Writing Your Next Article to Feed the Medium Boost Program? That’s [Real] Silly.

Before you toss me down the veranda, hear me out.

Let’s be honest.

Why are you doing this?

Why are you spitting words into the Internet in the first place? To get a Boost on this platform? Really?

Your answer, as I believe it should be, is no. A resounding no.

And it should be.

Writing is a form of individual expression. We think, talk, and type differently.

Let’s ignore the online copycats for a moment.

Let’s return to basics. To us. Maybe, to me.

I am not a good writer to begin with. I know that. I routinely struggle with Grammar, boring words, repeating words, and incorporating future tense into my past.

Yeah, I suck.

But honestly?

It does not bother me one iota.

I don’t believe we should be slapped with a grade like students in English class. Even if we do, so?

The ‘C’ student has no right to freedom of expression?

‘D’ students have nothing valuable to share?

Well.

Their words hold more weight than the pure literary types with perfect Grammar. Okay, yes, I am biased. I will take the hit for this.

That said, we have,

• Experiences in our hearts,
• Thoughts in our heads,
• Words in our mouth.

It is criminal not to share what we think when we want to share it.

You never know whose life you enlightened with your work. It might invite a chuckle. Ignite an F-bomb of resonance. Maybe a tear or two.

You never know.

Write it. Publish it.

Have faith in your work and life experiences. The knowledge and wisdom you carry in you cannot be denounced because you got invalidated by a Boost program.

This is my analogy.

Just because this one prospect doesn’t buy from me… doesn’t make me a sh!tty salesman.

It [just] means move on.

Think bigger, pals and gals.

Think… you.

Leave a legacy with your ideas, not institutional-approved words of expression.

Good stories are like an art form

Have you ever read a research paper written by an academic?

God!

They are boring.

Boring to a T. Yes, T in caps.

Their papers are designed to convey ideas with a preset structure. I know because I used to co-write research papers with my Professors in Economics and Organizational Behavior.

These preset structures are a gift from God… for the writers.

Here’s why.

You must have,

• An introduction backed by multiple citations,
• H0 and H1 Hypothesis (True or Flawed),
• Sample-size appropriate testing,
• Statistical adjustments,
• Mechanical conclusions.

If you have a sharp eye for research writing, you can [very quickly] bootstrap the structure required and conquer section by section.

The way to win this game is to,

• Copy the structure,
• Inject your words.
• You can polish your work with your Professor(s) and submit it to a journal for review.

Easy, but.

Question # 1.

Do you think readers will benefit from your hard work?

Question # 1b (because there is always a 1b).

Have you ever tried reading one from top to bottom?

Question # 1c (because there is a 1b).

Have you ever, ever, ever finished reading one?

Question # 2.

Does it bring you immense satisfaction when your work is published in a world-renowned journal… and no one reads it?

Freeze this question. Hold your thoughts. Allow me to paraphrase.

Does it bring you immense satisfaction when your words are Boosted… and no one reads them?

Or.

Does it bring you immense satisfaction when your words are Boosted, and have many people read them… but this topic or article isn’t what you [really] want to write?

I cannot answer these questions for you.

We are wordsmiths in our unique shape and form.

But I do know one thing about me. Research writing, or writing with a preset structure, does not work for me.

It is [simply too] boring.

And~DD~

I enjoy exploring different styles of writing.

And experimenting with different types of clickbait’y headlines.

This. Is. Fun.

This is why I find writing for a boost [per se] is dumb

Many people I know tell me this.

• “Gosh, I hate working for a boss.”
• “Oh. My. Good. God. This a-h0le boss should be fired.”
• “I don’t understand why my boss is surfing Instagram while I am clearing his poo pile.”

Sounds familiar? I bet.

Look. You hate to have someone barking down your neck, telling you what to do, and slapping your cheek with a deadline.

Then…

Why are you so eager to write for a Boost, to get endorsed by the curators on this platform, and to pin a Boost-Badge on the satin sash on your upper body?

It makes no f**king sense to me.

At this point, I must clarify that I have nothing against the Boost program, per se. Call it Boost. Make it Juice. Brand it Toots. Promote the rah-rah.

No matter.

I want to write what I believe in, with or without the Boost program.

And I genuinely believe this is the long game.

Let’s take a premature evaluation of the counterfactual.

We lose the plot fast when we focus on the curators.

• We become demotivated when our work gets rejected.
• We wonder what’s wrong with our work after spending 7 hours writing, editing, and polishing.
• We shed our styles because we are too busy copying styles of Boosted articles.

Don’t.

Don’t go there.

It is not fun. Not one bit.

If you don’t enjoy pandering to your bosses at work…

… Then you shouldn’t pander to the platform curators when writing online.

Focus on your goal. There are reasons you are here in the first place. Avoid the Shiny Object distraction. Trust your words. They carry weight.

Write your mind.

Touch [many more] readers.

That is the goal.

Right?

The close

Writing for the Boost program, per se, is [really] dumb.

[Just] to be clear, I am not saying the Boost program is dumb. Focusing our attention, energy, and time on it? Yes, it is.

We are here to express our ideas and share our life experiences with people we never met. With people who walk in parallel lines beside ours. Lines that never converge.

Your readers represent a far bigger pool of people compared to the curators.

And they, in their own way, endorse your words and work.

So, I say this. Focus on our writing.

Forget about the allure of the Boost program.

Treat it as a bonus.

• If you get nominated — Rejoice.
• If you don’t — Nothing changes. Keep writing.

The sun will rise. The sun will set. Life goes on.

You are as good as you are.

And your writing improves with each passing day.

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Oh, oh, you can buy me a cup of black too! Thank you!