I'm Watching Closely As Steemit Powers Up My Retirement Fund...

in #steemit7 years ago (edited)

"You are never too old to set another goal or to dream a new dream."
- C. S. Lewis -

I've been on Steemit since sometime in August, 2016.

There has been a moment or two during the last sixteen months when it looked like I might be able to "make a living" by writing on Steemit. But with the explosion of new users, the dilution of the reward pool, and the fact that I don't devote full time to Steemit, those hopes went out the window, and I became a little discouraged.

I will admit that there have been days when I've been a little jealous of some of the "top dogs." Looking at this or that account, I wonder how they could've become so wildly successful, so much more than I have. It has been especially tempting to despair when seeing "newbie" accounts that already far surpass mine in rewards.

Even so, like the tortoise in the legendary fable,

I've been consistently posting. I have some kind and faithful followers who have helped me grow my earnings from the rewards pool.

When you look at my Steemit Wallet, you'll see value that is entirely "sweat equity." Everything in that wallet has been earned by creating original content. Much has come from writing comments that have been appreciated by my readers and followers and by Steemians whose work I have commented on.

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$6 STEEM? Don't Miss The Boat!
Image courtesy of Austin Chan and http://unsplash.com

Today, STEEM spiked to more than $6.00.

I consider this an impressive portent of good things to come.

Checking "General Data" on the conveniently accessible Steemit blockchain, I arrived on the Steemit scene precisely at 2016-08-06, 18:33.

Using this convenient "work-day" calculator, I find that I've been on Steemit for a total of 350 work days, not counting weekends and holidays. Assuming an eight-hour work day, that's 2800 working hours.

If I had actually been working on my Steemit blog 100% of that time, what would that translate to in terms of an hourly rate?

No doubt, cryptocurrency is extremely volatile.

Even so, the general trend is UP. It has been my practice to power up most of my Steemit earnings, and to be to the extent possible a HODLer.

STEEM has great value as a platform, as a currency, and as an instant, frictionless, no-transaction-fee medium of exchange with very low barriers to entry. As the world increasingly discovers these amazing properties of STEEM, and begins to actually use it, I believe that its value will only rise.

And so I feel that I am being very conservative when I contemplate a $5 USD value per STEEM at this moment in time. I doubt it will slump much below that level again, and if it does, it won't be for long.

If Steemit had been my full-time job ever since I began, my hourly rate at that valueation would be $25 per hour. Compare and consider that is more than three times the US federal minimum wage of $7.25 per hour...

The shocking reality is that I've surely spent considerably less than full-time pursuing my Steemit career. Even when working on contests and greatly overdoing what my conscience at the time felt to be excessive, I am sure that my total devotion to Steemit has been less than a half-time effort.

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My Steemit Retirement
Image courtesy of Aaron Burden and http://unsplash.com

Do you have any remaining doubts about Steemit?

Even though I am but an average Steemian, I am doing very well. How well will I be doing when STEEM really takes off and goes to the Moon? I will not at all be surprised to see STEEM rise tenfold or more from its present valueation.

Even were I to totally quit right now, stop writing, stop creating content... The value of my STEEM hodlings will be pushing toward one day making me a STEEM millionaire.

So, take heart, minnow. Don't abandon your efforts, writer. My fellow Steemian, keep snapping those photos, drawing those sketches, writing those stories. The STEEM pennies you earn today will one day be worth far more.

Grab the brass ring.

Be the tortoise in the Steemit race.

Slowly and steadily, build your own retirement.


~FIN~


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Thanks for your time and attention.
You are why I'm here on Steemit!
I have very eclectic interests and hope, over time, to write about them all.


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Thank you for the encouragement! I have been here only since May of 2017 and I just keep chugging along everyday, slow and steady!

I think that's the way to do it...

But also, keep thinking, keep coming up with good ideas to post and write about.

Glad you're here and steady...!

Right...the community aspect of Steemit is what makes this place great! Earning a little crypto on the side is just a nice little perk!

Same here!! These swings in steem and SBD are helping me get there too👍

Thanks! :D

Good read. Good motivation. I'm still very new, and don't have near the time I would love to invest in it. Still quite excited about it all, though. Here's to a prosperous and grateful 2018!

Hello, @thomhoglen,

Thanks for stopping by my blog and commenting. Thanks also for the kindness of your re-steem. ;)

So, I dropped by your blog and sampled a couple of your covers. When I got to your family covering "Hallelujah" I was pushed over the top and clicked the "Follow" button... ;)

😄😇😄

@creatr

I'm grateful for your visit and for your music. Steem on, my new friend!

I really appreciate it. Those beautiful girls sure can sing, can't they?

Yes, they can indeed! ;)

Well said, @creatr. Such a positive message. Even something as small as a mustard seed...

Greetings, my friend!

I am of course behind in my Steemit rounds...

No excuses, just the old "too much fun, not enough time" situation. :D

Thank you for your visit and kind comments. ;)

😄😇😄

@creatr

Be the tortoise in the Steemit race.

I wholeheartedly agree!

This recent rise has been good for the morale after writing through some rough spells. The kingdom fund is looking good. :)

You are such a good example for us minnows. You give encouragement and that that means a lot. I for one am glad I found your blog.

Thank you, Mary. I appreciate the sunshine from your comments. :D

You are a faithful steemian for sure, @creatr! This teensy minnow sometimes gets a little weary of swimming upstream. Thanks for the encouragement. So glad it has paid off for you!

Hello, @tlester,

So nice to hear from you. Thanks for stopping by. I'm glad you found this article encouraging. I know I'm preaching to myself as well, and hope to keep Steemin' on... ;)

Thanks to your post and things others have published I'm starting to see a new designed future evolve into being. I'm trying to puzzle things together and it slowly starts to take some shape

Four years ago we started a new way of living. We studied Permaculture, sold our house in the big city and moved to a farm. We're trying to live together with nature on our planet instead of abusing the earth like our current society does. But it's way way harder to establish this life than we imagined. There are so many things to put in place before it really works. And financing it is one of the hardest things to accomplice.

Steem might actually be the missing link to make it all work out. I feel I have to take a way longer and more in depth look at steemit. Your writing has nudged me again to see how I can benefit both the steem community and our project. Thanks for sharing your thoughts!

Thanks for your thoughtful comments, @ronnie60.

I think that if you publish more original photos of and articles about your farming efforts in Columbia, you will find them quite well received. Your photos of your land, and of the butterflies, are quite lovely.

If you have the time to post more original content, and if you find the right groups here on Steemit - especially those involved in homesteading and farming - you should get more support.

Please keep me posted. If you think to let me know when you publish something new about your homestead, I will gladly look it over and give you some support!

I wish you a good New Year and good success on Steemit.

😄😇😄

@creatr

Dear all here wich get steem power for our retirements, we hope this coin continued growing a lot.
For people which investment a lot time as you it is a great mees.
Happy new year.
Best regard @galberto

I just recently left my job, I work too hard and earn too little, now it's different with steemit

I hope you'll find good success on Steemit, my friend.

Nice post @creatr

Thank you, my friend. HODL indeed!

I am much later to the Steemit party, having joined this past August, but not really doing anything on the platform until about 2 weeks ago. I can only imagine what things might have been like in the early days, and right now even 10,000 SP seems a dream, let alone something like 100,000+

And yet...if STEEM were to rise to $100 in the coming years that 10,000 SP would be worth $1 million.

I'm not saying STEEM will rise that high, but I consider it to be a distinct possibility. There are massive numbers of creatives out there just waiting to discover the power of Steemit, and with mass adoption will come the rewards of sticking it out and simply doing the work each day.

I'm a convert for sure, and have high hopes for Steemit. I only wish I had found it earlier :)

I do believe STEEM will continue to rise, barring some unexpected disaster. It is an amazing tool at many levels. Keep on writing, my friend!

If steem manages to stay over $5 consistently, that would be really great. I truly don't know if it's reasonable to expect it. But I'm surely hopeful :)

While there will no doubt continue to be a roller coaster, I think that five and above are very reasonable expectations even in the short term.

Have you listened to @stephenkendal's latest predictions? He sees STEEM going considerably higher this year.

Well, I just try to be a bit cautious with my optimism, but I do know Stephen and other are quite bullish in their predictions and expectations. I do hope they are right :)

I have a dream to work full time on the internet so I can travel and spend more times with my loved ones, as I live far from them. Steemit will hopefully afford me this opportunity.

I am super excited and hopeful for the future of this platform. Thanks for adding to my hope.

Thanks for your comment. I hope you succeed in spending more time with your loved ones!

why feel guilt, my friend, for spending time on steemit? Work your day job, come home, and work your night job - this is not the time to be pulling back and resting on your slush fund - there's rewards to be made. Uncle Sam wants your dinero, lol

Some of the guilt comes, of course, from not pulling in enough immediate revenue to survive. And believing as strongly as I do in the present and future value of crypto, I tend to be a real hodler...

No, I am not nor will I be resting on my laurels... I'll have bloody fingers as well as an aching back to the extent possible! ;)

Thanks for your encouragement. I do need the day job to work, however... pray for that, please! Some combination of consulting and sales still much needed. :D

will do, my friend - I was also teasing bc I know how committed you are to steemit. I miss your many posts, sometimes twice or three times a day, but I know your primary responsibility to your family

Thank you, Mr. Prolific... ;) :D

It's been a crazy trip coming to steemit. I never imagined I'd earn as much as I have joining the world of cryptocurrency. Because of this place I've got a nice little nest egg for the future which wouldn't have existed for a long time without steemit.

Yes, it's a pretty cool thing. As with everything else in life, there are risks and uncertainties, but I think STEEM is a very promising asset to have in hand to manage. ;)

Very inspiring, thank you. I especially liked:

So, take heart, minnow. Don't abandon your efforts, writer. My fellow Steemian, keep snapping those photos, drawing those sketches, writing those stories. The STEEM pennies you earn today will one day be worth far more.

Thank you, my friend...

How are you? It has been such a long time since I've seen or heard of you...

I'm glad to see you posting again.

😄😇😄

@creatr

Sorry. I've had health flare-ups. I'm glad to be back. It's a great relief that you are still posting. A few of my other favorites have gone on hiatus. I'm really glad you're here still. Even caught your photo vacation post a week ago on my feed. I hope it had been super fun!

The trip to New England was very special...

I'm glad you're back, too. I hope you can keep your health steady. :D

I joined at the similar time like you, but for a long time I was pulled to all the other directions, instead investing my time here.
Yes, the crypto is very volatile and Is aw people going crazy over it, or growing incredibly disappointed over one failure never taking a moment of the time to invest into learning from own mistakes.
Yes, it is far easier if you take it as a full-time, then you can be better organised, and better informed, so it is much easier.
The hardest part for me is learning and taking time to analyse. I end up with the headache.
the best part of the Steemit for me is just surfing and commenting. That I really enjoy.

"...the best part of the Steemit for me is just surfing and commenting. That I really enjoy."

That's good, my friend. Stick with what you enjoy! As you do that, your account value will increase, and you'll get to know other good people on the platform.

Thanks for your comments! :D

Hi @creatr,
Just joined a few weeks ago. Still trying to understand how steem works. I think I have earned .0001 for comments, which is brilliant as I am not really here for the earnings. I am already retired and just love learning new stuff!
I don't have a crypto wallet I'm afraid, or I'd have offered you a part swap as discussed on your other post. Nice to meet you. I am hoping to figure out how to finish a profile and do a proper introductory post before my 1st anniversary here ;)

Greetings, @ricia, and Thank You for taking the time to say "Hello" and to comment here.

"I don't have a crypto wallet I'm afraid..."

Surprise, surprise... Actually, you do have a crypto wallet. Just go to your blog home page and click on the "Wallet" tab near the top right, or in the "Drop Down" menu that appears when you click on the circle near the upper-right corner.

That's where you can earn and keep your Steem, SBD, and Steem Power.

I see by looking into your wallet that your account is presently worth almost three dollars... Not a lot, but better than a poke in the eye! ;)

I'm glad to hear that you don't need Steem to survive, but if you have loved ones -- children, grandchildren, favorite nephews and nieces -- it would be great if you learn enough about crypto to help them get started. Right now is an amazing and important opportunity for anyone with half a brain to invest in a little bit of crypto, and to learn about it. We are truly on the verge of a brave, new world.

When you do figure out how to finish your profile and do an introductory post, would you please come back here and let me know? I would like to read it and vote for it, and encourage you a bit if I am able to.

Take care! :D

How kind - thank you, I will remember that!

Well its really hard to be a good steemians like me........ First I think its ordinary sites and do not take it seriously....... But when I got my first sbd in my wallet..... Then that was the time to change....
Though there are not too many satisfying videos on it on youtube that a youngers can follow..... They have to practice...
I am a student and that to little I earn is quite good to me to survive...
Its not that I am successful till now....... But I am trying to be successful...

Hello, @bapin,

Thanks for stopping and commenting. I hope you will do well on Steemit. Just keep posting interesting and original articles here, and I think you will do very well.

Best wishes!

😄😇😄

@creatr

Thanks @creatr I will try my best to be a good steemians :D
and also thanks for your appreciation.

I am over the moon thrilled to see so many folks doing well. Me and my silliness have never made much in the way of rewards, but TBH I feel I have been rewarded before I push post by the amount of enjoyment I have in the creative process. Well done @creatr

Thanks, friend.

I think that to keep the value of STEEM high and rising we need to be using it widely for transactions of all kinds. I've been writing about that, and have even been tempted to learn to be a Steemit hacker... (hacker in the good sense, of course!)

Great post. Very encouraging. Today marks 3 weeks for me on Steemit and I am very pleased. I came for a new fresh platform but this steem retirement talk has really got me hoping. Thankful for the connection. Blessings.

Welcome to Steemit, @gatorlynne. I'm glad you found my post encouraging.

I wish you an excellent sojourn on Steemit.

This is very cool thank you for the pictures it's really amazing Thanks I loved this : D