Newfound Work-Life Balance, Courtesy of Management

Using the great Medium purge of 2024 as an opportunity to reflect

I like to find the lessons in every situation, no matter how dire things appear at first glance. What does the Medium member purge of March 2024 offer us for pragmatic lessons?

Seeing trusted friends and respected colleagues taken out without notice is harrowing. We who remain must surely ask ourselves: “Could it have been me? If not, why not? And if it had been me, what then?”

I understand the prudent advice to download a copy of one’s data. At least preserve what you have created. But that is not the only, or the most important, lesson to take from the carnage.

The question I’m asking myself is: “Why?” Not why did it happen, but: “Why am I here?” What does being on Medium bring me, and what conclusions can I draw from the current heavy-handed enforcement of Medium’s rules?

Your answers may differ, but I encourage you to carefully reflect on your motivations.

It ain’t the money (or should not be)

If you are here because you want to make money, I predict sadness ahead. The time required to see strong Medium returns (even if you make it to the top 1%) would deliver you more money in almost any other pursuit earning minimum wage.

I say this having studied the system since 2022 with all the sincerity and talent I can muster, which is considerable. I had my first four-figure month in February and the milestone is bittersweet.

I can do better than work 200+ hours a month to make $1,000. And so can you. Do you know why? Because you’re smart! Smart enough to create coherent sentences and compelling stories. Put those talents to work elsewhere if money is your goal.

Ease of publishing is not enough

It’s true that Medium gets a new author to a professional-looking published article faster than almost any site. But they are long since not the only game in town.

It’s never been easier to create your own website, blog, newsletter, or podcast. Medium is just one of many content-creation enablers.

Community is (has been) a major draw

Friendly, helpful, and talented writers. I’ve never met so many as here on Medium. The exchanges between amazing authors willing to devote time and talent to helping others are nothing short of wonderful.

The purge this week showed us that Medium is wary of too much of a good thing. Some of those purged were told that their accounts showed “suspicious activity” in violation of Medium Rules [emphasis added]:

• Performing a disproportionately large number of interactions, particularly by automated means. This includes bulk or indiscriminate interactions, such as following of other accounts (follow spam) clapping, highlighting, leaving notes, or flagging content
• Using deception to generate revenue or traffic
• Registering accounts, posting content, or interacting with users or content automatically, systematically, or programmatically

I am quite sure Medium caught many spammers with their purge. Commendable. (And does part of me fear that my own eloquent complaint about AI-generated content may have helped bring it on? I do so fear.)

But Medium also suspended accounts of people with whom I have interacted for years. People who form the backbone of the community I have come to see as the main value proposition of spending time on Medium.

Absence makes the heart grow colder

I miss my friends. Their absence creates space for me to reflect on what Medium holds for me when I must hold myself back from engaging with the community for fear of a “disproportionately large number of interactions.”

I once viewed getting put in Medium comment jail as a badge of honor. It meant I was putting in serious time and effort to engage with my readers and commenters. Now, it feels more like a Sword of Damocles hanging over my head.

If you see less of me, this is why

Medium apparently wants less interaction, less traffic, and less following, clapping, highlighting, and leaving notes. So be it.

I will still read authors I like. If I clap, it seems anything more than a single clap represents a risk. I may still comment, but I cannot imagine commenting anywhere near as much as I once did.

I do not know if my publications have a future accepting stories from other writers. I am going to start de-emphasizing them straight away. After all, I give liberal feedback in private notes to help make stories better. I have made it a habit to clap and comment on every story I publish. What is this if not a “disproportionately large number of interactions?”

I am not bitter. I view this forced pause as an unintended gift, although still a welcome one. Medium’s purge reinstills in me an appreciation for the transcendentalist life, and it’s one I will emulate again:

Many a forenoon have I stolen away, preferring to spend thus the most valued part of the day; for I was rich, if not in money, in sunny hours and summer days, and spent them lavishly; nor do I regret that I did not waste more of them in the workshop or the teacher’s desk. — Henry David Thoreau

Be well.

I cannot in good conscience encourage you to subscribe to read more of my work. Go enjoy some sunny hours and summer days.