Part 1 Dreaming Dreams Where Others Wouldn't Dare

At one point or another in our lives we've likely been asked some variation of the question "what are your dreams?" For most people they have elected to become part of a subconsciousness hive mind wherein they all share the same basic dreams. A lot of these dreams revolve around simple things such as fame and riches. And while supporting a variance of individualistic manifestations covering a broad range of applications the construct of the subconscious hive mind is still by and large the same throughout. The desire for prominence and wealth is preeminent and promulgated by the inherent herd mentality of the subconscious hive mind construct.

Granted, the appeal of these things is obvious, especially when dealing with hive mind and herd mentalities. Fame is synonymous with recognition and the more recognizable you are to more people the more influence you have over the collective subconscious. However, it should be noted that this influence can work for or against the wielder of fame. Fortune and wealth grants similar (albeit more subtle and powerful) influence and control over the minds of the masses. So what really does the individual and collective mind alike yearn for if the two most prominent dreams and desires essentially reduce down to having more power? Well, that's the answer. The mind (both collective and individual) craves power at its core.

Going Where Others Fear To Tread

We live in an age of interconnectedness and continuously emerging disruptive technologies. We've come a long way from following herds on the open plains. Or have we? In this digital age are not content creators such as myself essentially tracking the patterns and movements of the herd in order to best benefit from the resources that the herd provides? How am I any different from my often so call primitive ancestors? If anything, I'm worse off. Whereas my ancestors only needed to pick off a couple stragglers here and there to provide for themselves I am playing a different numbers game where I am attempting to get as many of the herd as possible. I've evolved from hunter gatherer to wild west rustler and rancher.

So what does it really mean to tread where others fear? I'm certainly not treading anywhere that others aren't willing to tread by posting here on Steemit. I'm just like thousands, if not millions, of others all vying for the same attention from the same pool of people. The level of uncertainty when concerning success certainly isn't any greater or much less than what was experienced by our hunter gatherer progenitors. So again, where's the dream? If you'll bear with me I'm laying the ground work as fast as I can to drive home the point I'm hoping to get across.

Running the Risk of Alienation

What it comes down to in this day and age (and even in past ages) is the risk of alienation. In order to successfully branch out into new territory you must run the risk of alienating the rest of the herd. This however is self-defeating if your livelihood effectively depends on your overall level of acceptance with the hive mind. Is there anyway to alienate yourself and at the same time draw in a mass core of followers? This formula tends to only work well with shock rockers and not so well for the blogging crowd.

History has taught us that to challenge the zeitgeist is to often resign oneself to complete and total rejection. Sometimes this is as passive as ridicule and shame (which in some societies can prove to be harmful if not in some extreme cases fatal) and others it goes as far as imprisonment or death. And yet many of the greatest innovations that we today tend to take for granted come from those who were overtly ostracized and even persecuted for the challenging new ideas that they brought forth. Is this to mean that we are to forever remain subservient to the whims of the crowd? Must we really pander to the lowest common denominator?

Creating a Mutually Beneficial Relationship

I do not believe that we are forever doomed to feed into the consumer mentality in order to sustain ourselves through group economics. Platforms like Steemit more than support this belief. It allows me the freedom and comfort to produce content that while disruptive in nature is inviting and insightful. Never before has a platform appealed to me the way that Steemit does. And it goes beyond the obvious mass appeal of being paid for creating and upvoting content. I truly feel invited to share my thoughts on this platform.

Fortunately enough for me Steemit has already created a mutually beneficial relationship whereby I can bypass the essential disruptive and alienating nature that I have found my thoughts and content often displays. I know there are plenty of people out there who would vibe with my prose and my mode of thinking but the challenge is that people who think like me are often so preoccupied with our own thoughts that we have little to no incentive to build a reliable community.

I would call this something of a lone wolf complex wherein we who are inherently and instinctively predisposed to challenge the status quo often do so to our own isolation and detriment. We would be stronger together and yet we cannot overcome our cynicism and our own apathetic lethargy to form a cohesive bond by which to overthrow the power systems which threaten to drive the herd off a cliff.

A Hive Mind of Free Thinking Rebels

Yet I dare to dream of a coalition of free thinking rebels and lone wolves who are able to for a time work together a common and mutually beneficial goal. But finally I know I am not alone in this dream and there is light in the darkness and the dream is looking to become a reality for the first time in my life. Yes, my dream much like Steemit is still in its infancy but as I have chosen this as the platform for my dream I am wholly committed to nurturing both this dream and this groundbreaking platform.

As I have no following established on any other social media platform for the aforementioned reasons I am attempting to create from the ground up my entire following here on Steemit. I simply don't feel comfortable on any other platform and that's the honest truth of it.

Ethos Fetch Mania