Steem Owes Us Nothing

Over the last week or so, I notice some posts dealing with the expectations many have on this blockchain. There was a lot of emotions put forth after the Hard Fork, some of which still persist. Many on here are unhappy with how things are going.

The word "entitlement" has come up a few times. @ned mentioned it in one of his comments. Also, @tarazkp wrote a couple of posts covering this topic after some conversations with @abh12345.

https://busy.org/@tarazkp/should-i-be-ashamed

https://busy.org/@tarazkp/entitlement-and-blind-brains

I guess this is all part of the mindset of the world today and is no different on here. The overwhelming sense is that many feel they should get what others have. It really comes down to that. People feel they should come on here and instantly get what others are getting and, when they do not, they attack those who are having success.

People are like crabs in a bucket. There is no need to put a lid on the bucket to keep the crabs in. They do that for you. When one starts to escape the others pull that crab down.

I make no apologies for my stake on this blockchain or what I receive out of it. I am grateful to have gotten that. I came here, the same as most, with no following. I was fortunate enough to buy some STEEM to power up in my first month or so. Over the first few months I was able to add a bit more to my hodling.

Yet, some seem to think I was lucky or had some advantage they did not. That is simply incorrect. I conclude that is the justification they use to attack others.

There is a lot of conversation about bidbots and how they prevent quality content from getting to the front page. Well, here is the deal: take $200 and promote your post to the front page. There is nothing stopping anyone from doing it. If your goal is to get to the trending page, there is the path. Be aware, from what I heard, many times those arrangements are losing propositions. Some make money on the promotion but many do not get all they put in back. However, anyone is free to use a bigbot if he or she sees fit.

I saw one comment that said this place is like socialism. Actually, it is the exact opposite. This place is anarchy, something few experienced. We are so accustomed to big brother setting up the ground rules that we cannot handle a state without them. Facebook has the left dancing with joy, I am sure, over the banning of many conservative pages. Get rid of that "hate" speech or whatever the mantra is. Of course, that will persist until the tune is changed and they start being deleted. That is the power of big brother.

It seems people believe that others on here should give them success. We live in an instant gratification world. Combine that and we see the mindset of come to Steem, make a few posts, get few rewards, so, in turn, start bashing the system and those who are having success.

Talk about an over exaggerated sense of importance.

I saw many who posted they were leaving Steem. My only question is, why the post to announce to the world you are leaving? Do these people think anyone will miss them?

Let us be real. This is the Internet. If I left tomorrow, some of my followers might ask where I went for the first couple weeks. After that, I would be forgotten. If you do not believe this, think of people who commented on your posts 6 months ago who no longer do. What happened to them? Have you even given them a thought? Yet we believe we will be different.

The truth is Steem does not need us. This is especially true for those of us who are content creators. I know, some will find that statement to be insane. Steem has a monetization system. The Internet has content but not much of a system to monetize outside of advertising. Smart Media Tokens will be out within 6 months. Billions of sites around the world have content that could be monetized if those sites choose to.

Those of us contributing content on here now are adding value to the blockchain. We might even talk to a couple of people into joining. Nevertheless, that is a drop in the bucket. Truthfully, we are secondary in the process.

I have brought about 7 people to Steem in my year+ here. A couple are active while a few faded away. This might be better than some, worse than others. Even if I quadrupled that, it is still under 30 people I could attract here.

Now compare that to an application developer. One application has the ability to draw thousands of people if not more. Even a not so successful one could get a few hundred people to sign up. I could go 10 years and never achieve that level.

Users are like car drivers. No matter how good a driver one is, how expensive and nice the car one has, it is all minimized if there are no roads. In that instance, the people building the roads are a bigger priority.

We see that here. The developers and entrepreneurs who are building applications (businesses) on the Steem blockchain are the ones who are paving the path for the future. I try to support them where I can but I know very well that I am just support. I hope my contribution is helpful but I realize it could easily be replaced.

Source

Steem is going to charge ahead, with or without me. This week I am looking at buying more STEEM because I foresee huge growth on this blockchain in the future. The Internet is an enormous market of content. Steem has a way for entities to monetize that content while incentivizing their users. This is something that could completely change the way sites operate.

Anyone is free to participate in what is taking place. Is it easy to build a large Steem account? No it is not. It takes a lot of work. There is also a chance that it will take some money. It appears very few people are willing to put their money into this. That is their right of course but it is ironic since so many felt, when STEEM was $4-$5, that others were lucky to get power up when it was cheaper. Guess what? STEEM is a lot cheaper. So why aren't these people adding to their STEEM hodlings? Some have no money which is understandable. The scarcity/fiat world is very tough and is designed to keep the majority struggling.

Nevertheless, there are many who do yet refuse to put their money into this. Perhaps they do not believe in the prospects of Steem going forward. If that is the case, obviously putting in money is unwise.

In the 1990s, I had no money. Thus, I couldn't buy Amazon stock at $50. A year or so ago, I had a few dollars which allowed me to get in Amazon at $1,000. The first time I couldn't; the second time I didn't; sorry about my luck.

Will this be the case for many when it comes to STEEM a few years down the road?

The bottom line is Steem owes us nothing. We join here of our own free will and we stay here the same What one does here is his or her choice. Whining and complaining might get a ton of upvotes on Facebook but it doesn't appear to be a great way to get votes here. Attacking others gets quite a following on the traditional site yet it doesn't seem to be a path to getting upvotes from accounts with some SP.

But are free to do what they want. Those intent on having success here will attract the attention of accounts that are larger than them. It takes time and a lot of effort. This is something that most appear unwilling to do.

I believe Steem will get a lot bigger. For that reason I am willing to put the time and effort into this along with some extra money I can put together. It is something I willingly choose to do. There are some who are having a ton more success than I am and good for them. At the same time, there are some putting a lot more money into this than I could ever put my hands on. I am glad for them.

To be it is reassuring when some larger accounts are buying bigger stakes showing their belief in the long-term prospects of STEEM. Someone like @exyle just ran his account from about 100K to 150K in a couple months. He did not do that exclusively from his rewards. There was a significant investment on his part.

Of course there will be some say he is lucky.

One final thought: If you are having a tough time believing some of what is written here, let me give you one thing to think about. Look at all those people who left Steem in 2018. Now compare that to where the ecosystem is today versus where it was in January. Follow the road map of the blockchain and the apps.

Steem is still charging ahead.

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Nothing in this article should be taken as financial advice. Just because I choose to buy STEEM does not mean it is right for you. Do your own due diligence and seek the guidance from those trained in such matter. This post is for informational purposes only.