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Summer Lotus 1st Nov 2020 3 min read
I am glad to have exceeded 100 articles in my writing on medium.com and am still baffled how I managed to do it. My inspiration comes from reading good articles by top writers on Medium and learning from them.
I never thought that a dentist like me who only think in sequence and steps could display creativity, wax lyrical and lay bare my innermost vulnerability at times.
At any rate, all is good. I am happy to be doing what I do and pushing myself further. I told my husband that I got accepted as a writer on one of the publications. He said, “ Just don’t make it your main career” and I told him, “ I made S$0.50 cents so far”.
But I am elated. Not the money first though it would be a great boost. There are established writers who made it and make it full time, enjoying the freedom and the reward. But they worked for it.
I have never put money as my main goal. Everything needs to come to a head before something happens. One has to go through the grind, feel the dejection of being rejected and also be criticized for bad, inappropriate articles (which I see in some authors) but there is always something positive to learn.
I do not feel disheartened. I am grateful for what writing has gifted me though I never consider myself able to write.
1 Self-discovery.
Writing made me more introspective. Instead of thinking a thousand irrelevant thoughts, I would give myself a topic.
Then I would mull over it, delve into my history, experiences, and to some research so as to come up with a coherent article to share something that I feel may give some insight to interested readers.
I have discovered more about myself, how I have changed over the years, how persistent I can be and how I need to develop more patience.
Writing accelerated that. It requires me to read and to read quality articles by other authors to improve my critical thinking. It requires me to write, rewrite, edit and make it a worthy activity to be shared to the virtual world.
2 Writing is a Crisis saver.
During the Covid-19 crisis and even now that there are repeated lockdowns in some parts of the world, writing is a cathartic activity. You put your emotions to your article and are able to sort them out clearly.
My mind has clarity, lucidity, and crystal clear thoughts. Most days, my to-do list has become a breeze to resolve using practical, rational methods.
I feel that without writing and the reading that necessitates it, I probably be fretting most days at home. Because of it, new paths and interests emerged.
I learned new skills, concepts, and lessons and a whole new world has opened up. ‘No more travelling for the unpredictable time being’ need not dull me no end.
3 Writing is about self-improvement.
It improves my speaking skills. Subconsciously, everything that I put to paper or on a word document, it has become my habit to make them grammatically correct as well as linguistically effective.
At work, I have been able to articulate myself well, allowing my patients to understand their diagnoses and treatment plans easily. Good communication skills stem from good writing habits.
I am able to produce speaking scripts for my Toastmasters’ meetings with positive messages that motivate fellow members.
As content is everything these days, I see a great future in honing this skill further, whether in editing, blog posts, creating corporate contents, et cetera. The options are limitless. It is a wonderful skill in today’s connected world.
I could go on and on. Suffice to say, Writing is an indispensable habit that each person should embark on. The benefits of self-discovery, saving our insanity through this crisis and self-improvement are what I am enjoying at Medium and I hope more people will discover writing.
“ After nourishment, shelter and companionship, stories are the thing we need most in the world” — Philip Pullman
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