Regular payouts on Steemit are a mixture of hard work and talent.
And connections. In fact I'd say that's the most important thing for regular payouts. Such is life, it's not necessarily fair but it's how the world works and it's certainly true in Steem. For that reason, networking is probably one of the most important things in Steem. I think it's accurate to say that virtually everyone who went to Steemfest now gets decent-at-minimum payouts simply because they made so many connections at that event.
Any new users can build connections through the platform, getting involved in initiatives, hangouts, contests, commenting on peoples posts, welcoming new users, giving help and of course attending Steemfest and local meetups to get to know people face to face.
If you haven't already check out the @steemfest account and sign up for notifications on this years Steemfest at https://www.steemfest.com/
Are you heading?
Definitely! I was really sorry I missed it last year, I just found Steemit a few weeks before and didn't make a decision fast enough :(