Off and On Steem and Steeming

Yesterday in a post I mentioned all of the off chain interaction that surrounds Steem and today, @cryptoandcoffee commented on his own journey over the last year and, his foray into starting his own company, something he has been writing about over the last months.

You missed the point perhaps

Something that very few people who are critical of Steem recognize is that for many people, being on Steem has changed the way they see and therefore behave in the walking world, as it should. Anyone spending significant time doing something like this and remaining unchanged by it are essentially proof they have not learned much.

For me, while I have come into the crypto space largely blind to it, I didn't come in completely blind and have a fair bit of experience in various areas, both professionally and personally. However, once on Steem I have been able to (eventually) learn a list of things that has given me new perspective on various aspects of my career and life in general. Through these various discoveries, I have been able to realign parts of my life and compound what I have learned against what I already held to increase the probability of improving circumstances in my life.

Working out and earning more than Steem

In many ways, being on Steem is liking going to the gym for the mind as it allows for and encourages a diversity of thought that most of life generally doesn't. Before Steem, most of the conversations I had were quite narrow because most people are not interested in and on Steem there is the chance to develop thoughts, process them and get feedback from a wide range of sources.

I have also become much more open in the real world with my willingness to share what would be considered more personal information and I put this down to my initial discomfort in doing that here. A large part of the issue early on was the openness of the economy here.

Don't talk about it, be ashamed

In most cultures we have been brainwashed into not talking about personal finances in a healthy way which means, it is very difficult to get good information on aspects of it. Instead, we bumble around and struggle while wondering how other people seem to be doing so much better than us. On Steem, the open wallets make some people jealous or nervous, but the fact that economy is spoken about at a granular level actually holds a very high value for those who are looking to improve their own financial situation. @revisesociology does good breakdowns of these things, so does @newageinv and @indigoocean.

The last paragraph obviously then leads into the direct economic side of Steem which is obviously a very important part of the equation for most people. One of the reasons Steem is so well utilized in comparison to other blockchains that pay is that the barriers to entry are about as low as they possibly can be. Again, if you are here and especially if you have been here long-term and you haven't found a way to improve yourself, you are Steeming wrong in my opinion.

On and off learning

The value of the blockchain goes well beyond the price of Steem and even beyond all of the transactions. What is going to make Steem highly valuable in the future is a mass of people who are leveraging parts of it to improve various parts of their lives. This could be through information alone or, encouragement to exercise, start a business, find new hobbies, increase skills or socialize and invest oneself into a community of people with common goals, similar tastes or very diverse attributes altogether.

What I believe is that in time, the people, communities and applications around Steem will start integrating more and more of real world interaction and changed behaviors to create feedback loops of experience where life and blockchain start to intertwine and meld together. This is something that is going to happen across many blockchains but for Steem, it is going to be personal.

Who are you when you are at home?

The accounts I find the most interesting on Steem are the ones who offer a real person rather than just information or discussion. For me, I like to get to know the people behind the accounts and the 4 people I have mentioned i this post are like that. Yes, they all offer a range of content too but, there is enough personal flavor in there to help me feel connected. This is what is eventually going to engage the masses too.

When I look back on my experience here and what kind of content I have created, it was definitely not where it started nor my intention. In many ways, my content on Steem has grown in the same way I have over the last two years and includes a much more intimate look into my life than I would ever have been comfortable with earlier.

I feel that my journey on Steem is only party mine and instead, it is our journey on Steem as so many people have played a role in the process in so many ways. I hope that over that time, what I have added onto the Steem blockchain is much more valuable than just the valuation of Steem, even if it goes to 10, 20 or 50 dollars one day, as I hope that people look and act differently in their lives and are finding ways to improve their experience.

Growing together and apart together

I am not a teacher of course but I do think that if I can learn from other people here, other people might learn a few things from me also and in that way, we are always adding to our shared experiences and hopefully, leveraging each other's talents, skills and knowledge for win/ win situations.

Steem is heading into it's 4th year and I am into my 3rd on the Steem blockchain. As I see it, there are going to be many years ahead to come and no matter when people join, they are going to be able to find value here as, it already exists here in the people.

So, if you are on Steem unchanged, you have failed to grasp the opportunity as not only is, Steem is part of the next generation of world-changing technology, there are some amazing people to learn from along the way. But of course, the main lesson on Steem is always going to be;

Your experience is your responsibility.

Taraz
[ a Steem original ]