Keep Writing, Even if No One’s Reading

There are Many More Benefits than Claps

Photo: iStock

Finally, I’m ready to hit publish.

I just spent hours writing an article, editing it, and making sure it’s perfect. Well, perfectish. Regardless, it’s done. I click publish with an act of finality and wait for the views to start rolling in.

Except they don’t. I wait a day, then another day, and no one’s reading my post.

Is there something wrong with Medium? Maybe the site crashed for everyone except me? That would explain it.

But no, Medium’s fine. People are reading other stuff. Just not my article.

Still single digit views.

Which is about when the doubts start creeping in.

Why am I even doing this if no one’s reading? What’s the point of spending time writing if it doesn’t go anywhere? Don’t I have better things I could be doing with my time?

If you’ve been in this same situation, you know how disheartening it can be. You pour hours into something only to have three people read it. It can make you question your ability. It’ll make you wonder if you’re not wasting your time.

It might even be enough to make you write one of those “I’m finally done with Medium” articles, although hopefully you haven’t sunk to that point just yet.

It’s frustrating. It’s discouraging. And to a certain extent, it’s unavoidable.

Because every writer goes through this. No one’s an instant success. The difference is that they kept writing. The key to their success is that they didn’t quit.

But it’s also worth remembering that there are plenty of other benefits to building a writing habit. Many of which deliver far more than views and claps.

Writing helps you notice the world around you. Most people don’t do this. They’re too busy looking at their phones and scrolling from one distraction to the next. But when you’re writing, you never stop looking for new ideas and perspectives. You make it a habit to notice things. You take an active interest in the world around you. In short, you live outside the daily distractions that keep most people from fully engaging with the world. As Anne Lamott wrote,