Where were you 5 years ago?
To answer the first question, it's always good to look at the present moment and then look 5 years back.
5 years back, I was just finishing my High School with no idea how the world works or what I want to do in my life. Today, I have a slightly clearer idea of what I want my life to look like in the next 5 years, but that might change any day really.
As far as I can remember, I've always loved adventure stories when I was a kid. I remember reading authors like Enid Blyton and her books such as The Secret Island. I loved that book. I can still remember how I envisioned how the kids must have felt being on an island by themselves. When reading stories, my imagination was at its peak and I could see the picture as clearly as I can see these lines on my computer now.
What about now?
So I've been following @glenalbrethsen for a while. I've recently found out that he is a writer of Speculative Fiction. I didn't really knew what that meant until he mentioned me in this post. Honestly, I got really scared at first, because all I could see in my steemificaton was:
Yeah, right. So many people, real people, good people—@themanwithnoname, @davemmcoy, @lynnycoyle1, @gillianpearce, @abh12345, @maverickinvectus, @mazzle, @protegeaa, @bbrewer, @docsmith, @drpuffnstuff, @buggedout, @tim3w4rp, @pjau, @simplymike, @leeart, @bashadow—dusted, missed or locked. They got to choose which, but still... It should have never come to that.
After reading a few lines I understood that the tags were a part of the plot and that I really like what he wrote. I know it may sound silly, but it made me realize that people really get paid for creating content, doing what they love. It's not a fairytale anymore, it's the real deal.
I've always had this urge to create, which has been growing lately more than ever. I've never really thought I could do it, though. I'm a guy who needs some kind of external motivation. I just need people to like what I do, otherwise, I struggle. The feeling I get when my friends come to me saying stuff like: "Hey, I really think you are good at creating stuff, you should really do more of that", is just insane. I get surges of motivation after hearing stuff like that.
I'm guessing I'm not the only one today. There are many talented artists in the world nowadays. Some of them work really hard and get the recognition they deserve. Others work their asses off day and night and just can't get enough traction. Unfortunately, there are artists that just don't get noticed until it's too late for them to enjoy the fruits of their work. But that's just how the world is and always has been. All we can do is adapt.
We live in a world where creating content, be it articles, photos, or videos can get you more than enough than you actually need to live off of. I must admit, I've been pessimistic about this development. YouTubers and modern artists get millions of subscribers, mostly amongst young people who just want to follow their hero, somebody to look up to, a YouTube artist, most of the times. If this trend were to continue, we would only have digital nomads travelling the world and taking pictures of their overpriced fair trade caramel Latte Macchiato sprinkled with cinamon. Who would then provide us with agriculture, engineering, sustainable sources of energy, science and other vital crafts?
I get that there are theories that we will not have to do such labours in the future. But the future is not here, yet. We still have to have somebody grow and gather potatoes and then deliver them to a store. We then have to buy them and eventually boil them in order to survive. All of this takes more processes and effort than we allow ourselves to believe. Making memes, watching cat videos and filming vlogs about travelling is just not a thing that could be sustainable for an extended period of time. We will always need people to do the hard work. And we are already lacking them.
Okay, so I think I got carried away a little, but these are the things I've been thinking about lately. It's not to say that I would not be a fan of YouTube or Instagram or any social media for that matter. After all, I'm writing this here on Steemit. Moreover, I've been inspired to create content myself. It's just that we need to keep our feet on the ground, so to say. At this point, I would love to encourage you to go watch the movie: "After the Dark". It makes it very clear that we simply must create in order to live to the fullest. I also like that it shows how we were all created with a very specific skillset in order to fulfill a very specific purpose.
To close this off
Do I picture myself on Steemit in 5 years? More importantly, where exactly? Honestly, I don't know. But considering the fact that I've invested a considerable amount of money into cryptocurrencies in general, there is a real chance I will still be on Steemit. What form will my content have, however, remains a great mystery. One that I will be very happy to reveal. The one thing I will always want to do the most is to share my stories, love, and most importantly, faith.
My previous posts in the challenge
Day #15: How Many Posts Per Day Do I Write?
Day #12: What Is The One Crypto That Will Rule The Market In 5 Years?
Day #10: H20, My Favourite Morning Drink
Day #8: May 30 Days Writing Challenge - Day Eight: What’s Your Most Consistent Hobby For The Last 5 Years?
Day #6: You Wouldn't Guess What My Reason To Staying On Steemit Is
Day #5: Do you know the difference between investing and speculation?
Day #4: What Are My Top 5 (More Like 3) Witnesses On Steemit And Why Should You Care?
Day #3: What’s The Best Thing That Happened To You Thanks To Steemit?
Day #2: May 30 Days Writing Challenge - Day Two: If You Had 1000 STEEM, What Would You Do With It?
Dude! Sorry to scare you. :) I'm glad you were able to see it in context, though. All made fiction. Nothing real.
You took this on a philosophical, introspective slant. Can't say as I blame you. I found myself needing to predict something once again and decided I didn't even know if Steemit exists in five years, let alone me be doing something on it. There could be some other interface, or the STEEM blockchain could have other uses for it that I'm more into. Hard to believe, but maybe there is.
So, anyway, I like what you did with the topic and the personal touch. I promise, I'll keep my scary stories to a minimum. :)
It's okay, really! :) We were just at a pub, drinking some beers, so I guess the booze made it a bit scary at first.
Yes, I did. We've had social platforms disappear in the past (MySpace, anyone?) and nobody predicted it. So I guess it can very well happen with Steemit as well.
It was just that I literally saw only what I posted here. I immediately thought that my account got hacked, LOL.
Saludos, me gusta mucho su publicación, gracias por compartirla.
Gracias. Te agradecería si lo lees.
Sometimes the story becomes the reality, I love speculative fiction. So should one be concerned with speculative fiction? "Brave New World", "1984", "Animal Farm", by now ancient speculative fiction at the time they were written. Gene Roddenberry most of his work speculative Fiction. I love the what if scenario, sometimes the writers get very close to the reality of the coming future. 5 years down the road, who knows? Maybe Glen, or one of the other hundred writers on steemit, or one of the multiple thousands of authors available on Amazon.
I've seen the movie adaptations of 1984 and Animal Farm. Both of them were on point. Even though I'm really reluctant to, I have to say you're right. Mainly because I'm generally a positive person and would love to see humanity thrive, not slaughter itself. Out of all the people writing speculative fiction, sci-fi and similar stuff, there must be some that get it right. And if not just one of them, then maybe a combination of a few of them.
Someone said that every millenial should be trained the basics of life. Kids nowadays don't even know how sew and mend their clothes. Some don't even know how to wash the dishes or do the laundry. Very basic things that they don't know how to. I guess we live in a society where there will always be someone who will take care of things for us. We should probably go back to learning survival skills.
I have been in blog earning sites that shut down because of bankruptcy. I never thought they wouldn't. In five years time many things are bound to happen that is beyond our control. I have been asked time and again where I will be in five years, 10 years, but my answer is still the same. I do not know. No one can predict the future.
I would probably look at After the Dark when I have the time and steemit will not take all of it lol!
I think that basic things like that should be obligatory. Survival skills are also definitely a thing to know, though. You never know what might happen.
Well, Steemit is definitely not going to go bankrupt, but there are different ways it can burn to ashes.
Also, I do have a general idea of how I picture myself in 5 years. I will probably be emplyed/self-empolyed, maybe have a kid, who knows, really.
Spamming is not going to help.