If "ifs" and "buts" were candy and nuts...

We'd all have a Merry Christmas! :)

But of course, sadly they aren't.

So just like those that expect a fat man with a gray beard to come down a chimney and deliver gobs of presents from the North Pole...

We at Steemit have users that might feel the same when they realize things aren't exactly as we wished they were.

Just like parents might try to keep the Christmas Santa illusion alive for the young ones, there is also a tendency on Steemit to want to create wonderful (false) impressions too.

Why not? What's a little white lie, right?

Expectations, Expectations, Expectations

In real estate the saying is the 3 most important factors to consider are location, location, location.

In customer satisfaction, which is especially needed for a product/service like Steemit that is a) new, b) difficult to learn, and c) global; the saying should be expectations, expectations, expectations!

Without the right expectations, then users will quickly be disgruntled and leave. The churn rate is higher than need be, and its makes it difficult to build a base. By setting the proper expectations though; "new" isn't bad, "difficult to learn" becomes challenging and rewarding, and "global" becomes an asset not a liability.

I believe that the key to Steemit's long term success will depend on the users having properly set expectations. If people expect too much, or are here for the wrong reasons, then they will soon be disappointed and leave. (see @paulag's stats that show Steemit's horrendous churn rate. Click Here).

WARNING: Disclaimer - The following information is not meant to apply to any particular group/individual as there are many wonderful steemians individually. But it is meant to apply collectively and meant to realistically address the truth as I see it on a total scale. I recognize, appreciate, and very much respect those that are community minded.

5 "ifs" and "buts" I hear, and suggestions to set the proper expectations.

#1 If more of the whales cared more about the newbies and minnows, then we would have a vibrant thriving network of people that consume good content and reward it with their upvotes.

Face it, this isn't the case right now. We wish it were true, but its not. So lets set the expectation that any support from a whale, orca, or dolphin for a newbie or minnow is the exception, not the norm. @ned isn't likely to throw his vote behind the little guys he doesn't know, and neither are most of the large whales likely to get involved with you in a meaningful way either.

The facts are clear, there is a big profit in leasing out steem power and earning a very big return. So whether they self-upvote, circle-jerk each other, use bidbots, or use leasing as a form of monetization, it all amounts to the same result; profit. We can argue about whether they are being short-sighted 'til we're blue in the face, the bottom line is the majority of them have evaluated their power and choose to utilize these methods right now.

Expectation: Don't expect anything from the whales, orcas, or dolphins. If you get their support, from any of them, realize that it is a gift and truly something that is special and unique!

#2 If there were no bidbots, then it would be more fair because "trending" would stop being a farce.

Trending is a page that reflects the posts that earn the most per post in a particular category. Right now, the bidbots get the blame for some serious crap posts that make it to the top. But the bidbots aren't the reason for this to happen, as they are just a mechanism to funnel votes from those that have the votes to those that can afford to buy those votes. If the bots weren't around it would happen a different way (and maybe manually); but don't kid yourself, the people that own the SP will make sure they get paid and make their profit. The powerful and wealthy will not let their votes die unused if the bots just disappeared, so lets end this myth and accept it for what it is. If you don't want to sift through a tag and find good posts on your own, then you better focus on making good friends to find you good posts through resteems. The truth is you aren't likely find the really good posts in "trending" in the foreseeable future!

Expectation: Bidbots are here to stay and people will use them to drive up the value of trending posts. Recognize it and move on, because complaining about it will only lead to frustration and disappointment. If you truly want to make a difference, work with the bot leaders like @yabapmatt and @themarkymark to improve the rules and enforcement on their end.

#3 If the system had more distribution of power (less at the top and more at the bottom), then we would have better satisfaction.

Sure if the rich decided to give their wealth to the poor, then that would be a wonderful world indeed. But lets set some realistic expectations. As long as the price of steem stays up and they can earn a huge return for renting out their SP (in whatever form), then these large players will keep their steem power, stay super rich, and have no incentive to leave. Why would they? Would you?

The only way to solve this issue is to have a drop in steem value to a level that encourages people that are relatively poor (but loyal to the platform) to earn their way into prominence. In other words, the owners will start to "encourage" or "pay" those of us that connect to the masses to improve the platform. When they see a need, it will happen. Right now they don't see a huge need, or collectively they are not too worried as the amount of community support is paled by the amount of support that goes to support their own monetization efforts.

Expectation: You can't have your cake and eat it to. If you want a greater distribution of steem from top to bottom, then you should hope the price drops to encourage the redistribution. If you want to spend the money from the steem and sbds you earn, then you should hope it goes higher and be happy with what you earn (as it is still more than most other blogging/social networks).

#4 If the system had defined "fair" and "normal" behavior, then we wouldn't have rules that seem to apply to those with the greatest reputation.

This one is a damned if you do, damned if you don't. I think a large percentage of people on Steemit would tend to lean toward libertarian ideology. A decentralized place where people were free and able to work together in their own communities, and to create their own rules that are tailored to their own needs. Well, isn't this what we have? Isn't this much closer to our dreams as opposed to what most of us have felt in real life?

What may seem unfair to one, is perfectly fair to another. And yes the bigger you are, the more weight you carry, but isn't that how most organizations are built? (think corporations for instance)

Expectation: Your view of fair will differ from others' views. So make friends, and over time you will have a community of people that will speak out in situations where things appear unfair. I have personally stepped in and helped clear up many misunderstandings, and over time I think you will appreciate the system is better than what we have in the real world governance.

#5 If @fulltimegeek had kept his power (instead of delegating it out) and fought haejin earlier, then he could've stopped the selfishness and ended the "whale wars" that many people see as so counterproductive.

Maybe this is true, but the bottom line is @fulltimegeek did decide to lead and work towards ending the skewed rewards of a few users with very high SP and the whale votes behind them. We can't go back in time and make him do it earlier. Also, once he did lead, relative few of the whales and orcas followed. They either didn't agree, didn't care, or were too busy collecting their earnings from their ownership of SP to sacrifice in this battle.

Whether this was a good or a bad decision by all involved is yet to be borne out. The bottom line is the people with the largest share of ownership of the platform collectively made a decision, and they will bear the fruits or consequences of those decisions. If they are right in not backing @fulltimegeek, then the price of steem will rise even higher and become even better as time goes. If they are wrong, then the price drop will be a punishing factor that they primarily will bear a disproportionate share of.

Expectation: The "whales wars" were fought and people chose. There isn't a whole lot that the average user can do at this point, other to appreciate and admire what others' sacrificed in an effort to help the community. There are lessons yet to be learned from the experience, so the best a user can do at this point is pay attention to the ultimate outcomes.

Setting The Right Expectations Is Important

In order to get the most out of Steemit, I have attempted to point out some of the complaints I have heard (and had myself at various times), and then come out with reasonable expectations based on what I've witnessed. It is important to set the right expectations based on what I see as an observable reality, rather than have unrealistic hopes that things are going to magically change anytime soon. I have seen many steemians that are far more prominent than me raise many of the same issues, only to have them fall on deaf ears.

Its time for me to deal with things as they "are", as opposed to the way I "wish they would be". My expectations have been adjusted and I am ready for the next step forward!

My "highly recommended" witness votes will now be added to my posts. I hope you add them to!

@steemcommunity
@danielsaori
@yabapmatt
@steemgigs
@curie
@jackmiller
@qurator
@themarkymark

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