Of all the milestones I have achieved here I feel this to be the most important yet. Steemit has completely revolutionised not only the way I earn money but the way I live my life and there is no reason why it cannot do the same for anyone who desires it enough.

This article will be divided into the following chapters:

• Brief history of my time on Steemit

• Review of achievements

• How has Steemit my life changed?

• Who would I most like to thank?

• Who am I most excited about?

• Plans for the future

Brief history of my time on Steemit

Just over two years ago I had heard of Bitcoin but had no idea what it was. After meeting @xplice in the jungles of Bali he taught me the ways of the crypto ninja and upon seeing my relentless attempts to generate an income through YouTube films he pointed me in the direction of Steemit.

I joined in August 2016 with zero investment and it took around six months before I was earning anything more than a few dollars but I persisted and the curation guild gifted me a few times, which was a big help in keeping my hopes up.

I made my last episode of Sammy's Simple Solutions in October 2016 to introduce my fans to crypto and let them know where I had gone. You can see the film beneath. It's useful for the basics.

In April 2017 I made another film which was not part of any series but more as a test run to see how simple it was to convert Steem to the local currency IDR. As you can see in the film... it was simple.

Soon after this the price of Steem started to climb and by powering down a little each month I was finally able to live on it.

Today marks one year of living this way. Only now I am not living directly from powered down Steem but rather from the multiple investments I have made into other alt coins.

I was helped massively by the unexpected rise in value of SBD and in this moment (after starting with nothing) I have a $20,000 crypto portfolio which my family & I will most likely be living off for the rest of our lives.

I am forever grateful to the generous people who continue to upvote my efforts here.

A review of achievements

I have started many projects on Steemit but in truth I have not carried all of them through as intended... yet.

I list them at the bottom of my main posts in part to remind myself of what needs to be done and in part to see if anyone contacts me, looking to breathe some new energy into the ideas.

Aspiring Steemit Whales & Dolphins

Facebook group

The first thing I did (for the sake of my Facebook fans) was start a group there which would serve as a transition point for those who were interested in Steemit. I made documents to guide newcomers and tried to be as helpful as I could. Today the group is 828 people and whilst I don't engage much there any more, I am still available to answer questions and I scan the feed from time to time, upvoting the posts I like.

@steemtv

As a filmmaker my first project on Steemit hoped to attract others like me to unite under a common banner producing & screening topical decentralised documentaries.

@xplice kindly provided footage he had shot on the subject of energy and together we began creating this Steemit exclusive documentary, The Energy Deception.

We edited & released part 1 of the documentary but it quickly became evident we couldn't maintain this kind of time commitment without more in the way of rewards.

I would love to hear from anyone who has ideas for this account.

@steemshop

My intention with @steemshop (which is now 1 year old) was to provide a single account displaying posts for those looking to buy or sell anything for Steem or SBD. @jockey had some great ideas to contribute but in the end the system was too complicated and demanding of our time. The account is still running and anyone using the steemshop tag with a sales post will be resteemed there.

Just in the last month @steemshop has acquired a much needed team and now with the help of @kenistyles & @claudiaz we are working towards creating a more simple system.

@steemholidays

Similar to @steemshop it is in need of development but the idea remains solid. @buttcoins has a hostel in Guatemala and has kindly offered to help me out with this one. Looking forward to moving my attention to this account once @steemshop is back up and running.

@steemtutorials

A total of 12 films were created with the intention of guiding people through the basics. Both YouTube & DTube accounts were created to host the tutorials.

@steemmasters

As an extension to @steemtutorials I hoped to attract a group of prominent steemians to the @steemmasters collective where together we would run courses in training people. I even went as far as creating a website but for one reason or another people did not seem willing to pay for the courses.

@charitysteemit

This is perhaps my most successful project on Steemit. Together with @chron we were able to raise over $1000 worth of Steem & SBD to buy solar power for the volcano evacuees of Bali. Here is the film I produced on the day we handed out the solar kits thanks to you the people of Steemit.

This account is now available for any good cause which needs it.

Public talk in Bali

I was privileged to be asked to speak at a weekly crypto group in Ubud, Bali on the subject of Steemit.

You can see the talk here.

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How has Steemit changed my life?

Aside from the switch to crypto and the way in which I now provide for my family, Steemit has had many unexpected side effects.

• My writing skills have improved. I can see this by looking back at posts I made a year ago. Writing every day will have this effect!

• I take more photos now & document all thoughts and important events for Steemit posts.

• Extended network of open minded friends. The community here is very different to Facebook and I feel blessed to have met so many wonderful people.

• Savings account for the kids. After writing a post 5 days ago it has been decided that all rewards inspired by their wisdom (or cuteness!) will be moved to an account which is for them and them alone, when they are old enough to know what to do with it.

• Incentive to research new subjects. One of the most wonderful things about Steemit has been this. If there is a subject which interests me now I can financially benefit from learning about it and documenting what I have learned.

• Most important of all now I get to spend more time focused upon the upbringing and education of my two lovely children :)

Who would I most like to thank?

There can be no question about this one.

@canadian-coconut is THE angel of Steemit as far as I am concerned. If you are not already familiar with her work I suggest you check it out and start upvoting her. Together with @markwhittam they have created the @familyprotection account which seeks to educate and help people.

She is one of the most active and generous curators I know of and an inspiration to all of us on Steemit. I hope one day to be able to help others here as much as she does now.

I would also like to acknowledge @teamsteem for his amazing articles and support.

My daily Abraham quotes have a following of their own now and I would very much like to thank and acknowledge @timcliff & @kafkanarchy84 for their long term support of these more spiritual posts.

Who am I most excited about on Steemit?

Around a year ago I sat down with @chron and taught him what I knew about Steemit. He is unquestionably the most advanced minded teenage robot I have ever met and has shown me how youth is not the limitation I once believed it to be.

@jockey is an old friend from my London days and after having the pleasure of catching up in Bali he has taken to Steemit like a duck to water.

@dannyshine is a YouTube hero from my London days and it was a big surprise when he contacted me asking for help in his early days on Steemit. Danny is a very special individual who is the perfect person to bring Steemit to the masses... with a cheeky smile.

Further to this I would like to acknowledge Danny's generosity. He kindly leant me some money when I was struggling to get my family back to Europe from Indonesia just after the crypto crash in January. My portfolio was massively down and he stepped in and helped me out. Thank you Danny.

Plans for the future

I have genuinely enjoyed the experience of writing articles here on Steemit but I am a filmmaker in my heart and in time I must return to doing what i love most. A new GoPro is on it's way from England and I am looking forward to sharing with you in a much more personal manner.

Final thoughts

As a man with a camera who intends to travel the world with his family for as long as possible, Steemit is perfect for me. Wherever I go, as long as I have an internet connection, I can keep on earning.

Steemit really does have the capacity to change lives! It is by no means easy money but far more enjoyable than working for a boss who doesn't appreciate you.

And let's face it, there is nothing more depressing than earning a fiat currency which goes down in value each year.

Here on Steemit you will never experience that again and instead you will settle into the much more enjoyable feeling of watching your hard earned money increase in value each year.

Our love to you all from France 😃

Who is @samstonehill?

He was a London based filmmaker until he sold everything and set out on a barefoot journey around the world, currently based in the south of France.

He is travelling the world with his partner & two children and with no bank account he has been living on STEEM & crypto for over a year.

All content created for this account is 100% original (unless otherwise stated), produced by @samstonehill who invites you to use & share freely as you wish.

@samstonehill is the creator of:

@steemshop account where you can buy or sell anything you like using your steemit wallet SEE MORE

@steemmasters which provides FREE TUTORIALS, personal training & resteeming services. Website HERE
Contact me directly on steemit.chat if you want to know more about this

@steemholidays which encourages resort owners to offer holiday packages in Steem or SBD

@steemtv which aims to provide the best in decentralised films, exclusive to Steemit & DTube

The dailyquotes tag initiative designed to encourage steemians to share their most life changing quotes with the community on a daily basis.

The Aspiring Steemit Whales & Dolphins group on Facebook which seeks to help newcomers make the transition from Facebook to Steemit, providing them with detailed notes and personal assistance with their posts... resteeming them when he can.

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Here is a list of Steemit Witness I have voted for & recommend you do the same:
@teamsteem @timcliff @jesta @good-karma @someguy123 @blocktrades @pfunk @klye @krnel @blueorgy @ausbitbank @thecryptodrive @ura-soul @pharesim

Without them our beloved Steemship would not fly.

Learn what this means HERE and place your vote HERE

All non original photo sources can be found by clicking on the image