My Quest for 100 Followers
What started as a simple goal to join the Program turned into something completely different.
I have to admit, a week ago today on June 14th I had never even heard of this hidden world of voices we all know as Medium.
My life was a lot simpler back then. I didn’t want to check my phone every 10 minutes to see if I had any new followers. I didn’t have to constantly refresh my stats page to see if anyone was reading my articles. I didn’t have a goal to reach 100 followers, and I didn’t know I wanted to be a part of the Medium Partnership Program.
No, I was just sitting on a bus, riding into work, trying to find a way to use my 45-minute commute more effectively. Then I came across this YouTube video by Zulie Rane, and everything changed.
I began with the intent to earn a few extra dollars, just like Zulie was. I downloaded the app, saw what it would take to join the Program so I could start getting paid, and got to work writing, reading articles, clapping, responding, and following other writers.
The formula was working great. The more I immersed myself into this new universe of writers, the more success I was having. I was having fun writing again, I was gaining followers, and I was hearing ideas and opinions on many topics I hadn’t even recently considered.
But in this quest for 100 followers something else was happening, something completely unexpected. I was discovering a unique byproduct of this involvement, and I am glad I have.
Friendship. There are thousands of people just like me, all over the globe, that are incredible writers and people. They needed a place to share their talents and their voice, and Medium is the, well, medium for that type of a place to exist.
If your goal is to reach 100 followers, I can give you that formula. It’s really not that difficult:
- Write about what you know, and make your stories interesting with catchy titles.
- Read other articles, clap, and respond.
- Follow other writers.
- Interact. When others clap and respond to what you write, thank them. Respond to them.
Yeah, that’s it. See, not so complicated. I reached 100 followers in five days.
But, if you’re like me, you’ll discover there’s a lot more to this than finding 100 people to click that “Follow” button for you. Hopefully, your goal will shift from getting follows to meeting people. Hearing their voice. Gaining a new perspective. There are so many interesting, thoughtful, and talented people to meet!
Here’s just a few I’ve met already:
Tony Thomas: If you like college football, Tony is your guy! He was one of the first writers I followed, and one of the first to follow me.
Rida Shoukat: A new Medium writer just like me, wrote a thoughtful story about motivation, which gave me an extra boost to keep moving forward with some of the goals I have.
James E. McGinley, PhD: Dr. McGinley wrote this story about reaching 100 followers, which helped me realize there was a lot more to my journey in Medium than reaching this basic goal. I’ve since read several of his other articles, which are extremely insightful and useful. The $5 Medium membership is probably worth it for his writings alone.
I could go on and on about several other fascinating writers. Medium is full of them. You are, or likely will become, one of them. I’d love to get to know you and read the things you want to share with the world. Feel free to reach out!
You have a voice. You have a community.
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Also, if you are not a Medium member and you would like to gain unlimited access to this platform, consider using my referral link right here to sign up. It’s only $5 a month and you get unlimited access to an incredible community of talented writers. Thanks!
If you enjoyed reading this story, I’d love to have you take a look at a few others I’ve written: