Summary

The article "The Joy of Giving 50 Claps" discusses the significance of clapping as a form of appreciation for writers on Medium, drawing parallels to the impact of live applause on performing artists.

Abstract

The piece explores the emotional rush that comes with receiving applause, both in live performances and through the Medium platform's clapping feature. It emphasizes that, just as thunderous applause can invigorate a dancer mid-performance, the act of clapping on Medium can energize and validate a writer's work. The author reflects on the evolution of clapping, from a spontaneous expression of admiration to a quantifiable metric on Medium, where readers can clap up to 50 times for a story. The article delves into the psychology behind giving claps, questioning the tendency to withhold the full measure of appreciation and the fairness of quantifying applause. It also critiques the herd mentality that influences how many claps a story receives, advocating instead for genuine and consistent appreciation of fellow writers' work. The author concludes by urging readers to recognize the significance of each clap as a celebration of another's work and a reflection of our own humanity and compassion.

Opinions

The author believes that clapping, whether live or virtual, is a powerful way to show appreciation and provide an emotional and energy boost to artists and writers.
There is a critique of the tendency to quantify appreciation, with the observation that not everyone gives the maximum 50 claps, even if they enjoy the content.
The author points out a hypocritical behavior where people expect to receive 50 claps for their own work but are reluctant to give the same to others.
The article suggests that the act of clapping on Medium should be more about genuine appreciation rather than following the crowd or adhering to a numerical value.
The author emphasizes that giving claps is a form of compassion and humanity, and that this virtue should be practiced consistently, not just when it is convenient or when one expects reciprocity.

The Joy of Giving 50 Claps

You love it when it happens to you

Before this virtual clapping became the new fad amongst writers, there was a time where claps from the audience in front of you made you reach cloud nine. You would be filled with pride and ecstasy at that moment.

The sound of thunderous claps gives a thrilling experience bombarding you with emotions. You are so overwhelmed at the response, that you bow in front of the audiences to express your gratitude.

Being a performing artist, I understand the value of claps more than anyone else. In a dancer’s world, claps are a way to measure the credibility of a performer and the impact of their performance.

That means, the more thunderous the claps, the more impactful, the performance. Also, claps when received during the performance act as ‘Instant energy boosters’.

You are lost in your performance when you hear the untimely claps sending a message that they are loving your work and you have more energy than ever.

No wonder, the artists feel like their life was sucked out of them after they step down from the stage. It was like they were dancing in some parallel universe. They spend so much energy up there, that feeling drained later is pretty much normal.

Claps Just Got a Makeover

When I first discovered the clap option on medium, I felt excited to press that 👏 icon. It felt like I appreciated somebody’s work and they shall feel happy when they get notified about it. But later I came to know that a person can clap up to 50 times for the same story.

The ground beneath my feet felt like it shifted.

What a wonderful idea, I thought to myself. Telling the author that you really loved their work. So I started giving 50 claps to each article I read. With time, however, I realized not all people were giving 50 claps to every story they read.

Some gave full 50, others gave a generous 38 while some gave just 1. I am sure we will never know, how many read your story and silently walked away.

It would be like you standing behind a crowd to enjoy a street show till the end, but avoiding going in the front so you don’t have to spare a few cents from your pocket.

That made me think, how could we ever quantify how many claps a story deserved. The fact that we read the story till the end itself shows that we were hooked to it and could not abandon it halfway.

So why to be selfish while clapping for anyone’s story. Honestly, for some time, even I was quantifying how many claps I should give to a particular story.

I found myself blindly following the herd mentality.

The stories which had thousands+ claps, I clapped generously for them even if I didn't like them much and the stories that I thoroughly enjoyed reading, I gave them just 20 or 30 claps. I couldn't comprehend the reason for that, but deep down it felt stupid and unfair.

I changed my view after I read a story by Jordan Mendiola as to why he gives 50 claps to every article he reads. That title was an eye-opener for me. It made me realize that we have become so selfish in our virtual world, that sparing a few additional mouse clicks to appreciate someone, too, has become a mammoth task for us.

And we expect others to give us 50 claps for all our stories. Anything lesser than that and we feel disappointed. But it’s classy when we display the same behavior with others. Cheers to hypocrisy!

Before You Say Goodbye

Next time you clap for someone’s story do notice those little sparkles that appear with every click. Those sparks are not mere decorations. They represent a celebration.

Celebration of one writer by the other.

Celebration of an artist by his fan.

If sparing a few extra clicks seems difficult then we have no right to talk about doing good for humanity in the real world.

Because humanity starts with us. It starts right here.

They give you a chance to show compassion for other writers and appreciate their work just as you would expect from them.