Why I am Leaving Medium
For six years, I have been publishing articles on Medium. The outcome no longer matches the time, energy and effort I pour into this platform.
For six years, I have been publishing articles on Medium. The Medium community has been more than welcoming to my imperfect thoughts. I have learned I am more successful as a writer when I write from the heart and allow myself to be completely transparent. The outcome no longer matches the time, energy and effort I pour into this platform.
Six Years on Medium
In six years, I have written almost fifty articles focused on my thoughts on writing, tech reviews, and sometimes a dash of social commentary. Though, I often hesitate to share my thoughts since my opinions are ever-evolving as I continue to learn and continue to be challenged to grow more as a fellow human on this tilted earth.
Throughout my six-year Medium existence, I went through months of publishing to sometimes years of not publishing anything. Insecurity, anxiety, and exhaustion sometimes crippled my ability to write. As a budding writer, I have learned that I have something to say, and some people enjoy what I write.
My journey with Medium--and what it offers me as a growing writer - has ended. It’s time to go solo.
How it Started
I joined Medium, perhaps around its infancy. I wanted to be part of Medium’s goals: to provide a community for writers, help us grow an audience, and even make a dime from our writing.
My ambitions were probably as big as others. My goal was to write as much as possible and make enough that I could go at this full time. Neither materialized. Why is that?
There were and are still people who contribute more consistently than I do. Medium even went as far as luring journalists and sometimes entire organizations to their platform. Many start-ups used Medium as their business blog at the beginning.
There were even professional blogs that allowed submissions to their Medium blog. I participated in a few myself.
It all seemed too good to be true, and it always is.
What I have Learned Writing on Medium
One thing I have learned about writing is I am more successful when writing from the heart. Writing an article takes time. I write a first draft, review it, re-write it then eventually publish it. All in all, it can take a week or two before a fully fleshed-out blog is ready.
On top of that, I have to put together something for SEO and share it on Social Media to help build exposure. I’ve put together a few content managers using a spreadsheet, then Notion, to something I created on Obsidian thanks to a fantastic plugin called Projects.
All in all, the effort never produced the results I was going for.
Looking at my Medium stats, I have an article that maybe six people have read. According to my Medium stats, I have an article where almost 18,000 people have read 49% of it. From all of Medium’s exposure, I still feel like an anonymous cog in the big wheel of this thing called Medium.
On top of my years of publishing articles on Medium and the “fans” who’ve clicked likes on my article, I have yet to see it as a way to make a living.
When I write, if I am going to put so much effort into it, I need more control. I need to dictate how I want to offer payment options to my readers while allowing my articles to be available, even if someone can’t or won’t pay.
This makes me wonder, am I writing for the big wheel called Medium or myself?
Long Story Short
Long story short, the best thing to do is write from my website, where I have more control over my exposure, how I wish to promote it, and how I wish to make money from it.
I want to build more on my website and give my readers access to a newsletter and so much more. The only way to do that and have complete control is to leave Medium for greener pastures.
Don’t get me wrong. The Medium community has treated me well. And I’ve appreciated every kind comment and read has taken the time to share with me.
Conclusion
Please join me on Jordan Robison’s Blog if you’ve liked my writing and want to continue seeing what I offer.