Writing is a super power. I don’t care whether you’re an accountant, an artist, or a chef. If you know how to write, it means you can share what you know. And when you share what you know, people come to respect you for your craft.
Here’s the thing: writing is terrifying. I got the biggest pushback of all the day I suggested others should write daily. I get it. It’s easier not to write than it is to write. Like working out, I’m always happy to have written, and I often resist the act of writing.
Not having a place to write becomes an excuse for most people to avoid writing.
“I don’t know how to build my own website and I don’t want to waste my time writing on a wordpess.com or a tumblr.com site because it’s not building my brand.”
I hear some version of that fairly often.
Medium.com is the best middle ground between your own website and a throw away blog that will never be found on WordPress.com, which is still better than nothing. Medium has a certain sense of curation and culture to it. It feels like the writing is elevated, because the reading experience is elevated.
Medium exists to create a great reading experience, which means good writers are able to find an audience there.
If you’re looking for a platform to start your writing habit, Medium.com is a great place to start. In the worst case it won’t guarantee you an audience, but it will get you in the habit of writing and promoting your work. In the best case, your writing will find an audience and you’ll build momentum towards your own site (or more regular writing on Medium itself).
So I ask again, why not?