Trust the writing process.

I just finished the first week writing for a new company but most of my work was actually reading. There was a slight learning curve.

My freedom to write whatever I want to write is limited. This happens when you write for someone.

Writing on Medium you can write anything you want to. No one tells you what to write. You are your own boss.

When you write for a company, all of that changes.

After a few days, it’s good to sit back and think. Analyze what you did well. Then analyze what you didn’t do well. Your honeymoon period won’t last forever.

Review notes from your boss.

• Where did you make a mistake?
• What do you need to focus on?
• What can you improve on?
• Is your article too long or is it too short?

Your writing style needs to mimic the tone of the publication you write for. Spend the time to study other articles on the website.

The pace was fast, but that is typical when you get thrown right into the fire. The company is already operating and you’re the new guy or girl. You need to spend some extra time to study the manuals, figure out the routine, and adapt like a chameleon does in a new setting.

If I were to grade myself, I would give myself a C. I can do better. You should always spend the time to look at yourself from the eyes of your boss.

• What can you do better?
• Where do you need to spend more time on a project?
• Did you make simple mistakes?

Sometimes you need to slow down and spend more time reflecting. Analyze what you can do better. Keep a notebook on mistakes you made.

Once you figure out the company, take the time to understand the process. This has been done before. You don’t need to reinvent the wheel.

You’re the new person. Don’t rush it. Write carefully. Then review your work so you can turn in your best stuff.

What I did well?

1. I wrote 3 articles, one is still in review.

2. I wrote articles about technology stocks.

What do I need to improve on?

1. I need to write longer articles, irrelevant information can be cut out.

2. I need to look at the article from an investor’s point of view.

3. Is the information I write important for the investor?

Changing my writing style is not hard. I need to spend more time reading the current articles. I need to look at each sentence like a work of art.

I need to study why does the writer lead off with a personal story?

The job is interesting. It’s not hard.

As a writer, you need to do your own self-analysis and look at yourself from the eyes of your boss. If not, you may not last long writing for them.

How you can make the transition to become a paid writer

Let me start with you won’t become a paid writer tomorrow. For some, you could be in the right place at the right time. For others, it may take years.

I started writing on Medium two years ago but I have written for years. In high school, you write to pass the class. While in college, I was challenged to write and provide my answer on a topic.

Whether you went to college or not, the real world wants you to provide value as well as follow the template of their publication.

Jeff Goins recommends that you start writing for magazines. I know some writers have done that in the past.

There is a market for freelance writers to provide their work for magazines since they are always looking for something new that their writers haven’t covered.

If you can provide value to a magazine, then there is a slim chance you’ll get published.

I didn’t go that route. Most of my work was writing online but there is one thing I did that got me an interview.

You need to market yourself.

Let people know you’re a writer. You don’t have to pass a test to tell someone you’re a writer. As long as you can put a sentence together that makes sense and you have published a few articles, you can consider yourself a writer.

This doesn’t mean you’re making thousands of dollars a month. To reach that level takes time.

3 Ways you can market yourself without looking like a spammer

1. Update your social media pages

A few years ago, a friend said I did a good job of transforming myself as I changed from one job to another. I didn’t think much of it at the time, but she was right.

When you change roles, you need to look the part and an easy way is to update your social media pages.

There are 4.48 billion people who use social media. This is a billion more than the year before.

If you don’t want to reach billions, then how about 7 out of 10 Americans who use social media? There are 331 million Americans. A rough estimate means about 231.7 million Americans use social media.

Even if you only reach a small fraction of that, there are so many people you can reach who don’t know you’re a writer.

2. Market yourself just like AT&T but without spending billions of dollars

In 2019, AT&T spent 5.36 billion on advertising. I spent zero dollars in advertising.

As long as you have an internet connection, you can market yourself and it doesn’t cost anything.

This is one thing you need to do. You need to share your stories on key websites for people to find you.

Facebook is the biggest platform after YouTube. But that may not be the best place for someone to find you to get hired. I rarely shared my stores on my personal page.

There were two places where I shared my articles that actually made gave me a return on my investment. Other than making money on this platform, companies paid me money to write for them. So I received two payments for one article.

On Twitter, several people reached out to me to write cryptocurrency articles.

The same requests were on LinkedIn as well.

I shared my articles every day on Twitter. Sometimes multiple times.

With LinkedIn, I only shared my article one to three times a week. I strategically picked what articles I wanted to share on this platform. If I had nothing to share, then I wouldn’t. You don’t have to force yourself to share too much on LinkedIn, otherwise, your readers will turn you off.

Last year, writing for other companies earned me $1,952. A few opportunities fell through since my writing fee gradually increased. I won’t write $10 articles anymore. Your time becomes more valuable the more you write.

3. Share your writing just like any publisher would

When you write an article, don’t expect people to find you. You have to share your work because there are hundreds of companies looking for writers.

I tweeted hundreds of times a month and most of the tweets were my articles. Some people don’t do this, and that’s fine. When you’re not an A-list writer, you need to share your work.

As a bonus, adjust your LinkedIn profile to state you are open to working as a writer.

What are your writing goals?