I Made $700 With My First Post and $0.06 With My Third - Steemit: A Lesson in Free Market Economics
When I first found out about Steemit through Amanda Rachwitz (check out her blog!) I was equal parts excited and skeptical about the whole thing. Then I made my first post and after 24 hours I was a believer. The post earned $715 dollars. I had never seen that kind of money from only an hour of work.
Just look at that happy capitalist! Look at how full of glee he is with his top hat, big collar, tailored suit and bundles of cash. That's how I felt.
My second post was a moderate success. Nothing that any accomplished Steem user would write home about, but I was still happy with another $40 after putting minimal effort into some web content.
When I made my third blog entry my confidence was slightly shaken. I had put far more effort into this post than my first two. I spent a lot of time curating a sample of images, GIFs and and videos from my animated work and wrote an article that I was relatively proud of. But after all that work, this is what I had to show for it:
Empty pockets. Like this poor, scrawny orphan boy... I had only made a few cents.
So What Does This Mean?
It means that effort is worthless. Let me repeat that in large, bold font so that the message isn't lost...
Effort is worthless.
...at least as far as the market is concerned. The free market doesn't care about how much work I put into a project. If there is no demand for the final product, it will have no value. This is what I found out the hard way.
Work has no objective value. My efforts will not be worth anything if I'm not creating something that people want or need.
But I'm not complaining. Without an outside force manipulating the market, value will always be subjective and it will be determined by those engaging with the market. And any of you who have followed my blog entries will know by now that I am not a fan of force, coercion, manipulation, especially in its most popular form - "government." So let's let the market do it's thing.
So What Can I Do?
Artists don't just have a passion to create, they want their creations to be seen. I want my work to be seen and enjoyed by a wide audience not just because I want the money, but because I want to fulfill my artistic passion.
There is no foolproof way to make it in the market. I am not a "whale". I am not some great success story. I don't have "10 tips to make it big on Steem."
However, I do know one simple simple guideline: Find a place where your great passion meets the world's great need. You don't need to sacrifice or compromise your goals and your passions in order to make a buck. You just need to learn how your passions can address something that the world is lacking and willing to value and consume.
I'm gonna end this post with a picture of what you might achieve if you're able to find that sweet spot.
But it can be more than just money. It's fulfillment. Just remember to find a place where your great passion meets the world's great need.
Cheers!
~Seth
All artwork was made by me for the sole purpose of this Steemit post.
What would you say to someone who has yet to figure out what the great need is?
I have a lot of passions. My plan was to just write as me. Write about the things I love to talk about. I figure that eventually I will find my niche and whittle down my topics to better suit the market.
This approach may mean I have a mish-mash of content at first, but that's fine because it reflects who I am. What are your thoughts?
I would say that I'm actually in a similar position. I'm just working hard and throwing my passion at the walls to see what sticks. I'm also trying to utilize my multiple passions in each post to kind of morph them together into one unique voice.
I would say, don't lose those things that reflect who you are. Some might recommend against it, but I don't think there's any harm in having a mish-mash of content. This way you might be reaching into a lot a different niches and if you stick with it eventually I'm sure you'll find what people respond to more strongly.
👍amazing post, great @sethlinson
A similar philosophy to my own. :)
Followed. I look forward to more
Followed back. I'm excited to see what kind of content you end up putting out.
So... How did this post of yours get past $700?
@cryptocurrency1
Beats me. I can't believe how well this is doing. But now it's been flagged twice which brought it's value way down... but it's still an incredible amount.
YAY Free cash :-)
It is really interesting how similarly I feel. I am trying to find my voice and meanwhile I realize how broad and how colorful my interests are.
Before coming to steemit I thought I got pretty narrow minded and I have only one interests. This journey together is really encouraging guys! I really appreciate all of you!
You've got it backwards. Don't look for where the need is first. Look at what YOU enjoy doing and find how you can incorporate that into the needs of the ecosystem.
Build an art form around that marriage.
I don't think I said that one has to come before the other. If I did communicate that, it was unintentional. I agree with you that we should begin with what we enjoy and then find how that can suit the needs of a community.
That's essentially my approach as well. I've spent a couple of years now learning how expectations can really get me down. I've pretty much learned to let go of expectations and just have fun with what I share. It's kind of a shame that for so many years I didn't share things because I was afraid people wouldn't like it. That was kinda silly but real for me. Confidence is tricky business! LOL
It can be really hard not to let expectations get you down. I fall victim to that kind of depression more often than I would care to admit. I'm glad to hear that you've learned to let go!
In other phases of business I have been taught to go with what you know best so that will be my approach. Thanks for reminding me of this.
ah the joys of having the Subjective Theory of Value proven empirically as well as logically!
followed back
Quite right. And you are now qualified to teach economics to communists (who still believe in the "labor value" BS). That's what the mean old "free market" is good at: giving people an incentive to PLEASE other people. If they don't like what you're producing, they give you nothing. It's an almost immediate "correction mechanism," so that even the most greedy, selfish bastard (NOT talking about you here), in a free society, can only enrich HIMSELF by enriching OTHERS. And that's a beautiful thing.
I'm sure the communists would consider me a "greedy selfish bastard" for seeking profit and rejoicing in gain haha.
Thanks for elaborating on my point. You say things much more clearly than I am often able to.
these ridiculous downvotes needs to stop.
I agree, considering that they lost me over $600 haha.
I was a little annoyed that smooth downvoted me with both of his incredibly powerful accounts (that almost seems spiteful, no?). That pretty much killed this post and cut my potential earnings down by over 50%. I guess I can't be too irked though. I'll still be seeing an incredible return for just a few hours of work.
Im also an artist who just joined steemit, thanks for the advice. I feel as an creator sometimes its hard not to bunker in your own thoughts and miss the mark. Also finding what does well with one audience wont do well with another and shall be experimenting accordingly. But this is the cool thing with steemit, it challenges the artist to new thinking and adding a spot of anarchy to your mindset. Which should lead to initial disappointments but result in more fresh and adaptive creations.
Just checked out your third blog post. And you are right - it's good. Not a big fan of your graphic style (sorry!), but I see the ideas and thoughts you've put into the animation and they are great! Amount of work is huge. I really enjoyed the video and extras :) Thanks for sharing them. And keep it up.
It doesn't matter how many votes your post has - it's still good.
Little fan art from me :)
Thanks for the fan art and expressing your appreciation even though my work isn't your thing. It means a lot to me.
Awesome drawings! I really enjoyed reading. Yea, sometimes, it isn't all about effort, sometimes it is just luck that people find my stuff interesting.
Luck is a big thing. And on this site you pretty much need the stroke of luck of catching a whale, otherwise your post will go nowhere.
Agreed!
Seth, i enjoyed the post. Best wishes
Thanks!
Looks like with this post you get more than 40$ hahahaha
Krass