Don't get discouraged on Steem
Don't get discouraged on Steem
I’ve been thinking for a long time about making this post, and after I saw my friend @whatamidoing’s post, I knew that I had to kick myself and write this because many people probably feel the same as he does.
I know it’s frustrating to create quality content on Steem and get rewarded peanuts when at the same time people make shitposts and memes and get more than you do in a whole week. Yeah, I like memes, and across this entire cryptocurrency ecosystem we’re all a bunch of trolls, but it is crazy to make more from a meme than from an in-depth post on any topic.
I’ve been in that situation, and only three months ago I wrote about The Steem Dream, and all of my frustrations in what I think was my first 1k word post, talking about success on Steem and our possibilities but not many things have changed since then on Steem.
I’m always frank about my actions and my situation, and without the @Sndbox constant support, I would probably make for most of the time only pennies while still posting what I consider as being quality content.
Making Money
Yes, there are people making thousands of dollars on what most of you will call shit, with little to no effort but that shouldn’t get you discouraged. Maybe we will never get to make those figures, regularly, by blogging here but sometimes even peanuts are better than nothing.
I’ve seen people, attention seeking bastards, saying that they will leave Steem after a few weeks here complaining that they only made a couple of dollars, but my question to those ready to quit is always the same. What are you going to do now? Go back to Facebook or Instagram to consume shitty content non-stop while interacting with stupid people and getting paid nothing?
If you are willing to leave Steem because making in your first weeks only a few dollars is not good enough for you and you think that Facebook will reward you better then I ask you to leave because Steem is not a place for people like that, we’re better off without you.
Opportunities
Think about the fact that the people who are right now Youtube stars or known bloggers started from nothing, while probably making even less than you in their first months even if they put out quality content.
You’re already doing better than they did in the beginning so keep on fucking going because this platform has a lot of unexploited potentials that will prove to be rewarding in the end. Think about the fact that we are only a handful of people on Steem right now; we have so few active users; now it’s the time to work more than anybody else and succeed.
One year, two years, five years from now when this blockchain will be filled with new users trying to make a name for themselves and a few bucks you will be already known, you will already have an audience. Even if you’re making only a few money right now, think long term, think about making an audience and genuine friendships because when the mass adaption comes, you will have a tremendous advantage compared to the newbies that will come.
Being now on Steem is like you would’ve posted on Facebook, Twitter or Instagram when they launched their platforms but in fact even better because you get paid here.
Conclusion
Making money is a great goal but you need patience because the constant rewards won’t come overnight, the rewards are the results of the hard and smart work from the past.
I only have four more months of @Sndbox support, after that, I will have to be again on my own, I will have to “hunt” for myself, but I have a strategy to survive. I must admit, that if I’m posting without their support I’m probably making like $1-2, and that is scary when you think about it, but I have a plan.
One wise whale once told me “Start Projects” on Steem is all about doing projects and gaining awareness for your “brand,” and the money will follow after that. Now, I’m working closely with a few teams trying to launch two projects sometime shortly, and hopefully, those will put me on the Steem map.
I want you to know that you’re one post away from recognition, we’re still in the early stages, the most important thing right now is building an audience, and that’s what you have to focus on, good luck even if it’s not about chance.
The pictures are from Pixabay: 1, 2, 3, 4.
I never get frustrated about my earnings on Steemit because I have been in other 'business' and I realized contrary to many people's expectations, you just don't pick money on the internet. Though I, like other people wish I could earn more.
You have to keep providing value and be consistent with it. Steemit is just like any start up, it's always hard at the beginning before it gets better.
Seeing the rewards on the trending page and other steemians killing it make you feel you deserved more than you are getting...but you have to put into considering their investment in time, effort and fiat.
Like you said, I look at it from a long term perspective. In Steemit, the only direction I am seeing is forward. How fast and how well will surely depend on your investment, persistency, consistency and how strategic you are (you already some good strategy in this post)
I have been posting for I can't remember how long on Facebook, twitter and others. Though posting on Steemit is more demanding, but there is good chance of making a bank with Steemit. Besides I am glad to be part of the future now.
This is so fucking true. Yes, it hurts to make less on quality posts. I used to get very angry about this too at first, but I also came to realize making little really is better than making none.
And like you said, what if I leave, i go back to Facebook and Twitter where I post contents and make nothing whereas the corporate mf make everything? Hell no.
I'd rather start small here on steemit and wait for that time when I would have enough friends of my own. And come to think of it, two months in and I'm not doing badly. I have good friends backing me up, I belong to a commenting pod, hey I'm even hosting my first very own contest!
Can I ask, what's the best way to continually find quality content? I would like to get more involved in the community but I keep seeing a deluge of weak material. I want to plug in to the best Steemit has to offer!
Lol. I know your plight. There are actually a bunch of users known to publish good stuffs. If you're following @guyfawkes4-20 you're already on the right track. Plus it also depends on what you're interested in.
Oh and i'd appreciate if you could check out my contest in the meantime. 8sbd up for grabs.
as said better getting paid a dime then not getting paid at all( e.g. FB)... and you know what FB is givin a shit about its meembers... you even gotta pay when palcing adverts right there - WTF! They shoullda pay you for using FB and increasing traffic on Fb through your customers getting on it.
Besides STEEMIT is jsut about to take off to the MOON so we should stay a little patient and do our best to provide VALUE to the communtiy and therefore getting followed and rewarded for good content.
... but you know this all already, bro :)
How you getting along with the sugar quitting? I have to admit I did take sugar today - not on purpose though - but did not pay attention to what I was about to drink ... so had my coffee with sugar :( .... yea, supid me, I know...
I really appreciate your message and I agree that Facebook and Instagram are not alternatives, but the incentive model for Steem is basically completely f**ked. This is why so many people are ready to leave the platform. Please have a read of my detailed views on it at the post below and I'd be very happy to hear your views on it as well:
https://steemit.com/steemit/@newsandviews/why-and-how-steemit-needs-to-improve-or-face-future-competition-that-will-come-in-to-replace-it
This post is damn encouraging for beginning. I must admit that when I made an account on here I did for telling stories from the places I've visited and to promote Romania. But as you said then you see those account who literally post only memes or motivational quotes said by celebrities not even commenting about that quote. Or just random things which don't really transmit you anything but they earn a bunch of money. And then you return on your posts and you wonder yourself if this is fair or not. But as you said, we have to be patient and think on long term and believe in ourselves. If we don't, then who will? Thanks for the post, really helped me :)
I couldn't agree more.
I joined to improve my writing skills, but I very quickly got sucked into the community; and with that the wanting to make a couple of cents from the posts I'm doing.
It does get annoying to watch memes make thousands of times what I made on a post that took me an hour to write. But what really annoys me most is that I generally make 0.02-0.09 cents per post regardless of the quality - which really discourages me from writing long, quality posts.
I guess I'm just holding out hope that my audience will grow, although I have no expectations of a second income from steemit.
@guyfawkes4-20 :couldn't have said it any better!
It's discouraging when you put your heart and soul into a piece and barely receive any recognition yet someone curates a meme and gets tons of monetary compensation, it feels unfair and backwards!
I've stop focusing on the monetary goal and learned to hone my craft as a writer.
I write what I know and share it with the world :) Overtime, they'll be less crickets and more recognition :)
Hahaha funny , and so true , I think that if I did not have voting bots I would probably make 0.01 or somehting like that !
What is frustrating on steemit is that there are awhole bunch of great writers and content makers and I can not follow all , so its just once in while , but there are people I could upvote always !
As for shit posts , yes loads .... To much .... But what can we do about it ? Its life .
Well, i joined steemit for the community. @catalincernat told me about it and i was exited to see a new way for me to put out my art, life and experiences.
I was so bored of facebook and instagram, i wanted something with REAL people, that maybe will take more time to view, read my posts and also maybe comment on them.
I see that are also lots on steemit that make money from no quality content, but i don't mind. I plan to post every day, only my original work and maybe on the long run, i will make some $ also.
I have 4 days since i joined, and i am enjoying it. Even if this site scares me sometimes, i embrace it and will start to love it at it's full glory.
Thank you for this post. It will help people that feel lost on steemit. Have a nice day!
Creating projects undoubtedly is the solo-player method to Steem. And thanks to this post, I'll put my back into it as well. There's no reason this can't be a steady income flow -- it starts with us. Cheers to you on your endeavors, and everyone's for that matter.