Good points. I guess having a self-hosted platform can give you more freedom and, as you mention, act as a useful asset for future goals. I started out with a wordpress.com (not .org) site. The Wordpress platform is very customisable and your posts also go out to other bloggers, which helps you grow and connect with like-minded people.

But, just like with the .org site, you can't really make direct money from it. So that's why I chose to start using Steemit too. Been nice so far. :)

The .org site has some advantages though. For example, having your own domain name and also probably more freedom and flexibility.

Cheers on your new venture. Wishing you the best!