My reasoning is that it takes a lot of time and hard work to build momentum, so I don't expect much in the way of returns for a while. A minnow's main task is to get noticed and do networking within the community to start building up a solid reputation. Yes, it's disappointing to put hours of effort into a well written article and see it make 10 cents. But focusing on that aspect of it is the wrong thing to do. What you should be thinking is "great, that 10 cent post of mine has raised my visibility in the community and oh, look, I've got 3 more followers than I had yesterday, and some interesting comments that give me chances for more interaction!". Remember that a post's value is more than just how much money it makes.
As you say, today's minnow group, assuming they stay dedicated and keep at it, will continue growing stronger. Eventually they will become tomorrow's dolphins, and a new minnow group will exist from users that join the platform later on. It is still early days, and all of us who are active on the platform now will have plenty of opportunity going forward.
To those who are getting discouraged, I would simply say: keep calm and Steem on!
I wanted to do a separate reply, but I jusr feel that I'd like to add on to your thoughts.
The problem in the current world is the 'clip mentality', which means that people have short attention spans. And short attention spans also limit the planning ability, thus most of the minnows leaving are doing so because of the short term results.
While I myself is a little underwhelmed by the performance of my posts, one of the things I've switched my attention to are alternative ways of get exposure. And the best and easiest one is leaving thoughtfull comments to the types of,posts that you like. It also gives the authors of such posts some positive feedback, that while doesn't help the score go up, helps them hang on, and stay in the game. And staying in the game is how you get better.
Another thing is that there are other alternative options, that might not be available to everyone, but keep looking. Myself? I've found one in translation work. It brings me some SBD, which is much better than getting cents on my posts, as well as exposure, since I require people to tack on the reference to the fact that I've participated in their posts. I even offered to work for percentage of their returns, but since everyone is thinking that their next post is going to hit it big, and they don't want to share the reward, well, even those small fixed SBDs are going to pile up over time.
My advice, if you are underwhelmed by your performance, look for alternative avenues to getting more spotlight. and more importantly, widen your planning horizon, since that is where the success lies.
After I've decided that while I may be failing short term, and then put the schedule for good returns in 2-3 years future, it became mucheasier for me. Even if sometimes I feel a bit blue, I just return to that plan and feel much better. :-)
That's a great way to look at it, having a long-term planning horizon really helps to put things in perspective. It's a marathon, not a sprint! That also helps you pace yourself so you don't get burnt out early on. And I absolutely agree about looking for alternative avenues: if you've got specialized skills that can benefit the Steemit community in some way, then by all means put them to good use and it will help you stand out a little!