A thought on Steemit "abuse" - a response to @masteryoda and others

In response to @masteryoda's post about abuse on Steemit, it is important to consider just how fast the ecosystem is changing. When a post could generate $15.00 total, that's one thing, but now you see someone write two paragraphs and making $15,000.00. That's big money to a lot of people. You're going to see some "true colors" when that kind of money shows up.

You started early, at the condensation stage, where the Sun is being formed out of a nebulous cloud of ether. Steemit has formed a new star and it's now beginning to shine brightly. The formulation phase was true Wild West: post anything, photos, whatever it is that seems interesting and content ownership aside, in order to give the ecosystem a critical mass. To create something new out of the ether where before there was nothing.

And now that stage is over.

Why This is Necessary

But like all societies, as they get larger and begin to sustain their own economic activity, there are rules that begin to form that protect the group from the individual. With Steemit, everyone wants there's, but they need the entire ecosystem to work and grow in order for "there's" to be available. So in a way everyone works for the system as well as for themselves. Posting content and making money money where others may be able to claim ownership to it may negatively effect the whole ecosystem at a time when there are a lot of new interested parties that emotionally desire the ecosystem to continue growing radically. That's the truth. It doesn't mean people should be ugly about it, which is unfortunate, but it sometimes goes that way.

Where We Are Now

Getting that all important upvote from @ned or @dantheman, or a combination of folks on the the Top 25 list, is really what matters in terms of making any money on a post at this time. Therefore the content is being guided heavily still by a relatively few amount of people who are deciding the direction of the ecosystem. You cannot really fight this - they can downvote you (or ignore you) at will. When a post could make $15 you probably received upvotes from them simply for being around at a time when no one else was. The down-voting and name-calling is ugly, but really as the focus changes to new, original content, what should have simply happened is the whales stop upvoting your content. After posting what you were doing in the past, and receiving no money for it, you would naturally adapt to the new normal (posting original, valued content).

Where We Are Probably Headed

In the future, as money dilutes out to new users and authors, this will morph into more of a more broad general popularity quest. You will also need to get a subset of mini-whales (but more of them) that are probably more focused in your sub-topic. In this phase folks that do well will be subject matter experts; if you're great at Poodle haircuts, you will do well if there's a large subset of users interested in Poodle haircuts. The founders and current whales realize this inevitability; so they vote and contribute carefully to ensure the direction is what they are seeking as the slowly but surely cede this control.

I am extremely interested in Steemit as a project. I'm invested a bit in it and look forward to seeing where it will go in the future. Don't give up, stay with it and realize change is sometimes harsh and people's true colors come out when money is on the line. But the fact steemit pays out is all is a very new concept that could revolutionize social media and the way we use and interact with each other on the web, so it may be edgy and harsh at times, but it will be spectacular too.