How I got 100+ Followers From Just Two Articles

The journey and what I have learned so far…

Like everyone else, I’d like to begin by sincerely thanking all of my readers and followers on this wonderful platform. Of course, acting in the same manner as others makes us human. Despite the fact that I firmly feel my content merits your support, what if you change your mind?

Before Now

I’ve seen quite a few posts regarding getting past the 100-follower mark. I never considered this as any big deal until I crossed the threshold myself. Also, I have seen some writers advising new writers on how to get more than 100 followers as quickly as possible. Many advised them to follow other writers and ask them to follow them in return. I don’t really buy into this idea as crossing the threshold is just not enough. Why do I need to beg people to follow me? Medium is not Twitter.

What has changed?

One of the reasons why I felt reluctant to start writing on Medium is the paywall. I felt I should be able to access information for free while giving it out for free. Sometimes, as a self-taught software developer that majorly depends on online resources and desperately looking for an answer on how to tackle a challenge while coding or just looking for a line of code. I just want to google, and check out blogs or videos. I don’t have much time because I need to complete this part of the project. Often, I get a perfect topic that makes me happy initially, but on clicking to get the whole picture, I will discover that I have used up my free three readings of the month. Wow! What is this? Where do I go from here? Sometimes I try to use another email if that’s also not exceeded.

In addition, I read about how the Freecodecamp needed to pull out because of the Medium paywall. Maybe because of the economy where I come from, I need a lot of free resources, at least as a beginner. Because of that, I’m conflicted about whether I even want to write on Medium.

But here I am, writing on this great platform. What changed? Humans are dynamic as we progress in life. The same applies to me. As I progress and pick up more interest in writing, I understand more about motivation in everything we do. For the past 6 months, I haven’t posted an article. Although I’m really busy as I took a full-time job as a technical writer and other gigs as a developer, motivation seems to be a great factor because I was also working when I posted the last article in January. Monetization serves as a fuel that keeps writing vehicles moving and this is why I believe the Medium paywall is important to the writing and creator’s economy.

However, writing to some people is an inbuilt passion that they love to do even without money, but monetizing what you love makes more sense and paves the way to do it more.

What I have learned?

Getting people to follow you isn’t just magic. You either earn it genuinely or probably ask people for it. In my own case, as I keep getting email updates on writers adding my article to their lists, my audience keeps growing too. I felt very confident in my writing and more motivated to write more. In essence, if you create a value for readers, they would definitely see it and do what they feel right to do; comment, clap and follow you. My advice is to keep enriching your audience by giving them valuable content and the rest would be a story. Don’t forget that I only have two articles apart from this one. And yet I was able to get close to 200 followers. Some writers could have published more than 10 articles and still be yearning for their first 100 followers. It’s all about giving values.

What next?

I’m really sorry to my audience for taking so much time away without publishing an article. I’m now back to keep writing valuable content. I have also set up my Upwork technical writer profile so that I can continue to immerse myself in the ocean of writing once again and forever.

Conclusion

• The best you could do to yourself and others around you is to give value. Because it is not about how many but how valuable and impactful
• Humans are dynamic. When you see a change, embrace it. So, be open-minded
• Don’t be afraid to switch gears and reassess how you are doing things. Only you understand yourself better.
• Many thanks to everyone that has helped me in whatever ways; readers, advisors, bosses and most importantly Medium for giving writers this opportunity.
• If you like this article please follow me here. Also, here is my Twitter and LinkedIn profile.
• Lastly, I’m working on Workmate Team. It’s for students, professionals and businesses seeking content writing and research of all kinds. I’m looking for both workmates and clients.

Thanks for taking the time to read this piece and please don’t forget to leave your comments.