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Yesterday's conversation on @helpie's hangout left me thinking about a specific difference that those who stayed engaged have with those who fell off the wagon. You know, the thousands of accounts at this point that are just sitting there idling. The always eloquent @pennsif who joined just recently, shared some of his truths with the group, and they slowly cooked into cognition for me.
Almost right away after joining STEEM, his drive was to do something for a community, not for himself per say, not become a better writer, a better photographer, or rekindle his old passion, penguin catching and document it on blogs, no. He just wanted to do something for a community, and in that sense, inadvertently, he got started with the right foot.
He noted that at no point on his journey the price of STEEM was an impediment to his daily tasks, to his drive even. So, it's not surprise that @pennsif is still here, doing his radio shows, his dollar a day initiative and what have you, week after week.
My good friend @therealwolf also chimed in with this truth, he also has been too focused on building @smartsteem from the ground up, that his drive had not dwindled just because the price had dipped so far into the reds, and thus really drove home the core message of the hangout, the theme you could say.
What are you working on?
Is your world comprised of one habitant, one blog, one important person with important emotions that dares not to let one single root touch the soil? Of course not a single one of the readers of this blog owes me an answer, and honestly that is probably better. But, the question is quite important nonetheless.
If the only drive you had for keeping on keeping on was an unrealized gain, seeing the number climb up higher and higher giving you the sensation that power was at the tip of your fingers, that you could grip it once and for all... then maybe, just maybe, you were not focused on anything real, just the numbers on the screen and nothing more than that.
But you know what's real?
People, the friends you've made, the ones that I certainly have. The communities we've built around ourselves or have joined and given our kindness to. That, and possibly only that, may be the only thing that is real from this whole little experiment of ours.
You could literally extrapolate the whole virtual experience, and place it in the "real world" and it would still hold true. I would still feel part of my community, it's just that I would be speaking and staring into eyes instead of avatars. Our Palnet community got together in florida this year already, in the middle of a bear market at that. How irresponsible!
So let me ask you something... You, the common man, the one who does not develop software like the amazing developers we have on this platform, the kind who understands crypto but is not a professional trader, the one who simply came here looking for answers and found a new way of thinking... Yes, you who read this until the end.
What are you working on?
• Junking muh car....
• Dipped my toes on EOS/Trybe and I think I lost a pinky
• Thoughts on Boxology
• Openmic Week 99 Top 5 and Honorable Mentions
• Its just an act of rebellion
great stuff man and a fantastic point. i’m working on....the people!
price be damned. if you are here for the price to rise tomorrow that is the wrong reason.
i’m here to build those relationships. build the networks. build a brand of being someone who actually gives a crap about this place!
i’ll spent a few more months (or year) doing that...then roll up my sleeves and get to work lol
Posted using Partiko iOS
I wear t-shirts so can't ever roll up my sleeves
with enough people like that, the price will take care of itself.
yessir!!
Posted using Partiko iOS
Lol. I read it to the end and you put me on the spot. All i can honestly say is to grow as quickly as possible so I can help others grow as well. The more people growing the better this place will become.
very true my friend, you can't give what you don't have...
Too much music. :D
hahahahha yes, in your case no doubt!
Well, I just got off of work and I am looking through the entries for my fiction writing contest which ends today.
https://steemit.com/soundinthedarkness/@jeezzle/writing-contest-what-s-that-sound-in-the-darkness
I'm going to end the contest in just a few hours because I'm paying both in Steem and and upvotes and I need it to end before the 7th day so that I can vote on the sixth day.
I kind of wish the initial post had earned a little bit more so that I could pay more in my next contest. I'm probably going to have to lower the prizes slightly for that one. However, I will continue doing these contests because I really like doing them. I've had a lot of really good entries. It's great to see all the different fiction writers here on Steemit.
i might give one of those a go soon, forfeit the prize probably if I was to win (doubt it, since im not a writer) but they challenge would be fun!
:)
You might be surprised at the hidden talents you have lurking inside you.
Yeah man, it's about the people for sure. I've made such friends on here. It reminds me of when guitar forums (and internet forums in general) were new and I made friends with a bunch of people that I then went on to travel and meet annually. A lot of us are now life-long friends. This has the same vibe. DDaily is on fire right now and I'm so excited to be part of that. Steemfest is booked for November and we're all sharing an airbnb. I imagine it'll feel like we know each other really well, even though we've never met!
That's awesome... I have a tiny glimmer of hope that I will be at steemfest this year, but the cat is not in the bag.
ok here are the difficult answers, from my perspective. about community, about success. about direction and courage and perseverance despite the odds.
i work at being me, at being here and present, even when there are days that i feel like i want to leave because it hurts too much to stay. i work at trying to communicate, and keeping my eye on the reasons i joined steemit and discord.
not for the money. but for the belief that the world needs a better plan to move forward that includes sustainability, caring, community and purpose.
i came here a year ago and did something new to me. im an introvert. a yuuuge introvert. but i joined in. i got involved in the community. and i gave. i gave and i tried and i cried and i cared and i fought for what i believed was right til my ears bled.
but in the end it wasn't enough. people got mad at me for asking for what i wanted. for pointing out things i thought weren't correct in the system. and then i failed. not because i didnt try. but because the "me" i gave was too challenged by the need to adapt to what was required.
now i am trying to pick myself up and find direction. im afraid to put myself into anything else because of the past, and i feel many people are reluctant to trust me because they believe i should be a certain way that i really dont comprehend.
i am who i am.
i dont know that i will ever try to be a success again. when i was reaching for that success, i got slapped down and told i should accept what i have and not want more. i didn't match their ideal of who i should be to fit in.
trying to be a success means opening the self up to failure, and that hurts. it comes with loss of self, feeling like people take your work and your dreams for granted. people tend not to see you beyond your role, or only as what you can do to help them. perceptions suck.
i might not be "the best i can be", because im tired of trying to live up to expectations i can never meet. i do what makes me happy. i struggle a lot with direction, but im still trying.
in the end, i believe we should NOT be measured by what we do, because that can be judged. "shitposter" versus "whale".
i believe that showing up and trying, even with what others call "a sucky attitude" should count. we arent all born with the same graces. we are all here in this melting pot experiment. I am working on being part of the whole.
Behave....you are in presence of royalty !!
You know he lived round these parts (to me of course) - i saw him at a distance once, but of course I didn't fanboy... got muh pride.
Edit.-
You do know he died right?
I once saw the mythbusters guy in a restaurant..didn't even ask for a selfie ....let him eat his lunch in peace..
Point is , I am a better person than you !!
luckily for mythbuster dude... you be humble, right?
You have no idea...I am the MOST HUMBLE dude you gonna meet....noone is even close..
Did I mention how I am a better person?
every turkey gets his thanksgiving
Did you just assume turkey's gender?
It's late in night , wife is not feeling well ...