Only Three Days on Medium and Already Lessons Learned

For quite some time, I was on the search for a platform where I could express my opinion publicly, not necessarily for fame but for my sanity. I am familiar with designing and maintaining a blog; I’ve done this for years. However, running a personal blog doesn’t create great attention unless you produce substantial content by writing daily, if not hourly.

And then, there is the issue of page loading speed, which is another aspect considered by search engines. Starting a blog on, for instance, GoDaddy in combination with WordPress is easy. You can set up a website within a day or two, but it requires several hours of setup before you can start with content. And when you’re ready to go, you need to invest significant search engine optimization (SEO) efforts. However, all this work can only partially compensate for slow-loading pages.

I am also running an e-commerce website where I use the blog section to promote my products, and I am creating great attention. Server speed is on a professional level. You don’t need to waste precious time with page design (that was already done by professional designers providing you a template). Yes, WordPress does that, too, but it still requires more work.

My quest was to find a platform that is on a professional level like my e-commerce site but allows me to write about everything that comes to mind.
The is where Medium.com comes in. No need for major SEO activities. Page loading speed is excellent. I had my first post up and running within minutes after signing up. Then, after two days, I gained my first follower and the first nasty comment on one of my posts. And this is where we arrive at my lessons learned after three days of writing on Medium.

The less significant lesson is the matter of nasty responses. I’ve already learned not to engage in discussions on Facebook because it unavoidably turns ugly. There are always readers who cannot agree to disagree. We can discuss a topic and disagree on a civilized level, but there is no place for insults. So my answer will stay professional and friendly. On the other hand, it got me thinking that I should write about less controversial topics. As the saying goes, I don’t have time for the pain.

The next lesson has also to do with re-thinking my writing topics. My posts, written and unwritten, cover a broad spectrum, from personal to political to technical and business matters. After gaining my first follower, I checked his profile, and his columns were business-focused. I might have gained his attention through my only business-related post. The question is, would I annoy any followers with posts not linked to their specific interests?

I haven’t reached a conclusion yet, but the lesson learned is that I should focus on a narrower field of writing subjects. It would, however, help if Medium supported my multi-personality disorder.