There comes a point in every adventure...
...where even the most legendary of heroes becomes lost, grows weary, and perhaps even forgets why they set out in the first place. It can be a time of disorientation and self-doubt.
If you have been here since the beginning, or if you have only just arrived, a hearty thank you, and a warm welcome!
It's been a long and uncertain road these past three and a half years as together we have been crossing a somewhat formless abyss of potential and uncertainty while seeking to bring about a rewarding, participatory, and collaborative model of social media; and although we have enjoyed our moments of triumph, our potential has remained largely dormant and unrealized.
The journey our community has taken through the uncharted waters of blockchain, and social media, is ultimately a path leading us back to the curiosity and possibilities which brought us here to begin with. Now, thanks to the resilience and persistence of our community, the Steem blockchain and Steemit.com are emerging from the abyss and we stand at the cusp of great things.
Image by Dariusz Sankowski from Pixabay
The journey our community has taken through the uncharted waters of blockchain and social media is ultimately a path leading us back to the curiosity and possibilities which brought us here to begin with.
In light of the renewed energy which is circulating through our community in the wake of #newsteem and #steemfest, it is time to revisit our vision and see how we have grown and evolved since we first set out. It is time to reignite the fire in our eyes and the hunger in our bellies so that as additional tools and structures emerge to buoy our efforts, we may be a united force of creative and collaborative abundance in the world.
We are at the forefront of a global movement that is challenging the dominant extractive economic model which has corralled humanity into the ever-narrowing corridor of a less than zero-sum game.
The Steem blockchain is the first of its kind, the first social blockchain in the history of the world, and no one ever said it would be easy to completely flip conventional economics upside down. There is no field manual for an insurrectionary instrument of this nature, and indeed, the developers who have pioneered its evolution have had to contend with a staggering array of novel challenges for which there is no analog in traditional computer science.
Blockchain is a whole new kind of beast, and a blockchain with the power and promise of Steem can be an incredible force, but we must champion its development, now more than ever we must breathe life into its emergent forms through our words and efforts on behalf of a world we know in our hearts is worth building.
Image by Gerd Altmann from Pixabay
We are at the forefront of a global movement that is challenging the dominant extractive economic model which has corralled humanity into the ever-narrowing corridor of a less than zero-sum game.
Like the heroes who have come before, facing weariness and uncertainty, we must invoke within ourselves our capacity for wonder, for curiosity; we must remember why we are here and what we are striving for. We have come so far, and yet we are just about to take our first steps into a powerful new world.
I see an energized community, inspired development, and new features on the horizon which can at long last, unleash a dormant potential we have all been yearning for.
I see communities creating a new model of self-governance in concert with the worker proposal system, which will allow communities worldwide to begin growing and directing resources where they are most needed.
I see the potential for new media initiatives, censorship-resistant news outlets, and the ability to host events that reward community participation, all these things and so much more.
Image by Free-Photos from Pixabay
Like the heroes who have come before, facing weariness and uncertainty, we must invoke within ourselves our capacity for wonder, for curiosity; we must remember why we are here and what we are striving for. We have come so far, and yet we are just about to take our first steps into a powerful new world.
So, what do you think Steemit can do when we truly tap into its capacity to organize and reward the endeavors of a creative and talented worldwide network of early adopters?
What happens when we turn down the noise and amplify the signal?
Where might we go when communities coalesce around common goals and begin amassing the resources needed to trigger ever-widening cascades of benefits for their members?
We’ve spent some long while toiling in the fog, so tell me, now that the sun is beginning to break through, what would you like to see in the light of day?
Yours Truly,
@lovejoy
Well said @lovejoy (sorry I just noticed your post now)
My first SF4 experience this round has indeed brought many like minded people together.
Everyone has a very crucial position to play from developers, on-boarders and end users.
Right now I am personally trying to look into Malaysia's industrial potential that they can use this place to share their newsletters especially those who couldn't afford to have their own hosting site.
There are still tons of ideas to look into, but will need time to picture everything together before even dare to post it on Steem proposal before our dear fellow comrades of SF5 smack me with a big no no haha (with @howo 's good advices)
Overall, Steemfest has been quite an eye opening; even you have never seen the person before but somehow the like mindness makes you feel you have known the person for years.
Steem on! 💪🏻
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Don't sell yourself short :)
I will try my best. I need all the advice I can get to make a good solid proposal that will help steem mass adopt easily, fun, and increase its traffic.
Well, definitely SteemFest is something that helps to get an idea where we are and where we are heading to.
What I'd like to see?
Higher signal to noise ratio, more people that aware of common goal.
More love & joy, less drama :-)
And hopefully, see you at SteemFest5? :-)
I was there in spirit (and live stream) but couldn't quite swing the expense this year.
I think SF5 will be amazing... I hope to see you there as well! :-)
Communities are going to save us, and not a moment too soon! I'm hoping to rally more folks around common goals... I'll see what I can do anyway. :)
Thanks for being the first to comment!
Great thoughts here @lovejoy!
SteemFest is always a great example of the potential of this platform. I struggle to think of anything else that would cause people to travel thousands of miles outside of their comfort zones, shed their anonymity, and hang out with people they've never met face-to-face.
I attended and presented at SteemFests 1&2. Meeting and spending time with so many like minded people was one of the most memorable experiences of my life and was life-changing. I think that communities will help to tap into that same excitement and kinship, 24/7.
I'm very excited to see what this next year brings. I think your mention of censorship-resistant news would be something very important to focus on.
Personally, in this next year I'd like to see a coordinated effort to attract big names to the platform. I'm going to be using my resource credits to create Steemit accounts for news outlets, established publications, and celebrities that I think would bring value and visibility to the platform. I created a @kindnessdiaries account for Leon Logothetis a few days ago and an @mprnews account and gifted it to them this morning!
Cheers, my friend!
Thanks for the thoughtful words @ericvancewalton! Yeah, I remember having such a great time at SteemFest 2 in Lisbon with you and all the other amazing folks there. SF is definitely a testament to the power of the Steem blockchain!
Bringing on some more big names to the blockchain will certainly make an impact, and I'm totally on board... I only think we need a little while longer onboarding folks with a personal touch before the big names start pulling folks in by the thousands. I know Roadscape is doing his level best to bring Communities online as swiftly as possible, and after communities 1.0 is out and stable, then improving the onboarding method is going to be crucial for bringing in the hordes. So I guess I see a bit more of a ground game being necessary before we truly bring out the big-guns, celebrity endorsements, etc.
Communities themselves won't really start to sink in until they've been released for 3-6 months, and then there are a slew of features that can be added to communities as well... so. Still ramping up.
We should get coffee or tea sometime before I leave Mpls for the winter. :)
Cheers,
b
You’re welcome! Getting together for tea would be great! I’m traveling until early December but am home that entire month. I hope you won’t be gone yet.
@lovejoy my email address is [email protected]. It'd be great to coordinate tea in December if you can. Lars said he'd like to meet for lunch as well, he and I have to coordinate that.
I've only been on here for a little over a year, but I see so much potential. It's interesting to bring steem up to co-workers, friends, even family, but they don't quite see the potential ( yet post their lives in FB and Instagram). It's an exciting time... just wish more people could get on board right now.
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It can be frustrating to have people you talk to about Steem to continue doing the exact same things on FB and Instagram what they could've been doing here while being early adopters on this platform.
Yep, totally frustrating... but we just have to breathe deep and keep moving forward... if we can't make the choice to migrate over to Steemit self-evident, we won't succeed... fortunately, I'm seeing really positive signs. Early adopters rejoice! ;)
It's been less bad this year than two years ago. At least that's my observation.
Yeah, there IS so much potential... I'm glad you see it, and I think we're truly on the cusp of realizing it! As Steemit matures into what it can be, i think we'll see more and more folks becoming receptive to making the journey over from the corporate-controlled be social behemoths... in time. We still have a few rough edges to remove, but we're soooo close, and progress is being made!
I agree! I think Steem it the perfect gateway platform to introduce folks with just a little passing interest in blockchain. I managed to get a few friends to get involved with EOS DApps, and given everything that is happening on that network, Steem really is much more user friendly at the current time. I'll keep promoting it, most certainly!