My dear, it can be frustrating when you work hard and you got nothing to show for it.
Dont be discouraged, I am assurring you that you are at the right place.
My advice for you is that you do more of commenting on whales (established steemian) post so you can get upvote i.e make some money.
Secondly you should also do more of contest, i.e enter contest, when you win contest, you make money from it...
And do chat in discord, there you will discover several opportunities and you will make friends that will help you grow on this platform.