When You Rely On One Platform You Have Already Lost

This could be a good time to expand your writing base

Many writers are horrified and disgusted as Medium announced recent changes to their platform but should you be? When you write for a platform such as WordPress, Blogger, and others, they could easily change the rules overnight.

You do not own that platform but you may write for them. This is the same as if you worked for a company. Unless you own the company, the company can do whatever they want.

In 2011, I read M.J. DeMarco’s book “The Millionaire Fastlane”. He simply said it best,

If you don’t control your income, you don’t control your financial plan. If you don’t control your financial plan, you don’t control your freedom.

DeMarco basically said if you don’t control the business where you earn your income from, then you don’t control your life. Someone else does.

Change happens

Companies always change the rules of the game. That’s part of the life you live in. The company doesn’t have to explain to every employee why they’re doing something. They don’t answer to you.

Now, you have three options to consider. Whatever option you decide is your choice.

One, you can stay with the platform you’re with and continue writing as if nothing ever happened. This is not hard since nothing changes for you. However, there is the chance the company can reduce your income one day in the future.

Two, the other option is you could leave your platform and start all over again. You may have a small or a large following so that is something you must think about.

Then you have to find a similar platform and build your list of followers. If you have written for quite some time, you know this takes a lot of your time to gain the trust of your subscribers. This doesn’t happen overnight.

You are basically starting all over. Starting on a new writing platform can be done but it’s not easy.

Then you have the third option. This option is a hybrid of the two previously mentioned. You can continue writing for the platform you’re with now but spend time working on the other platform.

This will require a little more of your time and energy. Unless you know the blogging platform you’re using is shutting down tomorrow, you have time to work on the other platform in your spare time.

Alternative blogging platforms

There are many alternative writing platforms and I’m going to highlight a few. You may know of other platforms that I don’t mention, so this is not the only list of alternative writing websites. Some of the sites I mention, you may have used or heard of before.

WordPress

If you decide to leave, you can look at WordPress. There is a free and a paid version for WordPress. There are pros and cons to each blogging platform. With WordPress, you have to know how to create the blog, pick your theme, format the page, and pick your plugin. Have fun with that are there are over 50,000 plugins as of 2018. If you want your own page, be ready to pay for your domain name through BlueHost, GoDaddy, or other websites.

You can make money with a WordPress blog but you need to create your own system whether if it’s through coaching, affiliate marketing, or creating a course.

Quora

You may have heard of Quora before. Several writers use this platform to share their ideas and write. The only downside is you only get paid if you’re a partner and write for them. As a partner, you ask one of the many questions that is one of the main points of the site. Getting hired by them is possible but not easy. Not everyone who applies gets hired.

Wix

This is another alternative to create your own writing platform. There is a free and paid version and your platform has some advantages over WordPress. A lot of the system is already set up for you and you don’t have to know a lot about coding to build your platform. You still have to design the page how you want it to look.

Tumblr

This free platform gives you a lot of options to write but you don’t get paid. The site reminds me a little bit of Pinterest. You can create a blog post, follow other Tumblr users, and even leave a call to action. I have not used this site very often but it may be a good alternative. With Tumblr, you can post quotes, articles, GIFs, along with pictures. This is a very easy site to use.

Your way ahead

When you put 100% of your time and effort into a single foundation, it is easy for someone else to change it. This goes back to the saying, don’t put all your eggs in one basket. After what many have gone through this year with the coronavirus and unemployment, having other options for your security is necessary more than ever.

If you don’t personally control the structure you work on, it is easy for the organization to change. Most likely, you don’t know the reason for the change. With the various scams, copyrighting, and rules passed by different countries, the rules of a company are bound to change.

Then the company itself may be having financial trouble so indirectly they are shouting they’re broke. With the number of government bailouts, cry for financial assistance from businesses, there are probably many others that are barely getting by. Through June, there were about 3,600 companies that filed for bankruptcy in 2020.

Try to look for clues in a company that you work for since they could be having some serious financial trouble. Most companies will not openly state their financials unless they’re a public company that needs financial assistance from the government. Just look at the rental car, airline, and cruise industries. This is a good time to pay attention as the world economy has not regained its full strength.

So will your writing platform go under, no one really knows unless you work in the executive office of that industry. It is always a good time to look at other options.

Do you plan to look at other writing options?

Tom Handy is a top Writing, Finance, Investment, and Bitcoin writer on Medium, and the father of two kids. He retired from the Army and sits on several non-profit boards. You can find him on Twitter @tomhandy1.