The data proves it: I’m popular and also unpopular
I pride myself on being relatively in tune with the Cheese-It network and society overall. That I know what’s of interest, hot, on fleek.
(Use of “on fleek” makes you question the validity to the previous statement, huh?)
Looking at data, like what links get the most clicks in my newsletter, as well as what social media and blog posts of mine get the most likes, comments, and shares, backs up this claim. And also refutes it.
I’m often surprised at and dead wrong about what resonates and what doesn’t —
“Why didn’t anyone like XYZ article?!?”
“They went gaga for that?!”
This fascinated me. I began to pay attention to and note the data of the data, collecting links to my hottest Facebook posts in Evernote. In case you’re also a data nerd, or if you simply want to imbibe popularity, thought I’d share.
I love the randomness. I also love the solidification of the recent realization of mine that being a “Content Curator” is a thing. A thing people want. A thing from which people derive pleasure. A thing people will support, financially and otherwise. I recently made a joke about the one subscriber I had on Patreon and in two weeks, that joke netted me two more subscribers. I’m not about to retire on the subsequent funds but y’all, the fact that people set up monthly autopay from their bank account to mine in exchange for my content, most of which isn’t original, blows my mind, warms my soul, and gives me all sorts of motivation to keep on keepin’ on.
The joke also opened up the door to eye-opening conversations with the two cheerleaders, as they shared why they deemed lil ol’ me worthy of their hard-earned money:
“I was listening to a podcast and a journalist was talking about supporting literary publications that helps keep them unbiased. Though bias is not the reason I chose to become a patron, I did think of things that I routinely read or save to read and your newsletter is always one of those things. It is valuable to me and I feel that I should support it.”
“I truly appreciate your posts as I am an avid lover of travel… I would guess that I read 90% of your blog posts over the past 10 years and probably read 5-8 articles that you post to Facebook. You are a fantastic curator of content. (oh – and I also ordered the really soft jersey sheets that you suggested…) Basically, I am a big fan. I have thoroughly enjoyed your content over the years… I think Patreon is a great way to support content creators that bring joy and add value to your life. You do both well.”
I often think I’m doing good, that people like and appreciate what I offer, that I should continue to put in the time and effort, especially into the things that don’t directly pay the bills or further me in my primary goals (read: book deal or at least book writing). But sometimes, the crickets man, they’ll do a doozy on ya —
Does anyone care?!
Is anyone listening?!
What am I doing with my life?!
Give me that pint of ice cream, my comfy pants, and Netflix!
While Likes shouldn’t matter, let’s be honest — they do. Both in the applicable, real-world sense of social media capital and companies like Subaru being more likely to gift me a free Outback if I have high engagement, and in the feeling good about oneself sense of illogically and stupidly but realistically measuring yourself against others and their numbers.
Anyhoo, the list. Enjoy! (Or don’t. Maybe I’m wrong again…)
Now the question is will I collect the data from this post? Depends on how many very important projects I have from which I need to procrastinate.
The Most Popular Mac & Cheese Productions℠ Facebook Posts
Or at least the ones in the past year’ish that I’ve remembered to note
- When Can I Say I’ll Be Alone Forever?
- THINGS TO DO AT WORK BESIDES SHOWING YOUR PENIS TO COWORKERS
- Man, 22, Travels 1,000 Miles to Meet ‘Best Friend,’ an 81-Year-Old Retiree He Met on ‘Words With Friends’
- TIME’S EDITOR-IN-CHIEF ON WHY THE SILENCE BREAKERS ARE THE PERSON OF THE YEAR
- A club for people age 35 and over just opened in NYC
- Aziz Ansari on Quitting the Internet, Loneliness, and Season 3 of Master of None (I feel ick/sad sharing this now after the stories about Aziz’s questionable actions have surfaced)
- The most undervalued women in America are childless aunts
- 12 Reasons Why Old Souls Have Such A Hard Time Finding Love
- This shiplap is killing me.
- Take Photos of Stove Dials Before You Leave for Vacation
- FLIGHTS TO HAWAII ARE GETTING CRAZY CHEAP
- No, You Can’t Use My Photos On Your Brand’s Instagram For Free
- Want to Be Happy? Buy More Takeout and Hire a Maid, Study Suggests
- Strangers Who’ve Kept Hilarious Tinder Conversation For 3 Years Go Viral, So Tinder Itself Decides To Step In
- Most Hated Railway Puts 15-Year-Old In Charge Of Their Twitter Account, And Things Escalate Quickly
- ON THIS TROPICAL ISLAND, YOU CAN CUDDLE WITH PUPPIES ALL DAY ON THE BEACH FOR FREE
- Will Golden State Warriors visit Trump’s White House? NBA champions yet to make decision as they await invite
- 10+ Of The Funniest Reactions To Super Sad Pope Meeting The Trumps
- Every single senior at South Side high school accepted to college
- Happy Thoughts: Here Are the Things Proven To Make You Happier
- Someone used the gender swapping app to create female presidents & it’s making me Feel Ways About Things
- Pretty Girls Won’t Get it: The Crucifixion of Leslie Jones
- Heineken Just Put Out The Antidote to That Pepsi Kendall Jenner Ad
- Meet Alan Echols, a budding artist who lives at Mercy Home for Boys & Girls
- Hey Mom, can I have an apple?
- 9 INCREDIBLE COUNTRIES WHERE YOU CAN LIVE FOR UNDER $1,000 A MONTH
- 9 MISTAKES YOU ARE MAKING AT INDIAN RESTAURANTS
- Dear Friend Selling MLM Products, It Isn’t You
- I Joined Airbnb at 52, and Here’s What I Learned About Age, Wisdom, and the Tech Industry
- Women Surround Crying Mom Whose Toddler Was Having A Meltdown At The Airport
- This says a lot about the world we live in.
- Some of my own blog posts made the list —
- Warrior Journey: What’s the thing you’d never share? I weigh 321 pounds. Update: I’m 40ish pounds lighter now, still truckin’ along the health journey. Also, I ate a BOX of ho-ho’s the other day. To see more recent health journey posts, head to the blog and choose the “health” category. Also, find some below.
- Warrior Journey: I lost 35 pounds in 44 days. So why am I bitter?
- How I happily lost $599
- Thought he was going to pass gas; instead, he proposed
- How I ended up with 3 engagement rings and an engagement Mac Book Air
- Our fairytale $24K wedding for $11K, er $790, er $265, er $205
- Life of Yes℠ 2017 Holiday Gift Guide
- Why can’t you answer this simple question?!
- Words I never thought I’d say: is it time for me to leave Chicago? This got me a Tribune article and an interview on WBEZ.
- Life Lesson: never check email when in Mexico
- Home sweet home
- A year later, I’m still sad. But less sad. And I have a tree.
- GUEST POST: Moving from the Big City to a Teeny, Tiny Town
- My List: Chicago Beyond Navy Pier and Uno’s
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