I came to Steem(it) 21 months ago. I had no expectations. I had no expectations because I had no idea what Steem was. Most people signing up for Steem don't have the same luxury as I did. People come to Steem to find the freedom and money a blockchain offers by mining for cryptocurrency, blogging, vlogging, investing in new technology and so on.
In the early days of Steem some people made a lot of money. Some of those people are still here today. Some are not. Many took the Steem coins they made, turned it into fiat and left. Some people wandered away during the first bear market Steem had. Others stayed on Steem working hard growing their following of people while also finding their own unique voice on the platform.
The Steem Ecosystem
Just like the roots of a tree, Steems ecosystem has many paths that dig deep into the ground. Each root is needed to give Steem a solid foundation. No one root of the ecosystem is able to last for long without the other. Yet, just like a trees root system, there is always more young roots sprouting up. In this manner, the tree will always be growing and healthy.
What does this mean when it comes to Steem? It means we are all needed. Each and everyone one of us here, on Steem, whether you are mining for cryptocurrency, blogging, vlogging, investing in new technology, making new technology, are needed to make Steem as strong as it can be.
Time moves fast online. Steem seems to take time, wind it down many deep paths. So much so, a day on Steem can feel like a week. There is always so much to do, so much to learn if you care to. With time comes change. Change is hard for many people, I included. Having time move so fast on Steem means more and more changes each new day. All the changes can get overwhelming to a person.
Feeling lost
Change. Personally, I don't care for change. I like knowing there is a place I can feel like myself, express myself in any mediums I want, at any given time of day. I use Steem for therapy. Free therapy. Even better, the kind of therapy I get paid for when I take what is bothering me and write a poem about it. I can not buy a house from the Steem I have made but I can buy a new headset when my old one broke. That is a huge win for me.
Hmmmm.....
What's the problem?
I don't like change and a lot of change is coming to Steem.
Deal with it! Why stress over something you can not do anything about?
What if Steem changes so much we are no longer needed?
Did you read the part about the tree?
Uhmm.... yes...
Sigh...let me explain a bit more.
The Blockchain, Steem.
A blockchain is like a tree trunk. The strongest part of the tree. The roots are made up of investors and developers to keep this analogy simple. The branches of the tree are all of the frontends (DApp's) made on top of the blockchain. In order for the investors to make money, they need people to use the blockchain. They need communities of people to use the best projects (frontends, DApps, games) Steem has to offer.
Just like trees need its root system to grow the trunk as straight and tall as it can. The tree also needs its branches to bring in energy from the sunlight caught in the leaves.
We, the people on Steem, the blockchain, are the sunlight. We Steemians bring Steem it's energy by using all that has been built on it. If no one is here to use the frontends, DApps, games... the branches will die. Without branches, the tree will not receive energy (money) and soon the roots will rot from being neglected and die.
How you go about using Steem might change. You might need to learn a new front end. For most of us, after learning the frontend Steemit.com, we Steemians should be able to learn any kind of platform people will build. If developers want their tree branch to grown and be healthy, making their project userfriendly will be key.
Do I think Steem will survive? That is up to all of the Steemians, big and small. To learn together. Work together. Discuss ideas with each other. Listen to each other. We are all in this together whether you think so or not. One part can not grow without the whole.
All photos found here
Make someone smile today. It can not hurt you.
Love,
Snook
Steem Witness's I support
Enginewitty!, Steemgigs!, Jackmiller!, Guiltyparties!, C0ff33a / Deranged!
Posted from my blog with SteemPress : http://www.snookat.com/blog/i-am-lost-in-the-steem-ecosystem/
Hello,
even in times with only a little sunlight and water a big tree can survive when its roots are strong and deep enough.
That's what I hope for our Steem Ecosystem, better times will come.
Have a wonderful day
Tom
I agree. we are stronger then we look :)
This is awesome!
Thank you!! I'm so happy you liked it!
I'm one of those people who have been here for a while now, through all the crypto market craziness. I keep on using steemit for my blogging because it's a platform where I can write about stuff that interests me, and perhaps receive a bit of reward for the effort. I'm not a developer or anything like that, I just use the platform to post stuff on, and to find interesting content from other bloggers. I haven't stopped posting just because the market is down, what usually stops me from posting occasionally is my clinical depression sneaking up on me. I'm still here and I don't have any plans to leave as long as the platform is functional.
I feel the same!!
LOVE your comment, I feel the same way as you about Steem.
Thank you for stopping to read!! and your great comment
Wonderful post, @snook! I loved the analogy. You did an awesome job describing the ecosystem. It's true that we have seen many changes in here, but despite the changes, I still like it. I have 1.5 years since I discovered the platform and although I haven't been too involved in it, I love it. It's the place where I do "free therapy" through writing. I have been blogging on WP and other platforms for years and never got the community feeling as I did in here.
I couldn't agree more. Nothing worse than writing something and feeling like no one read it or cared.
I’m sure the Steem ecosystem will continue to grow we have plenty of people here that have been here long term and new accounts are coming along all the time.
Posted using Partiko iOS
Your words are truly extraordinary. I like it very much. The Steem platform is still unknown to the world. there are still many parts of the world that don't know him yet. including my residence in Indonesia. to strengthen the roots of the tree, it is the duty of all users to introduce this platform to others.
Posted using Partiko Android
I agree with what you wrote!! It is one special place and we all want to see it grow!
Thanks for your post I'm pretty new to Steemit and only have been here a few months. I'm still learning however I do get a lot more people reading and commenting here than on my Wordpress blog. Cheers!
yes, that is the great thing about Steem. You meet great new people and get to interact with them!!
I love this analogy! The tree, the roots, trunk, branches, and the sunlight! What a wonderful vision of the blockchain! You have such creative thinking! 😃
Thank you <3
We must be patient and enjoy our journey. It takes 10 years to build a something like Bitcoin ecosystem
STEEM ecosystem is only 3 years old
STEEM 3 years old
Bitcoin 10 years old
Snapchat 8 years old
Twitter 13 years old
Facebook 15 years
Most people can’t think long term
Most people can’t play long term
Loophole is in the long term in crypto
I always knew Steem was long term. It is all so new to the world and real change doesn't happen in a day. It is a long process with many people having to change how they think about the world.
Thank you for your great comment!! HUGS
WOW, WHAT A GREAT ANALOGY. I MAY USE THAT! WELL, SINCE YA PUT IT THAT WAY... I GUESS I JUST WANT SOMETHING DIFFERENT. I JUST WANT TO BE ABLE TO MOVE AROUND, GET OUT THERE... THERE'S SO MUCH I COULD BE DOING... THE INSURANCE DENIED MY MRI A 3RD TIME, SAYING THEY WANT A PEER TO PEER WITH THE DOCTOR. WANTING TO KNOW WHY THE DOCTOR WANTS THIS? IT'S LIKE ARE YOU FREAKING SERIOUS... ITS A FUCKING HERNIA, FROM MY C-SECTION... WHAT THE HELL AMERICA! A STUDENT DOCTOR COULD FIX ME? LIKE WHAT THE HELL. SO THE ONLY THING IM THINKING IS WHEN THEY RELEASED ME FROM THE ER THE FIRST TIME, YEAR AGO, THEY SHOULDN'T HAVE LET ME GO... I THINK THERE'S SOME MALPRACTICE SO THEY ARE TRYING TO BACK TRACT... OR MEDICADE JUST GOT SUCKIER... THATS THE ONLY THING HOLDING ME BACK. IT GETS HARDER AND HARDER. I WANT O BE ABLE TO LEARN MORE, GET OUT THERE. I CANT. STUCK IN THESE 4 WALLS ALL WEEK LONG AND IF I'M GOOD, I GET TO HANG MY HEAD OUT THE WINDOW ON A WEEKEND DRIVE.... THATS WHAT'S REALLY WRONG SNOOK... NOT THE CHANGES, THE FACT THAT I CAN NO LONGER KEEP UP WITH THOSE CHANGES.... THERE IS ONLY ONE FIX, YOU'D THINK SOMEONE WOULD HAVE CALLED THAT SHOW THE DOCTORS FOR ME... BUT NO, EVERYONE JUST WATCHES IT LOLOL..... ANYWAYS, I DON'T THINK THEY ARE REAL THOSE SHOWS ANYWAYS. GREAT POST SNOOK. I'M DEFINITELY FILING THIS ANALOGY AWAY WHEN TRYING TO EXPLAIN STEEM.. SOUNDS BETTER THAN A DECENTRALIZED GOOGLE BUT THAT'S WHAT STEEM IS AIMING TO BE...
YES! I agree with you 1000% here.
I'm so sorry to hear about the Doctors too :(
I wish someone would be able to take your side and help you!
This... is beautifully written dear friend. I believe all things happen for a reason. Helping you with the Actifit graphic, introduced us... little did I know the motion that was set forth. Knowing you, calling you friend. And then, the paths that followed; becoming a Writer for SBI (though I have not been able to get another interview due to MS) and then, meeting @ecoinstant, and @josephsavage... two people I am very fond of. Then, becoming a Moderator for the @steemterminal... meeting @xcountytravelers, @brittandjosie... the wonderful people at @steemusa... like your analogy... these "actions" have made to strengthen this tree...
Thank you for your friendship, and more so, doing your part to "bring light" to this thing called Steem...
Love and light to you my dear friend...
What a beautiful comment to wake up to <3
Life IS all connected and it has been so great to see you shine. Why one small thing can trigger so much else. LOve that about life!
Happy Saturday!
im liking the tree comparison!!
One thing that I currently find chalenging is that because of all these new 'branches' (Dapps) is that I am missing a lot of what is going on, and that is suuuuuper challenging to get everything to that up to par
I so agree!! I am too. I wish I had an easy answer to that.
Thank you for your great comment!
This is a beautiful analogy! Thanks for writing this!
Posted using Partiko iOS
Thank you!!!!!
I am so happy you like it. It helped me bring Steem to a level that I could relate to. I am very happy so many others feel that way too!
The release of MIRA has made that a certainty in my opinion.
I promise to click on MIRA later when I am awake but it is good to hear positive news.
Thank You!
When you get in more of a reading mood, then @taskmaster4450 has posted a more layman explaination of what it will mean which may interest you as well.
https://steemit.com/busy/@taskmaster4450/mira-mira-on-the-wall-holy-sh-t-did-that-just-happen
Ohhh thanks :D sound more up my ally LOLL
Hello!
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Thank You!!!
that's wonderful explanation you have there, it's ver inspirational.
Posted using Partiko Android
Thank you!!! and thank you for stopping to comment!!
Nice article reading; best of all nice/great analogy. Thanks for sharing. 👍🤗❤️
Posted using Partiko iOS
Thank YOU!! and thank you so much for your wonderful comment!!
Hope you have a great day!
You’re most welcome 🙏 👍
Posted using Partiko iOS
I didn't realize I have been on Steemit longer than you have; 2 yrs 5 mo. for me. I didn't join with any big expectations, either. For me, it's a place to write things, and a place to get acquainted with total strangers from all over the world. Like you, for instance!
I really think that is the best way to find this place :D
and so happy I found you. Your name always makes me smile
Awwwwww!!
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I love this @snook... a great analogy and positive spin on the platform. Gosh, there is ALWAYS so much to do here. But us long timers know it's worth it.
Me? I don't mind change. Keeps it interesting.
Thank You!! always a ton to do :) but yes, I think it's worth it and it's wonderful to know you are part of something NEW to the world.
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