People have been complaining about this since the platform began and will most likely be complaining about it well into the future until the blockchain is replaced by another technology. I've been writing consistently for a year now and have over a thousand followers and occasionally still have posts that only get between 10 and 20 views. Why is that? Either the market isn't interested in these posts, or I haven't worked hard enough to promote them. Many of the people who do really well on Steemit spend a lot of time on Steemit. Not just that, they spend their time well. Success isn't haphazard. I could vote more, comment more, spend more time in the chats, etc, but I like to spend my time writing. I've written more in the past year using Steemit then I have in all my life. That's been the greatest gift of this platform for me.
I think everyone needs to figure out what works for them. Why are they here? How can they best spend their time? What can they do more of to achieve their goals. Steemit isn't a magic place that makes your dreams come true just by uploading a picture or an article. It's an extension of the real world, only with a lot less competition.
My advice for beginners is to make some friends and here and help them out. Start a serial blog that you can write about well into the future. Release it in small, interesting pieces. Promote it. Build interest. Link to other social media. Buckle up and settle in for the slow ride.
I'm right with you @bluecarbox! I've only been at it for a 1 1/2 months, which is nothing. I think so many new people compare themselves to others who have paid their dues, either in sweat equity or investing in SP (which is still sweat equity in my opinion because they earned it earlier somehow).
I think it was Bill Gates who said, and I'm paraphrasing... most people underestimate what they can do in a year and over estimate what they can do in a month. Freedom with this platform isn't something that will drop in our laps without us working it. For many of us, it's having to learn a whole new industry, crypto, blockchain, how to blog, etc. I truly believe if we all just stay focused on encouraging others and remember what we're fighting for, this platform will go down in history books as one to study.
I like that. And I think you're right. Courtesy and consistency go along way. Not expecting handouts, but being grateful for any votes, comments, and rewards we get is important. Steemit isn't a magical place of equity where everything is fair. It's an extension of the real world.
I think one thing a lot of minnows don't know is that the payout window used to be 24 hours. That means you only had one day to promote your post and get rewarded before your post was a back entry on your blog. Now, beginners have one whole week. If I were just starting out, I would consider writing only one or two posts a week and promoting the hell out of myself in subtle and not-so-subtle ways through comments and chat. A lot of people focus on productivity and limit it to producing content. They don't seem to realize all the different ways they could be using their time more effectively.
Wow! Thank goodness we get 7 days. And you're right. It's important to network with the purpose of connecting and discovering your bridges of influence without our own agendas flairing up. Fine line to walk. Just like in real life. I emphasize this in a networking group for entrepreneurs and small businesses that I lead on Tues morning. Sales people often come and pitch before creating a relationship and those are the ones that come once, collect business cards and disappear....as the rest of us show up consistently to help each other grow our businesses together.
Yeah, call it good or bad, but I'm much more likely to engage with, comment on, and upvote people and content that I've had meaningful interactions with. Building relationships and getting to know people is very important.
Your networking group sounds interesting. If you haven't already, maybe you can turn the topics and content from those meetings into Steemit posts.
Yes. I had a meeting today with a couple people from my business networking groups and got them all fired up about Blockchain technology, Crypto and Steemit. We're going to put Houston on the map! I have room for 9 people to work on laptops in my conference room. I hope to grow it so big that we need to move to another room. And, yes. I have often thought about the parallels of in person networking and online networking.... relationship building. Thanks for giving me a nudge in that direction. :) Really appreciate you!!!
If you don't know about the Viva coin/VIVAconomy, and TradeQwik, the exchange that it is all built around, this article will get you started.
http://m.huffpost.com/us/entry/us_598cdcc6e4b0caa1687a5ed7
Since you work with entrepreneurs, this could really be something for you and your group, though, admittedly, there may be some hurdles for US citizens to jump over.
This is awesome stuff! Thanks for sharing. I love knowing about new things. I watched several videos on Viva. Very interesting to see how it evolves! For the new people I'm helping onboard, I have to stick to really basic info on how to get started... Minnow orientation. 😀
I agree with what you said (also on the post itself). I have been here for about 3 weeks. Only one of my posts flared up suddenly, but I think it got some votes from the whales. Because as mentioned earlier, sometimes I see posts with more than 100 voters but the money they made is barely 5 or 10 SBD. That post was not different in quality than others, because I wrote all of them in my personal blog and then just copied them here. It is amazing how much some people make (around 100K). I was thinking to start upvoting my followers periodically to help them and get their help, but my voting power is very weak (0.01)and it gets weaker the more I vote (which means my vote is useless). That is another problem with steemit settings and politics. Finally, I find that some people are now starting to make money by giving resteeming services (smart people), but even that doesn't really help our resteemed posts much. How about we ask the veterans to adopt few new comers and vote or resteem them periodically. This will help everyone to get more money and more motivation (since they merited to be chosen for their good posts for example). Let me know what you think
Asking for a resteem and networking is very much apart of the game. The people who are at the time have either put in the money, put in the time, know the right people, got in early, are good at what they do, are working hard in the background as a developer, or all of the above. It's not a fixed game, but it's a stake weighted game, so if you want more influence, you've got to have a stake.
If you're a beginner and you don't want to invest, you should power up all your posts for as long as it takes to get 10,000 SP. you should get yourself in with a crowd of people that can help you reach your goals. And, most importantly, you should be courteous and help people as much as you can along the way down your own path. It's no different than life.
As you are right, still the fact excist that whales upvote eachother a lot. They keep making more and more. For example. I have an article that someone upvoted. I had 7 upvotes in total with a total expected earnings of 0,19. 1 of this voters upvoted my article wrote: 'nice shot' and upvoted his own comment. He will get 1.42 sbd. So he upvotes me and 6 others but my earnings are 0,19 sbd. How is that even possible??? It is not all about hard work either. I see many post which have no valuable content or hard work in it earning much more then quality content of others. Eitherhow I like steem, but when someone comes with a better system steem will go down bcs of its unfair politics.
Thank you very much for your reply :)
Any time.
Nice post it's one i understand and as yourself i have never written so much in my life either and weather you get or don't get upvotes or dollars i am finding it interesting and it's keeping my mind awake and alert better then been in a nursing home. Am following you now. Cheers.
I agree with you there, aside from the money and reputation. Steemit has been really good for my mind. I have learned a lot and adopted some great habits. May I ask for a favour of a resteem to get this out there a little bit more. That would be awesome :)
Thanks for the follow. I followed you back. It looks like you've got some great posts about Thailand!
Thanks ...yeah am living in Thailand so you will see lots of interesting posts about Thailand. Cheers.
Looking forward to it.
I totally get what you say. I can spend more time networking and promoting my own posts, but I actually love writing more than that. And yes it does take hard work and a certain type of attitude. Hey May I ask for a faour and get a resteem? Would much appreciate that :)
Sure. Resteemed.
Yeah, it's hard to balance the blogging and the actual social network side of things. They both take a lot of time. Sometimes I go through phases where I focus more on one than the other.
Really good tips, for those willing to invest the time. Followed
I think you are right, people spending to spend a lot of time on this and working smart will be rewarded by default :) May I have a resteem btw? I would love for this to get out there more while it still can :)
Exactly!
I already resteemed this post yesterday c;
Time is a big part of this. And up until now, I think, timing was also a factor, but mostly putting in the time. The more you are online commenting, networking, posting, the more you will be known and voted for.
If you produce good content, that will help too, of course. Thanks for following me.
I didn't realize it until I read your comment. This is the first time I can remember actually wanting to write. Whether it's been comments or replies or posts, this is the first time I can remember not feeling like I was being forced to write, like it was some kind of assignment.
This has all been because I wanted to do it.
I think for some people, this platform really works. It's strangely motivating. But I can also see how it isn't for everyone.