How long until I make an income on Steemit? (rough calculations)
First, what's the goal?
The goal is to make money. More specifically, I want to generate an income with my Steemit account, while advancing my causes, improving myself, helping others, and adding value to the blockchain. I want to be able to withdraw STEEM (to spend on improving the standard of living for myself and @MediKatie), while still growing my account.
So it's all about money, then?!
Hell no. I've worked FULL TIME for more than a decade on traditional social media sites, accumulated an audience of tens of thousands, and amassed millions of views - all for free. And I'd do it over again! But now, Steemit offers the chance to do all those things, but also get paid for it. That's why I'm pouring effort into Steemit instead of YouTube and FaceBook. I'm powering up everything I make, and working hard.
Besides, I've invested all my savings, little as that may be to you, into STEEM. I'm putting effort into my posts, I'm capturing unique footage, I'm spending my own resources to create and share. My bills need to be paid just like everybody else's, and I don't feel bad for hoping to earn something here at some point in the nearish future.
The Plan
Okay, I've settled on a goal - to generate STEEM. If I can do that sufficiently, I can pull some out to live on, and I can keep some invested for growth.
About how much are we talking? How much am I worth? What can somebody expect to make?
I think a couple hundred dollars a month would be a start. I'm sure we're all worth much more than that, especially if we're doing more than just pressing a button 40 hours a week, but it's not peanuts.
So say $200 per month, to start. Even if Steem only goes back up to $4, I'll need about 50 Steem per month, plus a buffer so I'm not cannibalizing myself. I'm going to need to be pulling in at least 60 Steem per month.
The Situation Now
I have 680 Steem today.
Even at these low Steem prices (under $2/Steem right now), I'm generating $0.10 per upvote. (That number can only go up unless Steem completely collapses.)
I usually don't upvote my own posts or comments, but I have friends, fans, supporters, and followers who DO upvote my stuff. My upvotes tend to land on their stuff, and many of their upvotes tend to land on mine. Since I'm usually able to bring in about the same amount as I'm dishing out, I'll consider it equal for the purpose of this exercise.
If I could upvote flawlessly, I'd upvote exactly as my voting power reaches 99.99%, and then allow it to regenerate (2.4 hours), and then upvote again. That means I can upvote at full power up to 10 times a day.
10 full-powered upvotes per day, times $0.10 each, makes $1 USD at current prices. In other words, ~0.5 Steem per day, or ~15 per month.
So it looks like I'm currently generating ~15 Steem per month.
The plan is to be generating ~60 Steem per month.
If 680 Steem generates ~15 Steem/month income, that means I'm growing at (1500/680)% = (75/34)% = ~2.2% per month.
How long will it take to get there?! (The math part!)
The plan is to generate at least 60 Steem/month. When I have 2720 Steem, my income will be 60 Steem/month, so my goal is 2720 Steem.
I have 680 Steem now.
I'm growing at (75/34)% per month. That's +15 Steem this month, +15.3 Steem next month, and more each successive month.
Since I've forgotten my compound interest math formulae, I put the numbers into an online calculator.
In 64 months (5.3 years) at the current rate, I'll reach my goal.
How I feel about the results
The results are both exciting and disappointing.
5 years of helping others and working toward a secure future? It's not bad, not bad at all really. But I was secretly hoping it would be possible within a couple years. After all, I've invested all I have, and I'm working essentially as hard as I can. 2 years would be quite a long time to work full time without a pay check. I'm not exactly in the right financial situation to do that.
On the other side, I'm overjoyed at the idea of very likely being able to pull an income out of something I love doing, and at which I'm good at, and which the world needs. Wouldn't that essentially be one's "purpose"?
Besides, I have a feeling I'm growing faster than 2% per month. I'm sure others have already done the calculations. If you have any to share in the comments, please do! I'm eager to upgrade my calculations with any new information.
If I'm growing at a very possible 4% per month, I'll hit my goal in a few years. I'm going to see if there's a way I can pull data from Steemit. Maybe somebody's already done it? I'd love to know my current rate of growth, or even see a chart of my Steem Power vs. Time.
ANOTHER piece of good news? I'm effectively at more than 680 Steem right now. A couple weeks ago, I gave 150 Steem to friends of mine, here. That's still my currency, and my friends have told me they're using it to start projects and help others, but that I'll get it back plus a bonus when they're able to. So I'm effectively at more than 680 Steem!
Potential Upside
Nothing in the future is a given, but it's useful to figure out just how good things might be. After all, if you don't believe an amazing future has the possibility of happening to you, you'll probably be right. I'm open to the possibility of amazing futures for me, but without getting too philosophical, here are the calculations:
With my loaned out Steem, I'm effectively at 840 Steem Power right now. If I could grow at a reasonable 5% per month, I'll reach my goal in just 2 years!
Not to mention, Steem isn't likely to stay here at $2 for long - many think $10 and up this year is likely. There's also wildcards like the ongoing mass exodus from FaceBook to other sites, and YouTube's constant attack on small monetized channels. Growth opportunities are abundant. 5% monthly growth might be modest.
In any case, I'm going to gather feedback, and more data, and update/upgrade my calculations here soon!
Please note: I don't want to give the impression I'm a profiteer, or that I want a get rich quick scheme, or that I think anyone should profit on Steemit without adding value. I just love logic, and I love analyzing patterns and trying to predict outcomes. This is "fun" to me, believe it or not. I just wish my math was as sharp as it was 20 years ago! I promise that I'm here to add value through contributions, not to game things and turn it into a formula. I completely intend to add value, and hope that with my posts and comments I'm already starting to do that.
Thanks for participating, and thanks for your support. Steem on!
DRutter
You added value to my LIFE with this post and I thank you @drutter ........
Awesome post, thanks for this. I've been recently thinking myself about lots of the content you have covered here. I've had my steemit account for almost 2 months now, and I feel that I'm growing very slowly, but its all cool. I guess persistence and frequency, along with good content is key!
I like that bubble graph you have drawn up thats a good way to lay things out for sure! I'm going to work in China soon so I will do a running blog on life whilst im there as it will be very different from my current life haha!
thanks @drutter peace!
Love how you put "things I love doing" and "things I can make money doing" on opposite sides because the intersect of those two things by themselves is not good for the world or yourself. The other two on opposite sides would just make you a homeless hippie.
Let's keep working on that mass exodus.... I hope I can help with my FB account.
Yes, let's! Thanks for doing what you can to bring people over.
It's a little frustrating, having to essentially beg people to upgrade their social media experience. I check Steemit FIRST nowadays, every time I sit down at the PC. I wish I didn't even need any other sites.
I'm going to post this on my FB page and use it to ask people to consider Steemit again.
thanks for doing the maths.
imagine if this place worked like facebook? or you tube. every thumb up would actually be worth something.
Good point. I think as we grow that will actually be the case. My clicks are already worth more than 1c. Soon I'll be able to hit the 2c minimum payout all by myself. Then, everything I touch turns to gold! Well, copper.
To make it on Steemit you need at least 3 of the following 5 things:
a) initial investment
b) talent
c) significant effort
d) lots of time
e) initial following
I'm coming in with NONE of E, only a little of A and B, so I'm looking at putting in significant effort and/or a lot of time.
Upvoted you : )
Have you gotten active in discord? I have struggled to get my account where it is because I ignored discord for a long time. I don't like chat rooms, too hectic! But I finally made myself get in there, and I think you can shave some time off your plan by investing a bit of time and energy over there.
Thank you for the suggestion! You're probably right. I've had trouble with the Discord program itself. It seems unnecessarily complex. I don't see what the potential uses of it are. What makes it better than other programs? How will chatting make me Steem? If the idea is to advertise my page or posts there, I dunno, I would rather they spread through word of mouth than by me plugging the link anywhere people will listen. I'm probably missing the whole idea of Discord though... I've been hoping somebody will fill me in on what's so special about it : )
OK, let me take a swing at it, although I am not great at it. That is where the real networking goes on. Have you noticed how rare real conversations are in the comments? And yet everyone talks about these great connections they are making. It is because they are in discord WHILE they are on steemit. They listen to the audio shows, or they just chat with people in the groups they have joined. It is where you pick up FOLLOWERS. That is the magic ingredient in your steemit pie. With no followers, no one sees you stuff to even think about upvoting it. There are resteem services and bots, but the truly engaged followers are made in those chat rooms.
And here is the latest trick this old dog learned: Sign up for @ginabot. She sits there in discord and tells you EVERYTHING that happens on steemit. I am more on top of my replies and mentions and such than I even know how to be without it. That bot can find things I would miss, and knows more about me than I do as far as who is upvoting and mentioning me in their posts.
And now for my twisted humor. I know everyone calls her "Gee-nuh bot" I call her "Gynabot" because she is so far up my... ahem!
But it really has made "networking" possible for me, and I have struggled with that.
Thought I'd come over to your blog and say "hello" @drutter. ;)
Nice analysis. I am confident you will reach your goal in a year. It does happen quicker with higher numbers of followers...so work on growing your followers (a friendly piece of advice from another Canadian).
I've invested some my self yet unless I continue to do so I dont get enough time online to grow that fast, I haven't had the time to do the math but I'm fairly sure that STEEM is by far the most stable crypto right now, I feel we fluxed least when bitcoin took its hit & that shows we definitely have tbe potential to break double digits in 2018. With the surge in registration as well 2018 shows nothing but fortune.
I'm thinking you could pull it off in 2.8 years If you can reach the point where 60% votes become profitable for you by next year. I belwive you can do it...I'm still looking at 4-6 years I'll be close to where you are now at my current pace.
Upvoted! Also resteemed it, because our awesome followers would appreciate something like this. Thanks!
Very cool! Everybody could estimate how long it will take them to reach their goal, if they have one. I don't have an initial investment so I'm just here for the hempalicious long haul!
Hey, @drutter. I love your canna-work (just saw)! THANK YOU!
In light of the Good Work you do, why isn’t it appropriate to also pay yourself — first, and every time?
There’s a weird virtue on Steemit that infers self-upvoting is not cool. If the content is solid — and ESPECIALLY if it’s of service to others — I will absolutely pay myself if, as nothing else, a sign of respect for my own time and energy.
I’m all in for the canna-cause, too. And the abundance I’ve learned from her her has taught me I don’t need to be a Steem martyr.
I spend hours on research and creation. I try and create the most beautiful or engaging or uplifting content that I can. And it is a sign of health that I’d look to care for myself at least as well as I care for others.
I SEE THE CARE YOU LOAD INTO YOUR POSTS (have just seen 2 here, and 1 on YouTube). Please consider paying yourself! Every time you know you have given value, pay yourself.
Am I savage? What am I missing in thinking that “I don’t self-upvote” should only apply to posts a creator knows is crap (in which case shouldn’t be published to begin with!)
It seems to me a posture of “Look at me looking out for the community. I’m so humanitarian and philanthropic. Never mind that I am in need of money myself, and have just spent half a day preparing this post to the best of my ability. No. I won’t pat myself on the back with an upvote that I actually need. Here, you have it.”
Not seeing the wisdom in that.
But perhaps I have a blind-spot?
Finally, your number crunching is outstanding! I wish I had a fraction of that kind of analytical ability.
"why isn’t it appropriate to also pay yourself — first, and every time?"
Because if that's how Steemit was intended to work, it would have been programmed that way. It's an option because it's optional.
The onus is on you to prove your position (one should upvote every post one makes) is the correct one. I see nothing in your large post to advance that position.
Therefore I'll continue to treat self-upvoting as an option, and likely continue to utilize that option sparingly. I advocate others also do what they think is right. You are not savage.
But of course, all that is completely off-topic here. : )
Thanks for your compliment!
(1) I said every post that adds value.
(2) My position actually comes from YOUR stated goal, @drutter, which is: