Today, we have set-up an AMA with fellow Steemian StellaBelle. Be sure to follow @Stellabelle on SteemIt! Post questions below and she'll reply back under her account!
How do you get an AMA?
If you have an interesting project, or an expert on a subject please, comment below of your interest, or email [email protected] and I’ll get back to you.
Who is Next?
Coming soon.
My first question would be. How did you hear about SteemIt to begin with? Thanks!
I was a science/tech writer for Interesting Engineering and I was doing research online for a story I wrote. The story was found on Reddit (I have no idea how I found it), and I was searching for other media sites to verfiy it. I only found one source, so I began searching in depth for "Filetoffish1066". That was the guy's name. The only other place I found this name mentioned was on Steemit! It was a magical and bizarre time...I was searching in the middle of the night, as I found Steemit.com for the first time....4 months after it launched. Here's the story that went pretty viral: https://interestingengineering.com/programmer-automates-job-6-years-boss-fires-finds/
Thanks for the answer. It is odd how things like that work itself out. Yes, I remember that story. Amazing how time fly's.
always feel that the people who found Steemit by accident, on their own are a special sort.....@teamsteem and I bonded quickly once we realized that we had found it on our own, like moths drawn towards light..
yeah...
i hv to beg some of my friends to join steemit. if only they knew the trouble I had to go through to get it
I like this Filetoffish1066, if he was able to pull this off, he shouldn't have been fired!
Here's the Steemit post that changed my entire course in life: https://steemit.com/news/@nkdk/programmer-fired-after-6-years-realizes-he-doesnt-know-how-to-code
My question should be;
What as your motivation to continue with steemit as a new bie.
Was it the cents being earned or passion for blogging.
And how do you handle low views and engagements on your post before you became a whale. Thanks
wow. this is timeless @stellabelle thanks alot maam.
Who would you recommend to follow and why?
I understand this is a bit of an open question even more when there are so many things to consider. I am often in search of finding someone true, unique in their own way, that has passion for whatever they are interested in sharing.
I always find it interesting the reasons people choose to follow another person.
Well, I follow @greenrun because he's a very good storyteller. I am actually searching for more writers who are unknown, who have that special ability to be brutally honest.
I am
yeah, i just read one of yours...you know what would be great is if someone did a weekly post about the best articles from Nigerian writers....
Thanks for the inspiration. I will look into that. Your support will be appreciated
@stellabelle thanks for organising this.
My question tonight is : I've been trying to get your attention, but to no avail. How can I have you visit my blog? Even for once.
figure out how to be a friend before asking for anything.
Thank you @stellabelle, I actually asked you that question because I needed your attention. I'm a big fan of you. Followed you when I was at 30 rep.
I read most post you made. They're a motivation to me. Some of your posts had built me up to this point.
I wanna grow out of minnow.
It's no easy out there alone struggling to survive without the support of whales like yours, other curators and my euronation friends.
From all the responses you made tonight, I gathered a lot. It's a turnaround being here tonight. Thanks once again.
@stellabelle Excellent answer
my Twitter handle is @stellabelle
Do you have a special place where you go for inspiration to be creative? Secondly, what inspires you the most? Thank you.
People who are full of mad passion....those are the ones who I follow.
The only person I know there is Nikola Tesla. I would check out the other two. I asked this because I hear some say they go to some "special places" for inspiration. Thanks.
Vandana Shiva is a scientist and has fought Monsanto in India many times...and won. She's an example of fearlessness. Rimbaud is a French poet....who inspired me greatly.
I know Shiva sounds like a Hindi name. I think I have heard of Rimbaud. But Shiva is completely new to me.
Seriously, on steemit, I've only come across few steemian that are devoted to helping people, undisputedly you are one of them, I'll like to ask you why you like Helping the less privileged ones
Great question and here is the truth:
When I joined Steemit last year, I told all my friends about it. Some are here, but most are not. When I looked at those who are still here I realized one thing:
From this, I concluded that in order to find truly loyal people who really care about building up Steemit, into a fantastic place, I will need to focus on finding those who care. The world is really lacking in care, so this became my main focus. People who are economically disadvantaged, but who also care about the future, that sort of person seems to be the best caretakers of Steemit. The get-rich fast types don't have Steemit's best interest.
I came into Steemit as a poor person with a rich imagination, so I think my kind of people are the best for it.
WoW, this is so Great!!! What a nice motive.... And this moment, I pray the Lord will bless you abundantly and reward you bountifully.
My Second Question goes thus;
What do you like to read about? as far as I know, almost everybody has a niche..... I'll like to know some of your niches too
I like to read about people who investigate scams. I also like to read about people who have very honest opinons, like brutally honest, almost embarrassing writing. James Altucher style writing is good...
That's cool, but can you possibly find them all on steemit? What I mean is that steemit now has over 300,000 participants.... Many good writers are out there..... But few are always noticed
yeah, this is a problem....they have to find friends, and form projects....
this is really inspiring!!!!!!
How were u able to sail through the rough seas of steemit as a newbie till you became this successful In d program.
Easy: total dedication.
I found Steemit only 4 months after it launched. I was the 11,000th account (who knows how many bots, or duplicates).
During the first 2 weeks in Steemit I studied. I didn't know about blockchain, DPOS, or anything, so I really took a deep dive of learning. Most newbies in Steemit don't do the fundamental learning stage! They just expect to earn.
When I joined Steemit, there was not even a real payout. We were all playing a game, and we never even knew if Steemit would pay us any Steem at all....and then, none of us knew if Steem was real money or play money.
It wasn't until July 4, 2016 that we were paid, and then we could withdraw our Steem to btc.....
After I spent 2 solid weeks learning, I focused on commenting, blogging and being consistent. I became addicted really fast because of the large payouts.
Hi @stellabelle. I'm so glad that you are writing this for newbies and indeed for all of us to learn from. The challenge, I believe is how steemit was marketed to some people.. Some of us who market steemit, make it sound like it is a get rich quick scheme. When these people are on-boarded, they get to find out sooner or later that steemit is not what they think it is. Fortunately for me, no one told me about steemit. I found steemit accidentally while surfing the internet and after reading what was on the landing page, I didn't need any fortune teller to urge me to sign up. My first post was put up almost immediately. Majority of the people I know find it difficult to read. It's quite unfortunate that the resource materials that they run away from, in them are the secret treasures of wealth. I love reading, searching, researching, acquiring new knowledge and skills. That is the pathway of life that I've chosen. When I first joined steemit, I read the whitepaper and now the recently released bluepaper. Many won't read. They would tell you ditch the whitepaper. I still read as many materials as I can about the blockchain. Everything is there in these resources: word of mouth from veteran Steemians like you, books, youtube videos, posts, articles, etc.
Wow!! I guess I still have a Deep diving to do. Cos d seas of steemit hasn't really been an easy swim. Thanks MA, for d motivation and d Time u still take to assist us in Nigeria community.
I have found out I spend a lot ofd time on steemit, majorly curating.
My question is, how do you think one can manage steemit in such a way that it doesnt affect some other crucial part of ones' life while still adding value to the steemit blockchain?
It can't! You're either addicted or you're not.
I never understood the concept of "balance."
I like that answer,:
Balance=no change, no shift in thought, stagnation.
Or that's how I view it.
Whao, this is an epic response. Well, thanks. Also thank for the tutorial on gif. I made my first gif , I left it in the comment on the post. looks awesome trying new things on blockchain.
What projects did you make on Steemit and what other projects do you have in mind?
Secret Writer, Steemicide Hotline, Steem Gnome, Virtual Bars, Helped with Project Venezuela, am helping with Steem Stock Photos.....
Future ones: a variety show on video, guerrila style placing of huge Steem coins all around...
Hopefully a dj on MSP waves is on the list too!
How long are u on steemit? And how did you make it to the top?
1 year and 4 months.
Timing was very critical. As an early adopter, I was the recipient of a lot of whale wealth.
But there was preparation involved also, because before I found Steemit I was a professional writer. I had 2 different writing jobs, so I was writing 8-10 hours per day, with no days off.
So, when you mix timing with preparation and a very strict work ethic, I guess it paid off.
But you'll notice I am no longer one who regularly makes it to the trending page...I am thankful for that because I don't want the extra scrutiny.
Also, if you didn't realize, I already created several businesses, shows, projects including: Secret Writer, Steemicide Hotline video series, Steem Gnome, and I have helped so many other projects along.....
I create a new strategy every few weeks.
My question is: Pizza or crackers and cheese?
this is too difficult. I love both. I had pizza last night so i will have to go with crackers and cheese.
It's hard to choose when both are amazing to eat
Not a question this time, just a:
Thank you for being you
(got to run, real nice day here, we have had so, few pictures to follow)
This is the time for me to open up to know who @stellabelle really is,
Actually , i am a minnow ,and i know less about growing more on steemit all because i am unfortune to meet someone that will serves as my mentor without looking at "Race" , from what i have read from peoples comments , i am wishing if i can have you as mentor to help me and make me grow on this community
Thanks
Am yet to be replied to here ma'am
Am actually staying outside of my home this late night to ask this questions which i believe you will respond to shortly
is your question "will i mentor you?"
At this time, i would have to say no because I already have a few and it takes me a long time to become acquainted naturally.
thank you so much for your time i really appreciate it and it really ignite my hope on steemit
what is your exact question?
I am already mentoring 3 people.
I will be very glad to be welcome wholeheartedly as one of those you are mentoring ma'am
Have you ever been flagged? If so, what was your reaction?
Good evening ma, I must confess that its a great privilege to get this great opportunity. My first question is this, what really convinced you then that Steemit is a place for you because I know you would have heard about so many platforms in the past without joining them. Secondly, if you can remember ma; how much did u make with your first post and how is it that you are not discourage with such payout (if its small)
I use all platforms that are given to me for free including: Medium, Linkedin, Facebook, YouTube, Twitter, Instagram, Steemit, Amazon. Steemit is rewarding me more than those other platforms, so I am happier here.
I think I made $2,000 with my first post.
I am not discouraged because the whales paid me too much in the beginning. It's more realistic to make $50 and I am grateful that it is that much...
i do not know if you can tell us how more people can get to see our posts at least we should even see our work is being read, any ideas? thanks for your answer in anticipation
This is a real problem. Create something that refuses to be ignored and go out of your comfort zone. I am surprised continually by the lack of passion and creativity in posts.....and i would make absurd videos of me in order to stand out if I was a minnow.
Good evening ma .
Want to ask how you cope with the multiple messages from newbies here and life outside here.
You know newbies like myself can be frustrating and I'm sure we will be much messaging you.
How do you cope ma?
I ignore certain messages and answer others.
It all depends on my mood and how desperate people are.
The more desperate, the less chance of me responding.
Life outside of Steemit....is my private life.
Hello Stella !
Q: Do you still use [email protected] ?
I wrote you shortly after joining steemit but didn't receive a reply.
Yeah, but I don't always answer my emails from people I don't know..
I am sorry I didn't reply. I'm kind of overly sensitive to people who expect things from me, but who I don't know.
@stellabelle, I commend this effort of pulling steemians together. Even before I joined steemit, I have always heard of your inspiring write ups on this platform which made me interested in joining this platform. From my background here in Nigeria, women are often times regarded as being second to men but I found it rather challenging that you as a woman, are pulling quite a lot of power on this platform. My question is how have you been able to pull this great multitude of intellectual with such powerful write-ups and how have you been able to manage your writings effectively?
1.What do I need to do to become a notable Steemian like you?
You need to take a deep dive into finding out your core strengths.
Once you have done that, you need to find creative ways that you share that in a new way. That kind of energy attracts others...people are attracted to abundance, not fear.....
It's more a question of: when will you discover the richness inside of you?
Thank you for the answer ma. I will work on discovering the richness in me. I have another question ma..
What is the optimum number of lunch-time cocktails for submitting a post to the Blockchain?
2 and no more because you might accidentally paste your private key into a memo.
That has almost happened on a couple of occasions! Thank you for the advice :)
My question is how can I get someone like you to visit my page. I need such encouragement to be a better steemian.
Solve someone's problems before you ask them to do something for you.
Thanks for the word of encouragement
My question is what is that thing that fuels your passion to always wanting to create value?
Hmm....this is difficult to answer.
I guess through the years I have found inspiration from people who think BIG. Thinking big for me personally, means that I direct my energies in such a way that it can affect a maximum amount of people.
So the main war in each of us is this I think:
Fear VS. Abundance
My life goes much better when I direct outwards from abundance. What this means is that I give away my ideas freely, because I am confident that I have 10,000 more ideas to give. I try to focus on solving problems, and also recognizing, identifiying then sharing the things I have solved in my own life, then sharing that with others who need that info.
I try to act from that deep place inside of my body instead of from that shallow place of fear.
Ok, you just answered my second question here. Looks like you answered as I typed. Thanks
what was your question? I am curious...
The question is what inspires you. Then the unanswered one is if there's a special place you go for inspiration.
Thanks for this... I'm better Inspired.
"What is the most inspiring quote you say to yourself or other people on a regular basis?" :-)
-Rimbaud.
If you can really figure out what this means, you'll be way ahead.
@stellabelle thanks for this awesome initiative. I'd be very precise with my question.
My question is: I ask humbly ma'am, what will I do for my latest post to be seen by you?
solve one of my problems first......one of my main problems is that I have no way of finding all the good posts from Nigeria....all together.
There is the @steemit-virus contest which requires that contestants write on a picture. No limiting rules, just write.
It's the best contest I've seen so far especially since we want to write from differnt views and winners do not depend on number of upvotes, I cannot begin to talk about the level of creativity it brings out. This would definitely help
Did you invest in the platform or it was just rewards?
I invested some into the platform, but that was after I earned a lot.
My investment came in the form of: time and dedication, recruitment and hopefully education/inspiring people to use their imaginations more.
Wow that means i can be like you one day
Any thoughts on Cannabis ? xD
Well, i think it will be legal in the USA in the future. I used to smoke weed when I was a teenager, but it doesn't agree with me anymore...
I am really wondering if the ParagonCoin is any good, or what coin will be used for the Cannabis industry. I think it will grow massively in next ten years.
Nice post.
I wrote a post awhile back about drawing a crowd in a store while sharing steemit. You commented that you would like to do something like that but on more of a planned event. Have you been able to do this, and if so, how did it turn out?
I haven't done it. I am toying with an idea of creating huge hand-painted Steem coins and placing them all over my city....still building a team, or a concrete idea for this one.
Ohhhh, I like it! Wooden nickles could be fun too..something a person would take home with them.
Do you drink beer?
unfortunately......
If you could hit one Steemian with a wet fish right now and order them to the corner donning a 'D' hat, who would this be, and why?
Adsactly because he just seems fishy.
The last I saw was that the initial post hadn't been updated...
he's ignoring our valid questions and still has not removed or edited the post that is promoting a scam ico.
Indeed.
my question. the most often at eating pizza or biscuits...???
pizza
our tastes are the same.
what would be your top three things you would want the steemit platform to do in the next year?
awesome. agree with all points although i'm not so fussed with the last even thou bitcoin fees are expensive i'm not sure how easy it will be to get a card company to go with an alt coin as such like steemit to put out a card. the other two thou, absolutely. let's hope the next version of condenser the front end is extra pretty. i'm gonna say that ned launches it at steemfest 2 :)
How do you find the good content you're interested in? The steemit page does not offer very good search functionality. Sometimes i search by tag or check bots memos with python scripts to discover interesting content. Thanks
I don't have a good method other than scouring people's blogs for resteems...
for example, I look at @surpassinggoogle's blog to see his resteems, and @maryfavour as well. Certain people are good with finding and resteeming the posts.
I also look at the 'hot' page.....and then I just do a lot of random searching...it's not very ideal.
Oh my goodness! I am humbled, @stellabelle. I really do appreciate the mention. Thank you.
Perfect!!!
Can you take a few seconds of my Eagle takes flight video, the part where he gets ready to fly poops off the side of the log and then takes off. Can you make a gif of just that part saying , so much for youtube?
the crazy part of this is that YOU can make this GIF. I just wrote a tutorial to make gifs for free. check my wall.
I saw that, but I do not know how to just pick out the 7 seconds. I am not a very good video editor, or taker, but I got a lucky shot.
All of your post has been extremely captivating, educative and highly inspiring, I will love to follow your legendary step. My questions is why is life unfair to some people ?
I think life is unfair to some people........
With that, though, I will say it's hard to get rid of the poverty-thinking, once it embeds itself squarely inside one's mind.
Initially I really felt bad but your answer to my questions gives me a very great relief . Thank you ma.
So, I think everyone who is poor needs to analyze why this is so.
Usually, there has to be some breaking point, where you realize that it's possible to break out of it.
I don't have the answers, but i know that we must use our creative minds to get out of the poverty cycle, and also solve problems that affect lots of people...
And one more question if I may: If you could ask @ned a question at Steemfest 2, what would it be?
to Ned:
if you could solve poverty, but that solution would require you to give up all your Steem, would you do it?
Great! I was going to add that I could put your question to him in November.. maybe if I can find a good spot!
Hello ma'am, thanks for being a great hand in ensuring scam free Steemit. This we all appreciate. Thanks.
My question :
I lead a team of very active Steemians with strong believe in Steemit. But we are mostly redfishes. We have tried all strategies to get whale visits once in a while to no avail.
Please there a clear cut strategy to attracting whales?
Thanks
@eurogee
solve the problems that affect tons of people.
There is no clear cut strategy....
I was thinking if someone did a video series that collected all the Steem news from different parts of the world, this would be great....
so, just look at what @infovore did....he created a very good news magazine which told us what is going on in various parts of Planet Steem
Thanks. Appreciate your view
Secondly , i will love to ask you some questions which goes thus ;
Thanks
It so much good to hear this from you ma'am
Because i found it that an act if racism should be eradicated from here as this avenue is like a family with branch from all part of the world and we should welcome people not because of skin colour .
Thanks
yes, that is how i was raised...to be curious about the world's people.
Its my pleasure to spend some time with you and i am still looking and hoping for more opportunities more open for newbies from you.
Thanks
Thanks
omg ;)
stellabelle
You've been to LA yet?
How is it going for you being so involved in the crypto space like Dash ;}?
Are you going to any events to talk about crypto at? ex: blockcon, steemfest...
I was born in LA and I used to live in San Diego.
I am not working for Dash right now, as I found it too exhausting to be doing work in Steem and Dash both.
I started a Crypto School in my city, so that is my new focus....I'll be teaching both Steem and other blockchains....
I'm not going to events really, but starting my own events in my city is my focus....
I am not going to Steemfest this year (too far for me), but I hope the next one is closer...
My question is how can I get someone like you to visit my page. I need such encouragement to be a better steemian.
Thank for this opportunity. I appreciate your good work. I also appreciate a visit to my blog.
There was a time you visited my blog and you wanted to upvote but you said it wont allow. I said maybe it was not my lucky day but yiu said it was. I waited but you never came back. My question is why?
Maybe you are very busy. I understand and i still love yhu
yeah, i am very scattered....i read one just now, it was hilarious.
lol
Please follow me @Emmanueljacobz
You will get flagged if you're not careful
Hello! Finally i will be getting a reply 😀
I see that you are active here because i have seen you do some intelligent finding on some'fake accounts'.
*So my question is how do you combine steemit with personal life?
How will you market steemit to non-member because this idea of making money blogging seems to be the wrong strategy.
What would you advise someone who has 'contents' but his works are not seen (many have asked me this too but as a newbie myself, i don't have answer).
Thanks.
Thank you. 🙌
You stated earlier that one of the major hitches on steemit at the moment is searching for particular contents. In your terms, in the context of quality content, what are the keywords in your search for such quality contents?
There are so many questions that could be ask, but asking to be your friend, to me is the most vital of all.
But where u come from, high class level don't wanna mix with low class level.
So asking you to be my friend is me asking a high class whale to mix with a low class minnow like myself.
But having you has a friend means the world to me.
Will you be my friend?
I am a newbie and i have not felt a vote from a whale. Can you make me feel it?
What was the greatest challenges that you faced as a newbie and how did you get motivated to get you going up to this time.
@stellabelle, I just want to let you know that your posts literally take my breathe away.
I havent stopped thinking about that post you made on friendship. No kidding
Just a thought: Maybe there should be some kind of time limit for this AMA, so people know when to stop asking