Two things you said in this post (while ALL very solid information) really struck an inner chord with me...
Focusing upon what we can control is the key to success.
While I can't control the price of steem, I can control how I use my time on the platform most efficiently. I can control the way I interact. And I can control my choices while building and establishing my brand.
Steemians can control their activity on here. The STEEM blockchain is very consistent; Steemians need to be also.
I was raised in a home that the value of a hard day's work would eventually pay off. Do your job, do it well and reap the benefits in due time. You know... the mentality of you get out what you put in. And this is how I treat steemit. All my time curating, posting, commenting and interacting will eventually meet me somewhere down the line for my reward. I have found that if I focus on my tasks of the above mentioned steemit work, then when the price increases, it will benefit my time and hard work. Take this lull as a time to make yourself more visible, interact more frequently and hone in on your formatting skills.
The one time tested rule - as in my 7 rules to success / investing - is: "buy low - sell high".
This applies to many things such as don't chase the hot fad or profession. This also help me get into Artificial Intelligence over 30 years ago when I was told: "There is nothing in AI" by a very smart student - classmate who was studying VLSI.
So, in order to get to the top here as well as to gain from the rewards steemit.com provides, this is a great time to get busy and to invest and power up.