Hi @cryptographic welcome back
Steem power still get interest payments for holding steem power and help in adding value to the steem ecosystem-a win win for all. How do you acquire steem power? The easiest way is to buy steem and power up (if you have the money) and or blog smart on steemit , earn steem and power up your steem ( you can always power down some steem if you need the money ).
Patience: Patience is a great virtue to have if you want to succeed in life. Therefore, focus on the fun part of this great platform ( not trending and hot pages) , take out time , learn the way things are done here and build your followers through prudent commenting and engaging with steemit communities (avoid follow for follow or vote for vote scams), joining challenges and asking successful people questions. After building a good followers on steemit , then you start blogging on the topics you are good at (use relevant tages-5 max) . All these might take few weeks or months- however the good thing is that you will surely reach the promise land if you try.
Than persistence - fortitude - serenity make us happy :)
Very good advice on how to approach becoming part of the Steemit community, and some ways to make it the most profitable that you can as well as being the most satisfying.
If you give me a welcome back after not posting for just a week or so, I've got a feeling that you might be saying the same thing repeatedly in the near future: I'm extremely busy and will be so for the next 2-3 months. I'm still "mining" my STEEM though, by commenting and doing more of a "curating" thing now since I reward what I read, and then post a comment that hopefully adds value. I have to find 5 "worthy" posts a day to reward and comment on in order to "distribute" the 20% of daily SP rewards I have. It takes me at least 30 minutes, but I kill two birds with one stone since I am also doing my best to stay in touch at the same time!
i really appreciate your help and support