I don’t’ need to be a guinea pig to determine if you can turn Medium into a career. You likely can, over time, if you follow this formula. But if you want to purchase a course, feel free. I’ve taken three paid courses, and I’ve watched virtually every free webinar that I’ve been able to sign up for. I love free information. Remember, knowledge is power.

I’ve always wondered why the courses don’t guarantee that a student will earn $X if they do X number of things in X amount of time or get their money back. I guess it’s because some students aren’t very good writers, don’t write about the right topics, or are lazy. I get it; there are too many variables. Therefore, there is no guarantee that the information taught in the class will work for the student.

So, here’s what I realized: I have no interest in doing what it takes to make Medium a career. I don’t want to follow the formula.

First, I want to write about what I want to write about. If it means that there are only three happy people who read my story, so be it. That’s three more happy people in the universe than there were before I wrote the story. That’s a win as far as I’m concerned.

Second, my life is currently a mess. I’m tired. I’m under the weather. I have more important things that need to be dealt with in my personal life than writing listicles about 17.5 things you can do to be more productive when the moon is in retrograde. I mean, really.

I don’t have the option of having Medium as my career right now because I cannot devote the requisite time to it. And because I write about things that don’t interest a high volume of engaged readers, it will take me much longer to acquire a substantial number of engaged followers.

Additionally, I don’t feel comfortable putting all of my writing eggs into the Medium basket. That basket is shaky and full of change, indecision, and instability. How can I build a life relying on an unstable income stream without having a backup plan? That’s just like having an employer who can fire you. I’m an old lady who can’t keep starting over every few years; eventually, you run out of time. I won’t build my house on quicksand.

For now, I will keep writing on Medium as often as my life circumstances allow. And I’ll be sure to write about topics that interest me as well as others. I’m curious to see where I will be with Medium in a year or two. Maybe over time, I will be able to call Medium my career. Right now, I will continue to see what else is out there and build a career with a few income streams to make sure that I am always protected. Knowledge is power, and so is having over one source of income.

If you missed part one, you can find it here.

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Linda Kowalchek is a work in progress and a member of the typewriter generation. She spends her time with her husband and her rescue cats waiting for golf balls to crash through their windows. PSA: Don’t live next to a golf course.