First off, please be kind to yourself. :)

Your the low man on the totem pole because you are one of the newest stewards. Most of the others have a huge head start. So don't worry about them. As long as your account is growing, that is what matters most.

I'm glad you are asking the questions. I hope this helps. If steemd shows that your vote power is 100%, then it is time to do some voting. Your assessment is correct. It actually works out to 12, 100% upvotes per day or a fraction of that. Anything more than that is not sustainable as your steem power cannot recharge fast enough. However, if you're going to be away for a few days, then vote even more so that it continues to charge while you are gone.

The 6DBD contest sounds wonderful. More than enough. Just make sure your posts generate the steem or SBD for the give away. That way it does not 'cost' you to run the contests.

Delegating steem has no bearing on your steem power. You are just getting started, so you are not in a position to delegate that much anyway. I would hold onto it and focus on building up your account and then you can explore paying it forward.

Does this help you? I'm glad to hear from you and grateful that you had the courage to ask those questions. I hope it helps you and others who are struggling with the same issues. Peace to you my dear brother!