Ethics, as you said, are an important factor, one that I didn't mention in the article.

I can't even remember the amount of times I chose to not get views and attention simply because I considered that the main ways to get those things are unethical.

I couldn't make myself leave stupid "hey, check out my content too" comments on other people's articles, or to talk about my work as being this amazing thing that people should definitely check out.

A lot of those who get a lot of attention do those things, one way or another, and while it works for them, it's something I and others are not always willing to do.

Making money online is, as you said, hard, and with 2 decades of experience, I'm sure you know what you're talking about.

And while Steemit is indeed an opportunity, there are things about this website that aren't as good as they could be. One of them is, in my opinion, the fact that people are following and giving money mostly to those who already have money, instead of people who are just starting out and actually create good content.

Then there are people who steal content or post only images or stolen jokes instead of actually creating something themselves, hoping to get a lucky upvote and make some quick money.

The Internet is like a jungle in a lot of situations, and, from my point of view, unless you're willing to "fight" with everyone else for attention, it's gonna be hard to get any.