3 Reasons Why Medium is Like Real Estate
Writing stories goes hand-in-hand with making deals
There are many things are on our minds on a daily basis, such as where lost socks go, how spam is made, and what’s for lunch.
For most of us on Medium, we also ponder its mysteries, such as where do stories go when they die, how claps are made, and what on earth is an RSS reader.
Similarly, real estate mysteries occupy our brain on the daily as we wonder about bursting bubbles, missed opportunities, and what caused that foul odor at the open house.
While I have no good answers for you about any of those mysteries, we can gain some insight into the Medium platform by making some anecdotal analogies.
So, here we go. These are 3 reasons why the Medium platform is like the real estate market:
1. You wish you had started 5 years earlier
The first-mover advantage is real.
When I check out the Medium writers with the most followers, they all share some similarities. None of them started yesterday as I did. They started in 2017, 2018, and 2019. It took time for them to build a following and prove themselves as a writer.
When I check out the most paid articles of all time, they are not normally an overnight success, but they attracted attention over a longer period of time.
When we see headlines such as “How I make $1000 and write one article per month,” it is not that the one article is pulling in $1000. It is that the writer’s catalog of articles continues to pull in enough revenue even months or years after publication.
Real estate works in a similar way.
The average Toronto home has increased 48.4% over the past 5 years. This puts the average 2021 home price to over $1 million CAD when you average houses, condos, and random garages.
Everyone, their sisters, and even their sisters’ dogs wish they would have bought in, bought more, or bought stock in the Toronto real estate market 5 years ago or more. And, whoever did, is reaping the rewards today.
Starting off either on Medium or in real estate in late 2021 necessitates a lot of catching up to do.
2. You’ve got to do your homework
Theoretically, you can write about anything you want on Medium including effervescent cheese odors, thinking patterns of street mice, or color variations of your snot.
But, if you are writing to reach a larger audience, call attention, and get PAID, try again.
You will need to do your homework about what topics are popular enough to generate a loyal following. And then, you may need to do research on those topics so you can belt out an article about it without lying through your teeth (unless that is your thang).
You will need to also research which publications will give your stories the specific audience that you are craving and a large enough audience to get those sought-after reads, claps, and comments.
We all know that no one can go into real estate blind.
We first have to research location, value, and potential. You’ve got to have your ducks lined up straight. You need lenders in your back pocket and lawyers on speed dial.
Getting in takes some time, research, and straight-up balls. Speaking of which…..
3. You’ve got to take a gamble
You may be thinking, “this is not my best work.”
You may be thinking, “no one is going to care to read about this.”
You may be thinking, “I am leaving myself vulnerable.”
But despite all these doubts, you’ve got to take that jump and click “publish” to play the game.
Sometimes, clicking publish gives me butterflies. I actually thrive from the excitement, especially since it’s been a while since I’ve ridden a real roller coaster.
Applying to larger publications takes guts. Be prepared for rejection, but seek solace in acceptance. I figure the excitement that I get from 1 story accepted to a larger pub is worth 9 rejections.
Ain’t nothin’ gonna break my stride
Nobody gonna slow me down
Oh no, I got to keep on moving- Matthew Wilder
Think of the courage I had to muster to quote a cheesy 80s reggae artist for this point. On a side note: if you are ever feeling blue about low reads on your story, watch this video as you think, ‘hey, at least it’s not the 80s anymore.’
Clicking that ‘publish’ button is a microcosm of bidding on a real estate property. You get butterflies. You get antsy. And then, the joy of winning 1 real estate bid will outshine the 9 properties that you were outbidden on.
And, similarly, if you are feeling those real estate blues, watch a bunch of cheesy 80s reggae videos as you think, ‘hey, at least I’m not wearing sequined spandex.’
God bless. Jah rastafari.
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