Most of those people didn't see results for a few months after joining the platform. They got to know people, found ways to add value and persevered all the way until they've achieved a relatively comfortable level of success.
I joined steemit September 2017, first month was like hell, like seriously the name said blog and earn and still am yet to earn a cent, subscribing my internet every week so as to stay online, but soon got to realize that the only way to earn on steemit was via interaction with other users.
Making a high standard post alone wont get you anything, although you might see some reward here and there probably randomly, but the real earning comes from those you build relationship with, after-all steemit is run by humans just like you and me, not automated bots.
My advise to new users would be consistency do pay, be consistent with what ever you do and try build relationships forget about the millions write-up you make a day but focus on building relationship with other users.