How I Cracked the Code to Success on Medium (And You Can Too)

Photo by Mohammad Rahmani on Unsplash

If you had told me a couple of years ago that writing on Medium would turn into one of the most rewarding — and sometimes frustrating — ventures of my life, I’m not sure I would’ve believed you. Like many others, I started my journey on Medium with the usual sense of excitement and uncertainty, eager to share my thoughts and stories with the world, but unsure of how to actually make it work.

Now, after some trial and error, multiple articles, and more than a few late nights spent staring at a blinking cursor, I can say that I’ve cracked the code to success on Medium — or at least my version of success. And along the way, I’ve learned some valuable lessons that I believe can help anyone looking to turn their writing on Medium into more than just a hobby.

Here’s how I did it, and more importantly, how you can do it too.

Starting From Scratch

When I first started writing on Medium, I had this vague notion that if I just put out great content, people would naturally find it, love it, and share it. Spoiler: It didn’t work that way. My early articles barely got any views, and I felt like I was shouting into the void. I didn’t have a following, I didn’t understand how the platform worked, and frankly, I wasn’t paying attention to the details that mattered.

I didn’t get discouraged, though. Instead, I did what I always do when something doesn’t work: I researched. I read through the stories of successful Medium writers, analyzed popular articles, and tried to figure out what made them stand out. Over time, I started to see patterns and strategies that these writers were using to gain traction, and I decided to apply them to my own work.

Lesson #1: Consistency Is Key (But So Is Quality)

The first major lesson I learned is that consistency is everything. On Medium, as with any platform, you can’t expect to build an audience if you only post sporadically. Writing one good article and then going silent for a month won’t cut it. You need to be present and active.

At first, I set a goal for myself: write and publish at least two articles a week. It didn’t matter how long or short they were, as long as I was…