You just finished the article. Your research was thorough, your argument airtight, your examples perfect.
Everything just clicked.
You hit publish with that rare pride that only comes from knowing the work is genuinely good.
Then you check back a few hours later.
Three views. Zero comments. One of those views was probably you refreshing the page.
Frustration, embarrassment, failure — they replace that initial pride.
An article with zero readers has zero impact. It builds no audience, creates no connection, changes no lives…
But what if I told you the solution isn’t to write better?
The Drummer
Incredible technical skill.
For a year, he posted consistently excellent content — perfect lighting, multiple camera angles, crystal clear audio, excellent technique. Everything the “experts” tell you to do.
Yet, he couldn’t break a few thousand followers.
Then, mid 2025, he posted a series covering a band called Sleep Token.
Within a week, one video hit a million views, and he gained over 17,000 followers.
His drumming skill hadn’t magically improved… His video production hadn’t suddenly leveled up…
So what the hell happened?
He tapped into what I call The Visibility Equation.
Visibility = (Practice x Present) ^ Perform
Let’s break this down.
Practice: Why “Getting Better” Is a Dead End
Let’s start with the first variable: Practice — your craft, research, and expertise.
The hours spent wrestling with ideas and perfecting sentences are essential; solid practice is non-negotiable.
But many writers get trapped in a cycle: if an article doesn’t perform, they assume they need to practice more. I know this trap firsthand. I spent over 50 hours writing this article.
To this day, it’s one of my lowest-performing articles.
Time invested does not equal results. After your writing is solid, extra polishing doesn’t make much difference
Present: How “Style” Is Killing Your Reach
The second variable is Present — how you package your work.
It’s the visual structure, formatting, and overall reading experience. It’s what determines whether someone sees your article as valuable insight or unpaid homework.
The Math: Practice x Present = Your Writings True QualityA low “Present” score undermines even the best writing.
Here are some examples:
- 9/10 article (Practice) with a 1/10 Presentation = 9 (9 * 1).
- 9/10 article (Practice) with a 3/10 Presentation (slightly better) = 27 (9 * 3).
- 9/10 article (Practice) with a 7/10 Presentation (much better) = 63 (9 * 7).
Focusing on your Presentation dramatically improves your visibility score.
What is the Presentation?
Most writers mistake presentation for basic formatting. And it is… to a point.
But the real issue is verbosity disguised as “style.”
Writers often justify long, rambling articles as their “style,” but often it’s just a way to hide a lack of clarity.
Writing concisely is hard — it forces you to be direct.
If you haven’t written a 1 million words, your goal isn’t style; it’s clarity.
(this is dramatic… but only slightly)
Cut your article by 50%, then another 25%. Every sentence should earn its place; every paragraph should move the reader forward; every word must be purposeful.
Once you’ve learned to write short, you earn the skill to write long. And your new long articles will be half the length and twice as potent of what you use to write.
That’s where you’ll find your voice.
Perform: Join the Conversation
Now we get to the exponent: Perform.
This is how people become “breakout creators” — one strategic choice that creates exponential results.
It’s about connecting your well-practiced, well-presented idea to a conversation people are already having. It’s not about skill; it’s about strategy.
Think back to the drummer. His Sleep Token series exploded not because he was suddenly more skilled, but because he tapped into a passionate, existing audience actively searching for content about that band.
He joined a conversation already happening at volume, bringing his expertise to the table.
Every industry has recurring hotbeds of attention — core ideas that consistently resonate because they address fundamental needs or desires.
The key isn’t chasing fleeting trends (though that can help initially); it’s identifying these proven ideas in your space and strategically positioning your expertise within them.
The Equation in Action
Visible Impact = (Practice x Present) ^ Perform
Scenario A: The Invisible Genius
Practice = 9, Present = 2, Perform = 1
(9 x 2) ^ 1 = 18This is the writer with world-class expertise who packages it terribly and connects it to no existing conversation. A wall of text with a generic headline that could have been written anytime in the last decade.
Result: Invisible.
Scenario B: The Competent Creator
Practice = 7, Present = 7, Perform = 1
(7 x 7) ^ 1 = 49This is good (not great) work, well-packaged (not perfect), and created in a vacuum. No connection to what people are already talking about, searching for, or caring about.
Result: Minimal growth.
Scenario C: The Strategic Writer
Practice = 7, Present = 7, Perform = 3
(7 x 7) ^ 3 = 49^3 = 117,649This is the exact same asset quality as Scenario B. The writing isn’t better. The formatting isn’t better. But it’s joining a conversation that’s already happening at scale.
Result: Exponential impact.
In many cases, you don’t need a better article. You need to join a conversation that’s already happening.
Practicing in the Dark
Most writers spend 90% of their time on the Practice variable and 10% on everything else.
That’s exactly backwards.
Once your writing is “good enough” (and if you’re reading this, it probably is), your biggest opportunity for growth isn’t in Practice. It’s in mastering Present and, most importantly, Perform.
Finding those recurring viral ideas in your niche — your Perform exponent — isn’t luck. It’s not magic. It’s a learnable, repeatable skill.
I developed a system to find them consistently. I call it the Viral Validated Method.
If you’re a writer who knows your work is good but can’t figure out why no one’s paying attention, this is for you.
I walk you through the Viral Validated method in my Writerpreneur welcome email series.
