You're exactly right on all accounts.

I've seen posts on Steemit, from obviously very new users, saying that "Steemit is a scam," or that only the whales make all the money. That's (obviously) not true. I rarely post, not because I don't want to, or I'm too lazy, but because I just don't seem to come up with good ideas for quality posts.

However, I've done (I believe) fairly well by just curating, and leaving honest, thoughtful, comments. You really should do a little better than, "Good post." lol

I haven't done as well as the two examples you gave, but I remember that I started with absolutely nothing! If people keep in mind that every reward that they earn now, will almost certainly be multiplied many times over in the future, it may keep them interested.

I look at it like we're building something great here, and getting paid (potentially) a large sum of money to do it.

Thanks for your post.