There are hundreds of ways to be successful on Steemit.

in #blog6 years ago (edited)

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This is something that I've put a lot of thought into in regards to myself and the way I function in the Steem community, and I thought I would share some thoughts with you all about that today. My journey here hasn't been a conventional one, and I think it's kind of important that new Steemians understand what's important, and what's not so much.

We were promised jetpacks.

Aside from being a humorously named indie rock band, I think this statement says a lot about the mentality that a lot of us carry onto a new 'social media' journey. The level of impatience is higher than ever before, and the predecessors of Steemit (Youtube, Facebook, etc.) promised us success through automation, buzzwords, tactical post scheduling, and ads. For whatever reason, newcomers often come pre-programmed with this sense of entitlement, that the community should welcome them with open arms before they've given us any real reason to. That's not as cynical as it sounds (as this community is in fact, very welcoming), but that's just it; healthy skepticism has now become a negative standard when all is assumed to just soar on arrival, when in reality, it's just normal and human. Everyone starts neutral. It's up to the newcomer to push themselves onto the good side through a bit of work and networking.

The whole preceding idea was that you could build success passively, and I think more and more each day this idea is becoming horribly outdated. Just as music genres from previous decades come back into the spotlight as a nostalgic and refreshing change, promotional methods sometimes can follow a similar pattern. Connection, customization, and personalization are back in. Automation is so 2010.

Lately, I've been getting a slew of Facebook ads promoting these new 'boxes' that companies are making. Shaving boxes, clothing boxes, food boxes, scent boxes, VG merch boxes; all things that are advertised to be customized to fit my personality.

Social media is beginning to work the same way. Even before I came to Steemit, I was doing a lot of homework into the 'Patreon' model of being a musician. Folks don't just want to buy albums anymore, they want a small window into your life. They want to talk to you. They want to know what inspires you. They want to hear your unfinished works. Just automating a release is no longer enough.

So when folks automate on Steemit, focusing on the buzzwords and the clickbait-y titles while neglecting to respond to their comments, it's no wonder why results are lost on them. It's the same reason why someone doing a modest vlog on a mid-grade phone can out-perform someone who does the whole nine in a video production setup. The former puts the energy into the conversation, the interaction, the community, while the latter focuses mainly on the production elements to carry them through the lack of personability. While the flashy, well-presented content certainly helps cosmetically, it won't take you all the way. The icing is nothing without the cake.

Be yourself.

Sounds cliche, I know, but this is something I've wanted to write about for a very long time. I think some Steemians who get down about not being the conventional image of what we should be, prevents them from being something great.

For anyone who doesn't know, I am a music producer and sound engineer. I wouldn't necessarily call myself shy, but I'm often lost in thought in a way that prevents me from actively speaking about certain subjects, making vlog videos, writing, and posting the way a 'normal' Steemian would. For some time, this bothered me; I thought I had to be better, or maybe I didn't even belong here.

Slowly but surely, I began to organically find my place on Steem, building a web of collaborations with other Steemians. While this meant I wasn't spending quite as much time on the platform itself, my name still slowly became more familiar to the Steem community (through Steemit and through Discord communities) as a team player and positive entity. I let my work do the speaking.

I've used my audio-based skill sets to collaborate with @soundlegion, @rockchickjen, @beardedegghead, @lillywilton, @thomasrobertgent, just to name a handful. Not to mention, I am now the in-house audio nerd at @steemmonsters, assisting with production, mixing and mastering, composition alongside @isaria, sound design for SFX, and spearheading post-production and coordination on voice acting. Over time, I became proud of who I am here.

My point here is not at all to outline my personal accomplishments for the sake of doing so, but more that my participation here does not look like the 'normal' Steem experience. While I am not consistently posting everyday and commenting all over the platform, I am built into a good handful of projects here. And my modestly continuous SP growth reflects that. At this rate, I'm on track to be a dolphin by the end of 2018, almost on the dot.

To tie those points together...

As many will tell you, Steemit is all about community. At times, I almost envied folks like the brilliant @meno and @coruscate because of how naturally they seemed to find their rhythm on the platform, and create an amazing image of what to strive to be on Steem. But you have to understand two things.

Firstly, folks like them work damn hard to be where they are. Once you really dig up the facts of the schedule they follow, and level of participation that they put in, it's crystal clear why they've found a relative amount of success here. These things didn't happen by chance, but through calculated dedication, consistency, and passion.

Secondly, your model doesn't have to look like theirs. The individual pieces of what the dolphins created to mold their image isn't the necessity, it's the participation in the community. However that has to look for you to suit your personality, is up to you. I am very happy with who I am on Steem at this point in time, but it took me a while to realize what my 'model' of participation looked like, and the fact that it was different didn't mean I was wrong or didn't belong. It's not titles, it's not buzzwords, it's not bots, it's not luck. What is consistent throughout every successful model though, is community engagement and dialogue.

The experience can be lucrative if you allow it to be, but making assumptions in regards to your expectations sets you up to fail. Whoever you choose to be here, come in with a humbled mind, be ready to put in some [fun] work.

Thanks for reading!

harrisonmirsignature.png

You can follow me and my tunes on Steemit / Choon / Dsound

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I am somehow just seeing this and am so blown away by your kindness and thoughtful remarks! Being mentioned next to the brilliant and amazing @meno is compliment enough.

I love the message of this post. Be yourself... follow your joy... and the rest follows. Awesome points about those who try to automate their steem experience too. You can't just post and run on here and hope to do well. Sometimes they will garner whale or dtube votes because of the quality - but it never lasts if they aren't engaged in the community.

Thanks for the thought provoking and well thought out post!

Aw thanks @coruscate, glad you're diggin' it. I really do look up to you guys! It's unbelievable how much time and care you put into your role here. It's impressive to say the least.

This post is spot on good advice. Be yourself, authentic, passionate about what you're into and connect with and grow communities. Do it consistently and results will come.

Thanks, you're the man @luzcypher! Another phenomenal example of someone who made Steem his own, and created one of the most highly participated/paying out contests on the platform thus far. Any one of us would do well to take a page or two out of your book!

Thanks for stopping by dude!

You're too kind. Having fun is really important to me and doing Open Mic is exactly that, fun. This whole social media experiment we call Steemit is a blast really, as long as you don't get into the flag wars and name-calling BS one sees flaring up on here from time to time. All part of the experiment I suppose. Humans, being humans, can veer away from fun sometimes and get downright vicious. Me, I'm more like a plant, I lean towards the light.

Totally agree with you there man. If you can find a way to have a good time here, I think everything else kind of just falls into place as a byproduct of that.

<3

Hi @harrisonmir. It’s nice getting to know you a bit more. You made a great point about people being themselves and finding their own way to make it work for them. We can’t all follow the crowd since everyone’s story is different. I am happy with who I am as well. I’ve met some great people on my journey here and wouldn’t change that one bit.

Thanks for stopping by my post. I assume you read the big revelation. Big for me anyway 😬. Thank you for helping me with all my questions that one night. I really do appreciate it. One of the reasons I ‘came out’ so to speak is because I would love to chat with the SM crew without having to be in ‘disguise’ 😂. It is nice to ‘officially’ meet you.

Signing off...the soon to be seductive beetle 😂🤣. One of my quips require that tone. Oh boy.

You too @beeyou, much love and hit me up anytime I can help!

Hi @harrisonmir!

Your post was upvoted by @steem-ua, new Steem dApp, using UserAuthority for algorithmic post curation!
Your UA account score is currently 4.501 which ranks you at #1893 across all Steem accounts.
Your rank has dropped 6 places in the last three days (old rank 1887).

In our last Algorithmic Curation Round, consisting of 471 contributions, your post is ranked at #388.

Evaluation of your UA score:
  • Some people are already following you, keep going!
  • The readers like your work!
  • Try to work on user engagement: the more people that interact with you via the comments, the higher your UA score!

Feel free to join our @steem-ua Discord server

Scott and I came from Facebook and YouTube where we have worked so hard for three years and have hardly any followers to show. It isn't because we didn't work hard, we have tried to do what was called for and focused on the followers and bringing them entertainment; however, it just was not enough. Someone told us about SteemIt and so we stepped on to this platform.

Our introduction post was well written but we only have a few comments that were mostly bots and very few upvotes. It was frustrating, but I am stubborn. We put up some other posts so everyone could get to know us and have done well enough; not the rock star start we hoped for, but this isn't a sprint; this is a marathon. Even at the worst response, we were doing better with interaction than we had the three years on Facebook.

Because of people like @dreemsteem and @bluefinstudios from @welcomewagon, @mirrors and @itravelarts, we have found a home and have made friends with various other groups. We have learned from all of them that we have to stay patient and ourselves, doing what we can to enhance the blockchain and community.

Thanks for sharing your thoughts.
Ren

but this isn't a sprint; this is a marathon.

Perfectly said. You're right, it's a slow start sometimes, but such is life too.

I wish I'd remember who said it originally, but they compared Steemit to attending a party in real life. If you're the new person to the party, it'd be a strange expectation for everyone to praise and celebrate your arrival without even knowing you. You have to make your rounds, introduce yourself, bolster your reputation, get to know folks personally; only then will the excitement of your presence be reciprocated. Steem is that party.

They may not be quick results, but they're results. I'm in the same boat, in the sense that I've put work into other platforms only to be dead in the water after months of effort. It feels like you have no control. At least here, genuine effort usually creates a modest, but genuine outcome.

Nice to meet you @xcountytravelers, thanks for stopping in!

Good to meet you as well. Can't wait to get to know your musical world.

Thanks for the shout out @xcountytravelers!!! You're right! It's working hard in an environment that supports engagement that makes such a difference!!! It is my joy to be able to watch you thrive on Steemit! I love being able to witness you figuring out what works for you. Your diligence is paying off!!!!

Thank you. We have learned so much from you.
Ren

Thank you so much for the mention.. I believe you are doing great here as a beginner, I started like that too.. And still struggling..

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You are amazing.

Dude real talk this post is phenomenal!! Thanks for sharing this. I know that I need to get more involved in this platform. You are right it is a learning experience and the more input you put into the community and the people (not the platform and the avatar) the more we can see ourselves growing and making an impact in the world by utilizing this blockchain. You rock dude 🤙🤙🤙

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Thanks dude! I know it's a bit tough in the beginning, but you know you got a lot of people around willing to help! Hit me up or jump in @helpie, and just focus on having fun with it. Be you. The next 6 months are going to be pretty big I think!

Good analogy with the boxes.

I was just thinking how predictable my feed has become!

Sounds like you have a good approach.

End of 2018's not too far off... and you need slightly less than 5K SP to reach dolphin of course (sure you know that though)!

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For sure! I'm not very educated in that sense, but I've always found those little trends in marketing really interesting. Even better if you can figure out how to use them to your advantage.

And yeah I know dolphin status is a tall order, but I was doing the math and I think I'm on track! We'll find out if I make it soon enough though anyways 😆

Thanks for stopping by @revisesociology!

You'll be there before you know it!

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Everyone need to find their place and be happy where they are in this community. It is cool that you bring your skill and apply it to Steemmonsters and others projects here.

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I agree, there's lots of ways to make it happen! Appreciate the kind words @chesatochi, cheers!