Let's face it: Life as a minnow is tough here on Steemit.

You come here after watching videos by people who say stuff like they earned $500 on their very first post here. Your first post earns a few dollars, maybe. Your second post earns 0 cents. Your third post earns 0 cents. Your fourth post earns 0 cents. Your fifth post earns you 0...

You eventually lose track of the zeros in your life. You desperately seek a hero. You begin to hate Steemit. You begin to feel scammed. You stop posting. You rue the time you wasted making your posts. Then you read this post.

My Steemit name is @tintiano. My real name is Rohan Rinaldo Felix. I am 27 years old, and I ain't no goddamn scamster.

I've thought long and hard about why many hardworking minnows with no dearth of writing skill struggle on Steemit. I've done a decent bit of research too.

Here are some of my findings:

/1./Most minnows join Steemit hoping to hit the ground running. They expect to earn reasonable amounts from Day 1.

/2./They fail to factor-in the fact that they start with 0 followers and readers. Minnows need to build a readership from scratch on this platform.

/3./Most minnows don’t know what to make of the bots here. There are predictions in the mainstream of society that A.I. will make bots rule humans in the future. That’s probably already happening on Steemit.

/4./Many minnows chase upvotes rather than engagement.

/5./Generating engagement on Steemit requires more than just creating content. You need to network.

/6./Networking is tough business because no one is interested in your success as much as you are.

/7./Mutual help works better than self-promotion. It actually helps to be truly concerned about the welfare of another Steemit user who’s worse off than you.

This is the mindset with which I started Steemit Minnows Party (SMP) not too long ago. SMP is a chat server on Discord where minnows come to share their woes and support one another.

The server has the following channels:

1.Welcome: This is the first channel that new joinees encounter on the server. It is a place in which to get the initial doubts cleared and familiarize oneself with the basic ground rules.

2.Post Sharing Zone: This is a special channel unlike any found on any other server for minnow welfare. Here is how it works. A member writes at least two lines (mandatory) about a Steemit post they wish to receive upvotes and comments on. They then attach a link to the post. Anyone who likes the description can now head over to Steemit and upvote the post and comment on it. Having done so, they then post in the channel tagging the original poster letting them know of their action. The original poster, or anyone else for that matter, can now reward this generous individual with upvotes, comments, resteems, and follows for their selflessness and contribution to the wider Steemit community. This channel works by symbiosis.

3.Tips and Tricks for Minnows: This is a channel in which members can share the things that really help them in their Steemit journey. Over time, as messages increase, any member would be able to scroll through for some meaningful methods to boost their Steemit experience.

4.Casual Chat: Just a nice place to hang out and discuss anything under the sun!

It’s still early days for SMP. The membership is still low. If you believe in this experiment of mutual sustenance as much as I do, and if you wish to participate in the server, visit this link. There is no cost involved.

https://discord.gg/zPv9kMZ

Click this link to visit SMP’s Steemit profile.

@steemitminnows

Cheers to life!

This cat cares for you and hopes you join SMP.

Please note that the logo of SMP is a modification of the original Steemit logo image available on Wikimedia Commons (copyright free).

Images used in my posts (if any) are either labeled CC0 (meaning they are in the public domain and don't require attribution) or belong to me. I source public-domain images from Pixabay. Videos shared (if any) are the properties of their respective owners. I make no claim of ownership.