Throughout my time on Steemit the single most important discovery I made was the value of community, alone on here it a struggle to progress and can be so disheartening when posts achieve little and gain no comments.
It is only through finding a community, where you can build relationships and enjoy each others content accounts will see some progress - but the struggle remains small accounts upvoting each other will see little gain forward.
This is where community leaders like you @mermaidvampire are so important, not only are you bringing so many together you are supporting them and enabling them to grow at a rate that keeps them positive - retention is something people talk about alot on here but often do little to actually address the root cause.
I am also really impressed with your competitions, not only are they fun and accessible to all - but you reward everyone that takes part - that is really so commendable and it is obvious because of this you have been contributing toward the reward pool yourself. Hopefully with the aid of my little delegation you will cover some of the costs and also be able to better support the amazing community you have built.