Perspective is one of those things that can sometimes change so quickly you don't even realize it. I'm new enough here (day 3) to feel like I'm still on the outside looking in. It won't last long though... if I start building a community here and hanging out in Steemville, it will soon become familiar and I won't be able to get back to the perspective I have at this very moment. It will soon change to the inside looking out. For my own sake, I want to remember how I first saw this odd and wonderful place. Here are the things that are BLOWING MY MIND about Steemit:
HOW DID I NOT KNOW IT EXISTED?
I'm not new to blogging or content creation or social media. I started a personal blog nearly 10 years ago and that grew into writing and self-publishing my own novel. In time, I opened my own digital marketing company and in my current job, content creation and social media marketing are what I do. I follow Mashable and Tech Crunch and all the major tech publishers to try to stay on top of all things cutting edge in social media. Regarding Steemit, I completely failed. It wasn't even on my radar. For the record, I searched STEEMIT in news today and this is what came up:
The only folks who seem to be writing about it are those talking about cryptocurrency. If there's anything else out there, you've got to dig for it or know to look for it. It will be fascinating to do this search again in six months. I predict it will look very different.
HOW I DISCOVERED STEEMIT
Now here's the crazy thing... I found out about Steemit from my husband. He's an amazing husband and human, but he's not the guy who's going to tell you about the latest social media platform and relay that it has something to do with cryptocurrency. Here's how the conversation went on one of our long drives to our son's basketball game:
Him: "So, have you heard of some social media thing like Facebook called Steam It."
Me: "What?"
Him:"There's some new social media called Steam It or something like that. You can make money on what you write."
Me:"No way, I would have heard of it. Who told you about it?"
Him:"Josh, from the station." (My husband is a firefighter and he's telling me he's heard about it from a fellow firefighter.)
Me: "Weird, and he said he gets paid?"
Him: "Yeah, but he gets paid in some kind of cryptocurrency, you know, like Bitcoin or something."
Me:"That's crazy talk. I've got to Google this... and what the heck does Josh write about?"
Him: "Hunting."
Me: " And how did he know about this Steam It? Is that how you spell it? Like S T E A M?"
Him: "Um, he's always talking about cryptocurrency. He's really into it so I think that's how he heard about it. I don't know how to spell it."
At this point, we are in the mountains and there is NO SERVICE. It's killing me because I am now like a dog with a bone... I need to know more. When I finally get into service, I fall into a rabbit hole because people, at that very moment, I had only heard of Bitcoin as if it had been whispered from a distance. I couldn't have held any kind of intelligent conversation about it. To me, it wasn't tangible enough to comprehend and honestly, I still don't get it even after reading dozens of articles. But, I want to.
MY FIRST POST BLUNDER
Apparently, there is a CHEETAH here on Steemit and he will CATCH YOU if you do something naughty. Well, I didn't really do something naughty, I more of made a first-timer blunder. I wanted to see what the posting experience was like so I decided to publish an article originally written by me that had been previously published. Oops!
The Cheetah showed up and TOLD ON ME but also upvoted me at the same time which was a little like spanking me and then giving me a hug and telling me to do better next time. A little bit strange. Then, I got called out as a thief by another community member. Goodness gracious, I would say my first experience was a little rough. But, I learned a few things. First, this place values content and that made me very happy. It values original, non-plagiarized, thoughtful content. Second, I learned that honesty is valued. I share that value so I think I might stick around.
A BLOG REVOLUTION
Years ago when I started a blog, the way you found followers was by going to other people's blogs and commenting on their posts. I met some amazing people this way, but it was also very time consuming to navigate to various websites to then look at the newest content to create your little community. Creating community always takes thought and effort and time, but the brilliance of Steemit is that everyone's blog is available on the same platform. And the thing that makes that even possible is because of VALUE.
In the olden days 😉, part of the goal was always to drive enough traffic to your blog so that it could be monetized. When Facebook, Twitter and Instagram gained popularity, those became additional ways to drive people to your site without having to go blog to blog and comment. The thing I never really thought about is that even though they are a tremendous tool, I was giving my content to those social media platforms for free. One of the main reasons the concept behind Steemit has blown my mind is that it is a place where content is inherently valued and really good content is rewarded. Now, I know I may sound a little naive here and that there are probably some politics and strategies that cause even great content to be ignored, but the grand idea behind it is quite beautiful.
If you've read this, please know I appreciate you. I'm excited to learn more about this community and especially find some women to connect with here. If you can tag some recommendations in the comments, I'd be grateful.
Cheers, B
What I'm doing as I write this - trying to teach my four-month-old puppy not to jump up in my lap (she's a Black & Tan Coonhound), drinking a glass of red wine and listening to the soundtrack from The Greatest Showman because why not Dream With Our Eyes Wide Open?
Being fascinated by the Steemit concept as well, cool to come across another Montana user. Looking forward to seeing if this concept pans out.