I'll admit it. When I hear people say, "Steemit only needs a few celebrities to show up, then they will bring a huge following and the platform will be a success," I take that shot straight to the balls.
What I imagine when someone says that famous line is something like every talented blogger here, lined up, smiling. Then someone comes along, full sprint, hand out, slapping everyone on the face as they run by.
You'll never be good enough. We need someone better. Someone who's better by default.
No
I'm not some big shot A-list personality. I don't even claim to be a D-lister. To be honest, there's a chance I could be on your shit list. That doesn't matter.
Who in the hell was Pewdiepie before Pewdiepie was Pewdiepie? Think about it.
Majority of the popular talented individuals on Youtube started out as virtual nobody's. They used the platform, they worked hard producing content everyday, and they were embraced by the community. That community didn't brush them aside while they waited for Joe Rogan's podcast and then finally start embracing the small pockets of true talent here and there. The community helped push them to the top right out of the gate.
We don't need Michio Kaku to come here and start blogging about theoretical physics before we can find success talking about string theory.
We don't need Alex Jones to come here and start screaming World War Three at the top of his lungs before we can find success at building hats made out of tinfoil.
We don't need Stephen King to come here and start writing books before we can find success as authors.
We don't need Emeril Lagasse to come here and say, "Bam," before we can find success blogging about food.
Get the point?
That's Madness
I didn't need Banksy to come here before I could be successful blogging with art.
I didn't need Bill Burr to come along and curse his head off before I was able to find success with a few comedy bits.
How many great bloggers, authors, musicians, artists and photographers have come and gone because the community felt like kicking them to the curb. How many times have people started to follow the money here and give up on the talent they could be bringing to the table.
That guy got paid for making a meme? I've been working my ass off. I'll make a meme too. Why am I not getting paid for my meme? I quit!
The people with enough talent and know-how to help build this platform one blogger at a time. The people who produce content some people might want to see. They are far more important than the fifty daily articles about a certain currency hitting a certain value or the other fifty daily articles about how great Steemit is. Those articles might look like advertisements to the general online content consumers.
What do we do when the ads come on TV? Fast forward, leave the room, take a poop, get some popcorn for the real show. When our service provider brags up the benefits of their latest, greatest offer... do we cheer?
Do you cheer when the announcer of a sporting event mentions who sponsored the next five minutes of the show? Think about these things.
It's Not About Writing Words, Sharing Pictures and Getting Paid
This is a place where the independent artists of all walks of life can finally say, "I don't need you anymore Mr. Middleman, and I don't need to meet your personal standards, Boss. I don't need to go into debt to pay for an education just to prove to you that I can write or paint either, I can just go ahead and do it."
That crucial element seems to be left out or ignored. This place is groundbreaking.
Personally, I've found success here. I'll spend hours producing the content I'd like to provide to my following. I'll spend more time attempting to push my old work out into the world as an advertisement for both this blog and the service provider. I've had success with that as well. I'm not creating promotions separately. What I do is enough to engage the audience I seek. That's how this business works.
I'm not saying all of this to promote me though. I stand tall and speak loudly for all artists and bloggers here. I don't mind being straight up and honest with everyone. I have no need to sell you snake oil. I'm good at what I do, because I'm good at what I do... and I'm not the only one. Please pay attention.
You don't know what you got until it's gone. ...and I'm sick of seeing them leave.
