Great post! I wish all newcomers were like you. You spent time and effort to learn and figure things out. That is the spirit. Communities are everything for this platform, the more people you are communicating with the more recognition you will get. If you are thinking about building a follower base and good community rather than money, you'll eventually get both of them. Newcomers usually aim only to gain money from steemit and ignore everything else. This is the worst thing you can do. Creating quality content and sharing your story is what everybody should do. Steemit has a long learning process it is a fact, but if everybody gives enough time and passion, steemit can be conquered.

I believe if you follow this path you will be successful in steemit.