"Steemit is so UNFAIR!" I have been hearing a lot of this lately...("Nature is Cruel" - acrylic on canvas painting)

Not to sound like a jerk, but are you kidding me?! Nature is harsh and heartless, cruel and efficient but astoundingly beautiful and full of opportunities!

Where else can you potentially earn for merely creating content?? Anywhere else I have been, you have to invest money to even be seen or heard at all! So, I find this platform very refreshing. I am a tiny little piece of plankton. My vote is worth pennies. All I have is my creative voice. I have brought no upfront investment...no following. I have been a nuisance, posting my blog links on other people's thread-comments (sorry!)...I have asked F4F (REALLY sorry) and I have been shameless and fake...all within a few days of being here. I was so excited by the potential that I wanted a quick fix for my own life, as an artist and creator. I have quickly learned that this place is so much more than that. It is a great environment to explore and learn and build community. It is mostly about profit for many, but the true value , in my opinion, is found in the opportunity to share and express and to listen and offer support to others.

I see a lot of victim mentality....I have experienced it first-hand. I want every post to be seen by everyone. I want to be heard and understood! I deserve it! But I am just too late to the party. Woe is me...if only I had joined months ago, I would be a whale too!! Those whales are so selfish and they only vote for themselves...whaaaaah!!!! (with all do respect, this is what it sounds like when you complain)

To those of you feeling victimized: I feel your pain! ...but, have you considered that these dolphins and whales are not all just rich assholes who only vote for themselves? Perhaps they, too, have worked through feelings of doubt and frustration? Perhaps they have felt invisible and hopeless but decided not to give up, but to improve their lot and keep contributing from their hearts. That they had to work through their own fears and anxieties and have had to learn to improve their content and strategies to become the whales that they are? So what, they have been here longer and have built something and of course you want a piece of the pie, too!

Rather than letting it get you down, let it inspire you! if your content is richer than theirs, make more of it....keep creating and improving. Reflect and adapt! Have patience and vigilance...determination and endurance! Don't give up and don't blame anyone else. You can do it! But not with a shitty attitude.

I love steemit. I am here for the long haul, and I don't care if your vote is worth a penny or a $100. I don't care if all you can offer is a kind comment and maby a follow. I appreciate when anyone cares enough to want to hear from me at all. I will let this guide me. If you are feeling like a victim, then I offer you some tough love! I am here to offer my support and I would say the same exact thing to a dear friend, if I found them sunk in self-pity. Pick yourself up, dust yourself off and get back at it, if it is what you want! Nature is not forgiving. It is harsh and cruel and can seem unfair. But it rewards those that rise to the top and you will never get to the top with a shitty attitude.

Much love and I truly wish you all the best, from my heart. I will get off my soap-box now. I would love to hear from you, too! <3