Medium or: How I Learned to Stop Worrying and Love the Blog
Lessons and takeaways from a first month writing Data articles on Medium
I have always wanted to write a blog, to materialize thoughts on paper (or screen), and to delve into ephemeral interests.
Despite receiving the stamp of approval from friends on numerous occasions for article ideas, I found myself sinking back into inaction all the same.
But then, it happened.
Maybe it was a boost in self confidence. Maybe it was a recent binge of long form writing. Or maybe it was the block of time freed up after I dislocated my shoulder last month.
Either way, one month and four articles in, I’ve realized how much I enjoy the process of experimenting and writing on different topics.
Here are 5 takeaways:
1. Know your audience
“Write to please just one person. If you open a window and make love to the world, so to speak, your story will get pneumonia.” — Kurt Vonnegut
After writing my first article, I continuously questioned whether the content was too long or whether anyone was interested in online spreadsheets.
It was then that a friend sent me the above Kurt Vonnegut quote.
Write for an audience of one.
Just as you create UX personas for products, create one for your target reader. My first article had been rather ambiguous and unfocused. So for my next one on data wrangling, I decided I was writing for a recent graduate interested in data visualizations who was just starting to figure out functionalities and packages for Python. He/she would also be starting off with a relatively clean dataset from a notable source like the OECD or the World Bank.
By focusing on who you are writing for, the article naturally becomes more concise to cater to that audience. The audience in turn are better able to articulate the value-add for them.
2. The small wins matter
“Track your small wins to motivate big accomplishments.” — Teresa Amabile
Have you ever felt a simultaneous rush of excitement and relief upon finishing a personal project or reaching a personal goal?
It is that same wave that sweeps over me each time I complete an article. This is especially true for my pieces that revolve around a data analysis project.
However, there was always a drop in intensity and motivation during the weeks when I’m debugging my both my code and my writing. It always seemed like such an infrequent payout for a drawn out process.
So I broke apart the big ‘win’ of finishing an article into multiple checkpoints representing small wins. It could be as granular as ‘finish the introduction’ or ‘justify the correct dataset’.
The succession of small wins kept me engaged throughout the writing process with micro dopamine hits. More importantly, by racking up the small wins, I managed to build up momentum, stick to a routine, and break out of the illusion of inertia.
P.S. — Every opportunity for a cat meme is a small win.
3. Make the time
“Being busy is a choice.” — Ann Voskamp
An excuse I have always used to justify procrastinating on writing was that I was busy and had no time. I was busy at work. I was busy networking. I was busy at the gym.
I have come to realize that you choose to be busy in certain things because they are important to you and you prioritize them over others.
It took a reframing of my priorities from “How many different things am I doing?” to “What was important to me?” that made me commit to my first article. Learning to grasp new ideas, to express myself clearly, to clarify my thoughts, and to engage in discussion were important to me and were all areas I could address through writing.
So I prioritized. I made the time. The hours before breakfast, the workplace lull after lunch, and the bus ride home all became valuable pockets of time for churning out content.
4. Just ship it
“Done is better than perfect” — Unknown
You will always look back on a published article and see something that can be improved.
Always.
This is not to say that any rough draft should be published without proofreading. However, there comes to a point where anxiety about whether the content is understandable enough or good enough is a pointless exercise.
I certainly felt that way working on a data article on P2P loans. The model could have a few more variables. I could have included more external datasets. I could have churned out more variables through feature engineering.
At the end of the day, it came down to three questions for me:
- Did I try my best given personal limitations (time, skill level etc.)?
- Is this something my audience of one will find valuable?
- Did I learn something from writing this?
Three yeses? Up it goes.
5. Get ready to be pleasantly surprised
“Nearly all the best things that came to me in life have been unexpected, unplanned by me.” — Carl Sandburg
As a new writer, I expected the usual 10–20 views a day, mostly comprised of friends and repeat visits from my Dad.
Imagine my reaction checking the stats a week later and seeing the total read count quintuple in an hour. Honestly, it was mostly confusion with bits of surprise and excitement mixed in.
It was a few days later that my CTO turned to me and said “Hey, isn’t this your Medium article on Python Weekly?”.
For a newcomer to writing and to coding, it is moments like this and the subsequent messages thanking me for the article that remind me why I’m writing on Medium.
If you are on the fence about publishing because you are doubting what you have to offer or the amount of time you have to write, I hope this article encourages you to take the leap.
Thanks for reading!
