Stop Telling Me How It’s Easy to Make Money on Medium

Summary

The article criticizes the prevalence of "success stories" on Medium, arguing that they can set unrealistic expectations, potentially lead to depression, and shift the focus from creativity to financial gain.

Abstract

The author expresses frustration with the abundance of articles that tout easy financial success on Medium. These stories often feature writers who have achieved significant earnings within a short period, suggesting a level of ease and luck that is not representative of most writers' experiences. The article highlights that such narratives can lead to unrealistic expectations, causing disappointment when similar success is not immediately replicated. Moreover, the constant exposure to these success stories can contribute to feelings of depression, akin to the negative effects of social media on mental health. The author also warns that the allure of monetary rewards can overshadow the pursuit of creative and meaningful writing, advocating instead for a focus on the craft and personal growth. The article calls for a more honest conversation about the challenges of writing on Medium and the gradual process of building a readership and income.

Opinions

Success on Medium is often romanticized, but it typically requires more than just luck; it demands hard work and finding a niche.
The curation process and acceptance into publications can be challenging, involving many rejections before achieving recognition.
"Going viral" is largely out of a writer's control and is subject to the unpredictable nature of the internet.
Success stories can create a sense of failure for those who do not experience immediate financial gains, leading to unrealistic expectations.
The comparison of Medium success stories to social media's impact on mental health suggests that they can contribute to feelings of inadequacy and depression.
A focus on making money can stifle creativity, leading to content that prioritizes profit over originality and personal expression.
The author values authentic stories about struggles and lessons learned on Medium over repetitive "get rich quick" narratives.

The 3 reasons why it’s not helpful.

I don’t know about you, but I’m tired of seeing articles like: “How I made [X] dollars in my first [day/week/month] on Medium”.

I read lots of articles on how to get better on Medium. And in too many of them, the writer got lucky.

The real truth is, for the most of us it takes a lot of work.

Curation doesn’t happen until we find our niche–something we’re good at writing about that people want to hear.

Acceptance into a publication can take many rejections.

“Going viral” is something we can’t control at all. It simply happens from rolling the dice on the magical collective thinking of the internet hive mind.

Here are three reasons why stories about how new Medium writers got lucky aren’t helpful.

1. Medium success stories can cause unrealistic expectations.

We know it’s possible. The top monthly payment for one author in June 2020 was over 33,000. However, the number of writers who made more than $100 in June was barely over 5%. For most of us, we’re going to struggle before we break that threshold. If we see others making it big right away, it can be discouraging when we don’t.

2. They can cause depression.

We know social media use causes depression. Seeing a barrage of beautiful people on fantastic adventures leads to the fear of missing out (FOMO). I believe this phenomenon can also happen when we read too many posts about Medium users making yacht-level money. Think about how bad it feels when we see one of these articles right after seeing another one of our stories “not distributed in topics”.

3. They can lead to money-driven writing instead of creativity-driven writing.

If we’re always focused each month on the cash, all of our stories are going to be written with the end result in mind. We need to practice detachment from the cash reward to tap into the most creative stories we can write. We can do better than another story about the Kardashians.

I want to read your story about how you struggled with Medium. I want to hear the lessons you learned along the way. I’m happy with the gradual Medium progress I’ve made, but that happiness is constantly undermined by these get rich quick stories.