1 Year Steemitversary, Priorities, Loyalty, and Remaining True to Yourself
What do you stand for? Would you stand by your beliefs no matter what?
What if you could achieve a dream by shoving aside a moral or two? Would you do it?
When I stumbled upon the Steemit.com platform last summer I didn't know what to expect. I mean, really, this place pays you to post blog articles about whatever you choose? There's gotta be a catch, right?
![](https://steemitimages.com/640x0/https://cdn.steemitimages.com/DQmYFfLo4kjtDKWXC7R26XkGE1Ks5nKr73MnsWE9fudYSh6/image.png)
No, no catch. I learned very quickly that Steemit is a very real platform that rewards everyday people for creating unique and compelling blog posts. I've watched Steemit change lives and improve standards of living. I've witnessed the community come together to help one individual. And I have first hand knowledge on how powerful and unparalleled the community truly is. Steemit is a unique breaking ground for how the world should operate. A renaissance, really. Decentralized, all for one and one for all, community minded, transparent, helpful, encouraging, creative driving and supportive.
I still step back at times and ask "is this really real?" I am truly honored to be a part of this community.
Steemit opened up a whole new world for me. A few new worlds as a matter of fact. Due to an increase in finances with SBD I was able to get in a better financial situation, which led to my purchase of a brand new Jeep Cherokee- bought ENTIRELY with CRYPTO that I had earned on Steemit in just over 6 months! Seriously- from zero money and zero vehicle to CryptoJeep in only 7 months!
I also learned the power of the community when CryptoJeep and I were in a near death accident in February. They swept her up in pieces, the doctors are still stitching my pieces back inside me, and the community came together for me both in support for my tremendous injuries (16 bones and one hellova Traumatic Brain Injury) and to rally and help me purchase CryptoJeep2.0. @Papa-Pepper was monumental in that regard, and to him I am forever grateful. If you do not follow him I highly suggest you head over there now- he is the perfect mix of humor and knowledge, with a generous icing of faith and human'ness on top :)
I have found a community of irreplaceable people here, people I can honestly call friends. I have met a few of them outside of Steemit, and have brought a few outsiders to the platform.
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I also found my new calling- game writer! I've been a full time freelance writer and author for a few years, and thanks to the networking and connections I made here I am now creating entire worlds for games you can play on your phone and devices! And going to school for coding- something I never thought I would be doing, lol.
Prior to Steemit I knew essentially nothing about blockchain and cryptocurrency. Just by being here and sharing things I know to educate and entertain my friends, I have inadvertently gained a mass of valuable crypto knowledge. Knowledge which is helping my business and allowing me to trade and invest confidently. Never would have happened if I hadn't stumbled upon Steemit.
But with the good comes the bad. I watched what I thought were good people turn and go to the darkside, abandoning their values and the people who helped them get there. I watched a number of individuals steal small fortunes due to the trusting nature we perceive in this platform. I personally got duped rather badly, not really financially- sure there was a little money lost but that is not what almost destroyed me and what haunts me every day. This scam actually ended in a life loss.
All because one nefarious, toxic and narcissistic individual wanted something they did not have and did not want to work for it so they decided it was their "right" to simply take from the trusting ones. The good ones, who worked hard for what they have and never once even thought of screwing over another for personal gain.
This platform has that power: it will make you the best you can be or it can turn you to the darkside.
Trust is something that must be earned- I stress that. Never put all your proverbial eggs in one basket and never fully trust someone you do not fully know, especially under the anonymity of the web. Be nice, make friends, share and gain knowledge, but do not become one of the victims. There are wolves out there, even in the wonderful shining woods of Steemit :)
![](https://steemitimages.com/640x0/https://cdn.steemitimages.com/DQmPusiXUGUAtHdcbqr8aAhFRsBrU8XkTcH5tUDJvp4YTf7/image.png)
But I digress. Most everything has been good, and an enriching and educational experience. Before my accident, I was posting at least once per day. The reason why I am not now is due to 3 X's weekly doctor, neuro, and chiro appointments, plus the complications from having so much of my life limited by my injuries. Last month I took a turn and got really bad, but I am on the upswing now and am looking forward to getting back into my old rhythms of one per day articles for Steemit. Because I love this place. Because I love the way you make me feel. Because I love making you laugh and sharing in your adventures and being a shoulder during your tragedies. That's what friends are for <3 Your support and encouragement is unparalleled and I am thankful for each and every one of you every day.
If you're just getting started on Steemit, stay! If you build it they will come. You will not grow rich right away- there is no such thing anywhere! I know the trending pages make you drool, just as they did me, but if you look at the authors on the trending pages you'll see they have been on Steemit for many months and even a year or two. Nothing great was built overnight! You have to work at what you want and Steemit is just like everything else- you get exactly what you put into it! You have to post original articles that are well written and compelling. And never, ever plagiarize. With patience and perseverance, and of course dedication, you too will succeed on Steemit!
If you are not on steemit yet, try it out. Seriously, what can it hurt? It's free and you just might make a few bucks!
Passion led us here. Keep that passion alive, every day, and you will surely achieve your dreams :)
The Steemit journey is one that you will treasure for your lifetime and never regret.
I look forward to being all I can be for you for another year- hello Year 2!
I love you guys! Muah!
Images via Unsplash
![](https://steemitimages.com/640x0/https://cdn.steemitimages.com/DQmUxquEXARhvGZyh7KgxabUcmQLwxvgr6zqtQCxBgjR57d/gold%20line%20divider.png)
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Resteem if your followers will benefit, and Follow for more @ArbitraryKitten ♡
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I'm glad you are getting better, and like you I have found Steem to be great. Not so much monetarily which is what I am actually here for, but I have, I believe, improved my writing skills in English (I am not a native English speaker) and have gotten into some good discussions here, and I do like taking a contrarian view to whatever someone is posting, like a devil's advocate. Of course I do have my own beliefs and I do stand by them, but I do know I am possibly wrong some or maybe most of the time.
I just read one of your articles and must say I am impressed! Your English writing has improved ten fold! You are doing a most excellent job- keep it up and you will most definitely succeed :)
And, thank you <3 I appreciate that :)
It is often those who act as the devil's advocate that make the angels think (I too am a contrarian quite often, but that's mainly because I want people to think for themselves and not blindly follow). ;p
Sheeple begone!
@arbitrarykitten Happy Steemit Birthday and I am Grateful that you are Here and that you are not afraid to show your Feelings. It takes a lot to open Up to let people know what is going on in your life. People I have Never met in Person are usually very kind to me here. By the way I Traded my ByteBalls for more STEEM last night and I Powered UP some more STEEM so at least you know where my Heart is At..........................
https://steemit.com/balls/@balls2steem/ball-report-27-july-2018#@stokjockey/re-jackmiller-re-stokjockey-re-jackmiller-re-stokjockey-re-balls2steem-ball-report-27-july-2018-20180731t083807783z
Sweet! I did not know you could trade Byte for SBD! Thank you for informing me!
Oh, I know precisely where your heart is at. Your sleeve is getting heavy.
;)
I'm sure we can make special accommodations , @arbitrarykitten. SBD should not be a problem considering it's your Steemit Birthday! We can help out whenever you wanna get those balls off your hands 🍻😉
@balls2steem always handles with care
STEEM ON
Ha ha yes!
Gotta always handle with care, it's the only way ;)
Point me in the right Byte trade direction pretty please ;)
https://steemit.com/bytes/@jackmiller/we-buy-byteballs-payment-in-steem • most recent announcement, but you can find them all at @balls2steem for future ref. ✌️😎
Sweet, thank you!
PS I can't find the conversion rates to SBD! It would really help if they were alphabetical ;) lol
https://walletinvestor.com/converter/byteball-bytes/steem-dollars/.20
Here is a conversion for GB to SBD
0.20000000 Byteball Bytes is 22.991861 Steem Dollars.
Ok. So I'll send you the bytes from the byteball app and you'll send my SBD here? Is that how it works?
Yes, that's basically it. @balls2steem is run by @jackmiller and I and we offer the exchange fee-free. Depending upon how many bytes you have to exchange, I can help you exchange them for SBD now - simply let me know how many GB you wish to convert.
I will give you a quote and address. then it's on!
If I do not have the STEEM/SBD on hand, I will difer to my pal @jackmiller when he wakes (we are vastly different timezones so it works out well.)
I have 302,100,626
@grow-pro Thank you for handling the KITTEN with Kid Gloves.............
Hey, it is all about enjoying the time we have on this spinning mudball, right? Her story is a familiar one, I've seen my brother inlaw recover from a TBI and it takes a person who wants to live and that desire to sustain after something traumatic like a car accident. Long Live Jeep2.0 and trauma unit staff and whatever else keeps us going - be it byteBALLS or semi hilarious and ambiguously clever commentary. We are all just enjoying life and it's pretty wild how we can share our most valuable asset with each other. Our braids of time do not rewind.... Enjoy all that you spend
@arbitrarykitten it was an Easy Trade and I know I will get more Value from the STEEM POWER right now than I would have got from the Byteballs sitting in the wallet. Heck a Year from now I will have the other half of the Byteballs in the wallet again anyway...................
Oh, absolutely agreed! Did you use Bittrex?
No Exchanges it was straight PEER to PEER......@arbitrarykitten
Perfect! I left a comment for @grow-pro, gonna do 'dis!
Thanks for the mention, buddy! Found a new Steemian thanks to your mention. Ginabot is the shizz and it's great to find new people on here.
Hey! Good on ya! When I saw your title, I started thinking, I'm coming close to my SteemIt anniversary, too! I've been a whole lot, but not nearly as much as you, health-wise. For me I've been busy earning a degree, trying to take care of my family, and investing. I've also learned a TON about cryptocurrency and SteemIt is what caused that. I learned about SteemIt before I learned what bitcoin was...My journey was sparked by Jerry on YouTube explaining how he earned his income. I had to check out Steemit after that. I haven't been on here for a long while, but I'm planning on writing up a post or more a week now. Thanks for sharing your story. I hope you'll fully recover. God bless!
Wonderful to meet you Bob!
I found Steemit while perusing a website marketing forum, lol. Some random anonymous Steemitzen posted a link to Steemit with a brief sentence on how he makes $ just for posting on this social media platform.
The rest is history!
Thank you so much, and (early) congratulations on your Steemitversary, too!
I still step back at times and ask "is this really real?" I am truly honored to be a part of this community.
Awesome!
And wonderful to meet you!
Well, that's a heartfelt post. It's good to hear that you're slowly knitting back together after such a terrible accident. I can only imagine how difficult it must have been.
One a more cheery note: Happy 1 Year on Steemit! I concur with much of what you have written here. Since I was introduced, I've found it a great community of people, and I've seen a great deal of charitable works happening.
Thanks for writing this. I look forward to seeing more of your posts around, and wonder what your second year on the platform will bring.
Thank you, I really appreciate that. It has been pretty bad, and completely derailed parts of my life, but I have been taking it easy and allowing the healing. Which is difficult for me because I am a high energy individual, lol! But I understand the importance and severity of what happened, so I'm being a good girl ;)
It's wonderful meeting you Steve!
Great to hear you are on the upswing and I could tell the passion in your words for this place. I came here as a place to store some thoughts and never thought that I would enjoy it as much as I have. I am not going anywhere anytime soon and I echo your words on come and stay, I've seen so many people that have come and gone and just shake my head in disbelief that they didn't see that the true value here is in the people you meet, not the crypto called steem.
Best wishes for a continued successful recovery.
Until next time,
@sultnpapper
Same here!
It's been quite amazing for me.
...I'm stayin' too..
I like that- a place to store your thoughts. That is beautiful actually.
I honestly never thought I would enjoy it so much, either! I write for a living. I write all day long, lol. I would have thought Steemit would be just another place where I write for a living. But Steemit has become my clubhouse. My after work lounge so to speak ;)
#steemitismyhappyhour ;)
I've seen so many people that have come and gone and just shake my head in disbelief that they didn't see that the true value here is in the people you meet, not the crypto called steem. ~ The rewards are just a side effect ;) A nice little bonus.
Thank you so much, hun <3
So moving!
With great power comes the great responsibility, I had to struggle with keeping my morals intact (which are already more strict than most people) every time I see an opportunity for profit.
I sometimes fail to do so, and do something I regard 'bad/against my morals,' but I'm glad to say I have kept my self from doing many things I won't like being done to me.
Glad that you're recovering, but still a bit troubled because given all these months I thought you'd be full healthy right now.
Glad that you're recovering, but still a bit troubled because given all these months I thought you'd be full healthy right now. ~ My doctors keep telling me to not be so hard on myself or frustrated because I am very lucky to be alive. My injuries were more severe than I gave them credit for. But, considering, I am healing quite well. It just might take up to two years they tell me.
CryptoJeep 2.0 is going strong! She is doing quite well :) Thank you for asking!
Nice to see you back!
You're mending, but slowly, eh?
(It's an age thing.. lol)
I thought you had disappeared on us! Another steemitian in the ether..
Steemit is definitely on a 'lull', at the moment.
I never realized - Off steemit?
I was looking through some posts I had made when I first came here, and looked through the comments and interactions.
You don't realize how many people have left until you do a quick 'snapshot' back in time.
No, my brain injury is actually much worse than I thought- and much worse than they let on. Lovely, aye? I now have added brain neurosurgeon to my arsenal of post-accident specialists :/
I was duped by a user who I also knew in the real world.
Oh my, yes. SO many of the people I started with, or even some before me who mentored me and took me under their wing, are gone. It's sad and scary! I'm glad you're still here!
Good to hear from you! Was already thinking where you might be but I knew it's about the recovery – good thing you're getting better!
Hey you! What are you up to lately?
Yeah, my doctors were actually holding back from telling me some things, which is messed up but now that they have been addressed correctly I'm feeling better.
Well, I'm still on my civil service but only 4 weeks left!!! Just had a holiday also – basic summer stuff like picking berries and disc golfing and just taking it easy, and biking! Plan is to go bicycling around Finland after my service is done. Oh, also I've been thinking, and I'm most likely going to attend the Steemfest 3 in Poland in November – so close to Finland that I think it would be a waste of opportunity not to.
Sweet- only 4 weeks! I was thinking it had to be nearing it's end!
Bicycling around Finland, interesting! You should document that here on steemit! Will it be one big trip or broken down into bite sized pieces?
I am fully planning on attending Steemfest 3! I'm currently working as a game writer for a startup that's branched off a rather large Chinese corp, and going through the auditioning phase for a company in Asia, so I might be closer than I think ;)
Where life takes you is amazing to wonder at, isn't it?!
It's going to be so that I'll leave home for several weeks for once and then come back before I leave to Steemfest. For sure I'm going to post something along the way, don't still know yet what exactly though :D
That's all great news! Hope you make through the auditions, and to Steemfest!
It is, indeed! :D
I've actually wanted to bicycle thru several parts of Europe for a few years now. Getting closer to that ;). It'll be awesome watching your journey!
Thank you for the positive vibes <3
Ah yes, I think you mentioned that at some point. Hopefully you get to do that someday!
Thank you for giving me hope on this platform. You have found a way to shine through adversity.
The Steem Engine is slowly teaching me how to work this platform. Be well.
I am fully committed to the Steemit community :) After seeing what it has done for people, and of course what it does for me, not to mention the almost unlimited potential... Steemit has me! lol.
I am so happy to have renewed your faith for Steemit! Seriously, it will get better. Keep writing original and compelling creations and you will succeed. There will come a day, very soon, where you're going to tell yourself *I am so thankful I didn't abandon the platform!" Seriously- it happened to me! It will pay off :)
That's why my motto is, "Write on." Have a fine day. :)
Perfect!