Publish Like a Pro
If I can do it, you can too
Welcome back to our March special of writing daily on Medium for March.
I’m writing to do nothing more than build my skills and develop an audience of amazing people if possible.
I’ve been writing on Medium for less than 8 months now, and I’ve published 35 times.
Which isn’t terrible.
But also not that much.
Some people publish multiple times per week, which is admirable and more challenging, to say the least.
If you can have kids and a job or even your own business and still find the time to pump out some blog posts, kudos to you.
I, on the other hand, have done ole dabble dance with our lovely writing companion.
Writing only when I felt like it, but not making it an all-out habit.
At least that was before embarking on the creative mission I’m currently on.
Before, there’s little difference between me and thousands of other writers or creators.
And it’s this — I’m pushing myself to publish 60 pieces of content in a row for 60 days. Everyday.
Yup, that’s right.
I challenge you if you’ve never undertaken such a task.
It all actually seems kind of silly, right?
Why would I do that?
What makes me think that the world needs another article on Medium or another video on YouTube?
Well, you see, that’s the beauty of living in the world that we do today.
Is that anyone has the capability to share their experience and knowledge online to be discovered, discover others, make money — or further develop their creative abilities and interests.
The potential benefits of doing this are huge. And I’m just talking about the money.
The personal journey I’ve been set forth on and the transformation that I’ve had in my mind have made this entire little journey worth it.
Even things such as reading something or watching a simple video, we don’t comprehend the time and effort it took to create such things if we’ve never attempted to create them for ourselves.
I’ve learned an entirely new array of skills to apply to my business, freelancing work — or a future job if I decide to get one of those again.
Instead of dabbling between creative interests and slowly expanding my skill set, I vouched to create and publish for 60 days straight.
Actually, hitting publish is the mental trigger I’m trying to emphasize.
Because that’s the part that’s more difficult than you think.
Especially on the days where you’re just not in the mood, or you don’t feel like sharing anything.
Or on the days you actually have to take care of your kids.
Or on the days you have to spend all your emotional and physical energy at work.
After all, coming up with something to share while also adding value and not overthinking the quality of your work would be nearly impossible for most people.
I’m not trying to toot my own horn or anything like that.
I haven’t even completed the challenge all the way.
But this is day 34.
And while these last 26 days won’t be easy by any stretch of the word, it also is not impossible, and I do see myself completing — especially after doing 30 YouTube videos, to be honest.
That shit was hard, man.
- Deciding on a topic
- Rehearsing what you’ll say in your mind or writing a script
- Deciding on a scene
- Building up the confidence to hit record
- Capturing the raw content
- Transfer media from camera to computer
- Upload footage into editing software
- Color grade the footage (Like adding a filter)
- Make anywhere from 0–150 cuts in the footage (more or less depending on how long the video is) because you don’t want dull moments.
- Pick out music (can be very time-consuming in and of itself)
- Add music, edit the music volume throughout,
- Add intro and outro animations.
I’m not saying that creating a good video is harder or more difficult than creating writing that people like to read.
I could have been overthinking the whole thing.
But I am saying that it’s a different type of work.
And when it comes to being a solo creative-preneur, it seems like less of a hassle to sit down and write.
Allowing the thoughts to develop and build on top of one another.
Instead of completely switching the type of work being done, multiple stages are involved and require different creative thinking types.
At least if you’re the only one making the video. This is why there multiple people on production teams for different roles.
The guy operating the camera will probably be a different guy (or gal) from picking out the music.
But then again, that’s the fun about being an independent creator.
And doing all of those different things yourself.
It’s probably the reason a platform like YouTube exploded the way that it did and allowed extremely talented people to immerge and be discovered — along with others that probably should have stayed hidden.
But hey, that’s the name of the game.
And you may as well start playing.
You don’t have anything to lose — theoretically.
But you do have a voice to gain and value to add.
If you consciously chose to.
So start learning, start creating, and let’s make this world a better place — one human being at a time.
Thanks for reading.
MDM
