Writers — Why Quiet Quitting May Be Good for Your Mental Health
Taking a break is healthy, so is a good rant
This draft had been sitting in my Medium in-box for a short while now and when my life got interrupted, I wasn’t able to finish it to send out into the world. Tonight, I sit propped up in bed, scrambling to get it over and done with. Here goes.
I’ve noticed that most things in life run in a somewhat cyclical fashion.
That even applies to the Medium writing platform.
There are times when viewership and stats drop, writers are fed up, burnt out, disgusted, and ready to throw in the towel and jump ship.
Then there are other times when reading soars, payouts are above expectations and engagement is in full throttle. Writers can’t wait to create something deserving of the equivalent of distribution or quality curation as they press the publish icon. I have lived through some of those glory days. They were magical. Until they weren’t anymore.
Some of us are noticing a big drop in our numbers and earnings. Those of us who have been here awhile may forget that even when we weren’t tanking, some of us were engaged in random rant mode. Sometimes it felt cathartic or relevant. Sometimes not so much.
The purpose of rants
Rants are usually emotionally charged expressions of annoyance and there are varying degrees of rants. Constructive ranting is a viable way to let off steam. It can be a cathartic release of a pet peeve. It may indicate an unacceptable existing condition needing desired change or a point of view that needs to be aired, at least in someone’s opinion. Sometimes it represents a sweeping segment of the population.
However, some psychological studies show that rants can actually increase toxicity, negativity, anger, and resentment. Not in my case, though. I’m a writer — hear me roar.
Some prefer ranting to quit quitting. And vice versa.
Time Out
Does quiet quitting imply that you are not producing your best quality writing? Or that you are publishing content on a less frequent basis while searching for other digital options?
Can quiet quitting simply be taking a break from writing to boost your health and recharge your internal battery pack? Is this just part of the cycle of burnout and renewal?
Isn’t that the main reason we need a vacation or mental health day off from the job every now and then? For our quality of life?
But the question is, why do I end up feeling so guilty about it?
And what about life’s balancing act as top writer, bean counter, chief cook, bottle washer, chauffeur and chambermaid? Isn’t it all exhausting at some point?
The main reasons we are afraid to Quiet Quit Writing.
- Wake up and smell the coffee, sunshine. Our stats will plummet to all-time lows if we take a break from writing. Duh.
- We will fall off the algorithm’s grid.
- The stigma of being a quitter. We never considered ourselves to be quitters or failures for lack of trying.
- We love writing. Writing is therapy for the soul. It is the link to sanity and insanity. It helps us better understand what is often misunderstood or unspoken until the floodgates are opened. Writing is creativity, inspiration, clarification, and edification.
- It is very easy to be forgotten in this vast sea of writers. Somehow, we want to remain memorable. We enjoy the community of writers we have encountered on Medium and we would genuinely miss the interaction.
- We realize that writing requires practice, persistence, and passion. It may have taken time and discipline to establish this pattern of writing and disruption may lead to haphazard, counterproductive, unmotivated, and lazy habits.
There is a famous Old-timer’s Joke: Tourist in NYC asking for directions: “How do you get to Carnegie Hall?” Street-busking-musician responds with wise-crack: “Practice, Practice, Practice.”
The point of the punchline is clear.
Practice makes perfect.
That absolutely applies to things like cooking, driving a stick shift, playing tennis, and even the art of writing.
We expect the practice to take us to places of improvement. Sometimes we don’t want to break the flow.
The Magic of Medium?
The magic of Medium is that we can learn about the craft of online writing by reading the work of other writers who inspire us.
We can also read engagement responses and comments to see how other readers were impacted by a piece they read, based on how they choose to connect or comment with the writer.
Think of the rapport of a writer like Thief on Medium — I try to think back to what initially attracted me to their writing — but whatever it was, they were like lightning in a bottle that sparked my interest. I became an instant fan — but when they started responding to my writing, I learned that writers like Thief are an intrinsic part of an audience, a web, that reads and reacts and inspires. It’s a good thing to get to know your audience. And each person is unique.
Never underestimate what you can learn from a fellow writer. Especially if you take the time to read between the lines.
Why Time Out is not necessarily a bad thing:
There comes a time we realize we need a break to recharge and renew our mind as well as our soul, in order to become more effective.
"Renewal is the principle — and the process — that empowers us to move on an upward spiral of growth and change, of continuous improvement.” — Dr. Stephen R. Covey, The Seven Habits of Highly Effective People
Stephen Covey speaks of taking a break from working in order to “sharpen the saw” when we are mentally and physically exhausted. A sharpened saw, like a refreshed outlook, not only increases our productivity but also enhances the processes of creativity and organization to flow more fluidly.
When Life Gets in the Way
Right now, I see how certain life events have interrupted my normal flow of reading and writing, but there is nothing much I can do except remain positive and hopeful, as I prioritize problems and put out the metaphorical little fires until life gets back to normal.
Please tell me my life will get back to normal.
What Writing Isn’t — Some authors and I don’t always see eye to eye.
Novelist Stephen King once said: “Writing isn’t about making money, getting famous, getting dates, getting laid, or making friends. In the end, it’s about enriching the lives of those who will read your work and enriching your own life as well.”
I remember reading that quote in Stephen King’s book, On Writing: A Memoir of the Craft. With just an ounce of skepticism, I might add. After all, my secret ambition is to write solely for the money and to get laid.
But I will admit that I also wanted to learn how his twisted writer’s mind works because, quite frankly, writing fantasy, horror, and psychological thrillers fascinate me.
I wanted to get into the head of each of his characters from Misery, Carrie, The Shining, and The Green Mile because they intrigue me.
And I discovered that taking a quiet break from writing is not that bad, if you utilize your time learning something, anything, about the craft.
Getting back to the craft of online writing. No, it is not an oxymoron. Shortform or long-form, it definitely requires a skill set that needs to be assimilated or acquired if you are serious about being a contemporary online writer.
It may require baby steps, giant leaps, pauses, and editing. In so many ways, writing is a lot like life.
grace notes: Thank you to the editors and writers on Reciprocal publication for such wonderful creative, reading and writing experiences on Medium.
So many compelling pieces caught my eye, including the following:
The following piece on the correlation of negativity in boosting articles to go viral is something that’s been on my mind lately. Rui Alves addresses pertinent issues with resonance here:
Thank you for reading and I’d love to hear what you think in the comments section.
© Connie Song 2022. All Rights Reserved.
