Summary

The article discusses the changing dynamics of earning a living on Medium due to recent algorithm changes, emphasizing the necessity for writers to diversify their income sources and adapt to new content strategies.

Abstract

The author of the article has leveraged Medium to earn over $250,000 by participating in the Medium Partner Program and using the platform to generate email subscribers for selling a writing course. However, the recent decline in viewership and email subscribers due to changes in Medium's algorithm has necessitated a shift in strategy. The author argues that writers can no longer rely solely on Medium for income and must explore other avenues to maintain a sustainable career. The article reflects on the author's transition from freelance writing to course creation after facing financial hardship, underscoring the importance of transformation and adaptability in the face of change. The author suggests that the current challenges present an opportunity for creators to rejuvenate their passion for content creation by experimenting with new topics, formats, and revenue streams.

Opinions

Medium's algorithm has changed, making it harder for writers to gain views and subscribers, which has caused concern among those who depend on the platform for income.
Despite these changes, Medium can still be a valuable source of income when used effectively in conjunction with other strategies.
Writers should not panic but instead view the current shift as an opportunity to reinvent themselves and explore other traffic-generating methods.
The author believes that continuous transformation is essential for survival as an online creator and that adaptability leads to a more resilient and exciting career.
Creating and selling an online course is presented as a viable alternative for writers seeking to diversify their income, with the author's own experience as evidence of its potential success.
The article encourages writers to be proactive in building multiple "boats" for traffic and income generation to avoid being overly reliant on a single platform like Medium.
The author suggests that change, while challenging, can make work more enjoyable and fulfilling for creators who are willing to embrace new opportunities.

The Medium “Feast” Was Never Going To Last— We Should’ve Known

For the last three years, I’ve relied on Medium.com to make over $250,000 online.

It’s been a pretty lopsided business model.

I write on Medium to make money through their Medium Partner Program. I also use Medium to generate email subscribers so I can sell my course. That’s been the plan since late 2017.

And guess what? It’s worked really well for me.

It’s worked so well that a bunch of people copied it. Everybody has a Medium course now, right?

Since late 2017, writing on Medium alone has been enough to keep my business alive. Lately, though, Medium seems to be undergoing some changes.

The algorithm is not what it used to be. In 2017 you could get a few hundred views in a matter of minutes if you published in The Mission. It was remarkable. Now it’s a lot harder — albeit still worth it — to try to get views here.

My views have declined, and my email subscribers have declined.

Don’t get me wrong — I’m NOT saying Medium isn’t worth it — it’s just that Medium is not the “feast” it used to be. Now it’s more of a side dish. You need to incorporate other traffic-building strategies into the mix to make it as a writer online.

Things changed.

To most of my friends who write on Medium, they see the algorithm changes like some apocalypse-style event. They’re freaking the fuck out. They are shitting their pants at the keyboard.

I don’t blame them. It’s scary to see a platform that’s sustained us so well for years become a shell of its former self. Medium was so great for so long that it’s the ONLY place a lot of us needed to make a decent living.

It’s not that way anymore. Now we need to complement Medium writing with other things. It’s scary — sure — but in this article I argue that it’s also necessary. Dare I say it, it’ll make things fun again for many of the true creators out there who use Medium to get their message out to the masses.

Let’s get into why.

When Things Stop Working, You Transform

Before I started writing full-time on Medium, I was a freelance writer. Do you know what pushed me out of freelance writing and into starting my writing business?

Getting fired.

That’s right, a big freelance client fired me. Well, I didn’t really get fired — they just shut down the site.

I was in financial ruin. I felt like a failure. I had no idea where to go next.

I went out and ate a big pizza by myself then I got home and drank a six pack of Strongbow. It was pretty pathetic.

I didn’t know what to do next. My life was freelancing.

Then, out of nowhere, I got the idea to make a course about how to grow on Medium. I had people asking a lot of questions about that in the comments section of my articles. Surely there was a market for it, right?

I dove in headfirst.

Two weeks later I sold 10 spots of my new writing course and made my first $2,000 as a business owner online. It was an exciting time.

This “transformation” led to a much better life, financially, for me. It would’ve never happened had I never gotten pushed out of my life as a freelancer.

A Big Change Makes Work Challenging And Fun Again

Creating and selling an online course when you’ve never done that before is exhilarating.

It’s like traveling to a new place. There is no such thing as boredom when you do this. Everything is new and fresh and sometimes difficult. Days absolutely fly off the calendar.

Fast forward to today and the whole online course thing is a little stale for me. Don’t get me wrong — I love teaching students new things and helping them become better writers — but teaching the same subject matter over and over again can get repetitive.

It’s almost like I’m back to where I was in 2017. I need a new direction to make work more challenging and fun for me.

I know a variety of skills that I’m sure folks would pay me to learn about. I can create another course. I can expand the scope of my current course. I can dabble in other ways to make money writing online.

Simply put, I can reinvent myself. I can divorce myself from needing Medium that much by creating a course about something else. I can become more independent. That’s exhilarating to me — not depressing.

You Must Always Change To Survive As A Creator Online

Making money online for me has been one long chain of transformations. First I was a freelance writer, then I became a blogger, then an online course creator, then I made money vlogging.

The more I think about it, the more I believe the transformation never ends.

It’s simple: If you want to make money online consistently, be open to change.

If you’re not, you’ll get buried and forgotten about.

Who knows whether Medium will sink or swim. Who knows whether the algorithms will change and things will get better.

My wish is that you don’t even ask these questions to begin with. My wish is that it doesn’t matter to you whether Medium sinks of swims because you already have another traffic generator working just fine.

To all the people freaking out about Medium: Maybe you can learn a lesson right now..

Don’t wait until you’re taking on water to build a life raft. Build your life raft when there’s not a cloud in sight. Be open to change.

Furthermore, craft multiple “boats” for yourself. Medium as a boat is still healthy and can make you a LOT of money when used correctly.

But the goal is to have multiple money-making (and traffic-generating) options at your disposal so you don’t feel the heat when one boat starts malfunctioning.

Change. Adapt. Transform.

Get my free 5-day Medium writing course right here. It’ll teach you how to write five posts per week and become a top writer on Medium. :)