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I’ve been on the site for three days now, and I think I have a pretty good sense of what this platform is all about. no idea what I’m doing here.

A Few Things To Note:

I am not in any way in a position of authority on this site, I’m not trying to challenge anyone’s beliefs about how the site runs, or how the Steemit community works. I’m just here to tell you what I’ve seen, nothing more, nothing less.

The Steemit Environment Harbors Promotional Dialogue

Going through the posts of MANY of the users here on Steemit, one thing kept popping out at me. All of the comments I’ve seen are positive comments. Because the users are incentivised to MAKE MONEY by receiving upvotes, replies, and resteems, they tend to post only positive comments.

I am all for good dialogue, but I think there’s a line between good and healthy dialogue.

Although all of the comments I’ve seen so far are VERY positive in nature, they often do NOT provide any insight or constructive criticism that could help the author offer MORE value to the community. I think in a way, by limiting the replies in this way, the progress of content on Steemit could be slower than if we were to allow for all comments to be acceptable.

Steemians LOVE A Good Witchhunt

Reading certain posts about “drama” within the Steemit community, it’s interesting to see how triggered some Steemians get over other people in the comments of those posts. I’ve seen some users with a Reputation above 60 call out other users, sending all of their followers to go attack that person on their page.

This doesn’t really bother me. I don’t participate in them (yet) and if I did, it ultimately won’t do anything. But it’s about the other side of the issue that bothers me.

The comments. Back to the line between good and productive dialogue, I’ve seen a few instances where a user comments something that the majority doesn’t necessarily agree with.

Although I might not agree, I do think that promoting a conversation about anything REMOTELY controversial is a good thing within itself. Not trying to get too into detail, by allowing controversial conversation to flourish helps in twofold.

1. It identifies the problem.
2. It gets people involved in working toward a solution.

I’m not sure exactly what implications will occur within the Steemit community if this paradigm shift occurs, but I think it would be an interesting thought experiment.

Apparently Whales Have Been Taught to Use Computers.

There are users on this site, the VERY first generation of Steemians, who have rose among the ranks. These users, some have paid to play (but that’s for another time), others gained notoriety organically. I’m not entirely sure how they influence the community, but I do know that if they support you, then you’re dead set for success on the site.

Whales (or Dolphins, I’ve seen the terms used interchangeably) are the major players on the site. They have the highest amount of steem power and are the most influential people on the site because their voting power is maxed out.

Final Thoughts

I’ll post an update to this post in a few more days. Right now, Steemit looks like a promising platform for new users to make a little bit of money off the site, if they play nice.

If you enjoyed the article, be sure to follow me @kava as I explore the lands of Steemit and hopefully learn more about what it takes to be a Steemian!

Be sure to upvote and comment about your first few days on the site!

Anything I missed?

Thanks!

@kava