5 Beautiful Lessons I Learned Living Writing Online For Eighteen Months
The best thing that ever happened to me
I’ll first do a little bragging!
I can confidently say writing online is singlehandedly one of the best decisions of my life. But it wasn’t intentional, I stumbled on it somehow.
But truth be told: I am glad I did.
Not more than two years ago, I didn’t know anything about online writing. I’d have literally laughed at you if you’d told me that I’m about to become an online writer soon! Luckily, I’m so happy with what I’m doing right now!
And one more good news is, besides writing on Medium, I’m working on a new side project that is also related to writing. Maybe I’ll share more about that in the future stories.
But for now, I want to share some of the priceless lessons I’ve learned throughout my writing journey — the lessons that might be helpful for you.
Let’s dive in!
1. The Internet Made It Possible
Until 2019, I took the internet for granted.
I heavily started using the internet when COVID-19 hit. The first reason was, I had nothing important to do except my college assignments. The second reason was I had loads of free time and really wanted to explore this “Internet world.”
No doubt the internet is the best thing that ever happened to the world.
Imagine if Pablo Picasso or Leonardo da Vinci have had access to the internet and this social media thing. Their work would have reached way more people online than you’d ever be able to imagine.
And that’s why the internet is powerful.
The best thing about the Internet is it doesn’t ask you for any qualification or degree — anyone can create, build, and use the Internet to their absolute advantage.
It also doesn’t matter who you are, or whether you live in California or Banglore — you can do the same work and build the same thing that other people can. Of course, you need skill, knowledge, and experience though.
So just because of the internet, I’m able to “Show my work” and write the thing I want to write and make decent money doing it. Isn’t it beautiful?
The internet is the #1 revolutionary thing of the 20th/21st century.
2. Different Paths For Different People
Different people have different tastes.
And that’s okay. Some people like to build a multi-million or billion-dollar company, manage a huge team, and work so hard to buy a $25M mansion.
And there is me, who doesn’t want to build any billion-dollar company, doesn’t want to manage any team, doesn’t want to make millions or buy any mansion.
Totally fine!
Some people like to work for some companies, some people like to provide service to other people, and some people like to work based on a “Client Acquisition” business model.
And there is me, who found it hard to work for others. I don’t like working for others, I don’t want to build any client business. But what I actually want is to build my own audience and monetize them the right way — while helping them and proving the value — they need.
Nothing crazy.
Nothing is right or wrong. It is just different people have different tastes. So find what works best for you — and don’t give a damn about what other people think of you or your work.
You don’t owe them anything, so don’t listen.
3. It Takes Way More Time Than You Think
Six months ago, I was living by “False expectations.”
I used to think I would have tens of thousands of followers in the shortest time possible. And I used to think I would have the most money as quickly as possible. Reality hit me hard and nothing happened.
But that’s okay.
Most of the time, we tend to set high expectations — the expectations that most of the time we fail to accomplish. And part of the reason it happens is that things more than often don’t go as we plan them.
And maybe this is the same trap you have fallen into.
If you’re assuming that you’d achieve so much success so quickly, you’re making a mistake. Because A, you may not achieve the results you want quickly. B, the thing that comes quickly, goes quickly.
So have enough patience and think in the long term. Because good things take time to come, but once they come, they hardly go — unless you let them go intentionally.
Keep the expectations low but work beyond your limits!
4. The Journey Scares You A Lot
You have to take full responsibility.
No matter what, you have to take all the credit for whatever good or bad happens. The “Good” part is awesome because it’s profitable. The real games happen in the “Bad” part. And that’s where you have to take all the responsibilities and only blame yourself for whatever happens.
See, this writing online isn’t just a hobby, but a business. It becomes so important especially if you’re doing it as a full-time writer. You can’t just sit and expect things to happen by accident.
You have bills to pay, you have rents to pay, and you have expenses.
And this is why the journey is scary. Unless you have built your business sustainably, you’ll always feel scared. For example, I always get scared whenever I think about this business and the work I’m doing on Medium.
Questions like: What if my account gets banned? What if my account gets hacked? What if I didn’t make any money this month? What if my reach goes down this month? These questions scares me a lot.
The risk is so high, but so is the reward.
5. Writing Really Does Something “Powerful”
I believe writing is powerful.
Forget about how many followers you have, forget about how much money you’re making per month. That’s not the main thing of the “Main thing.”
The main thing writing does is: It helps you clarify your thoughts and lets you know who you truly are and what you are actually made for. Basically, writing is a mind-sharpening game — at scale!
I wouldn’t have learned all the lessons and the things I just said to you. But I did because I’ve been writing online consistently for 18 months or more.
It truly does something powerful.
I’d encourage you to write for 90 days and see if your thoughts and beliefs change. If you can do this, no doubt you’ll definitely be a better version of your past self. Because this personally has happened to me and will happen to you. So give it a shot and write for at least 90 days and see what happens!
This story is sponsored by Medium Masterclass.
