What if...?
One of the little thought bubbles I throw around with the guys I started @hitheryon with - @voronoi, @erb, @arete - is “could you imagine if Steemit existed when we graduated?” For those who haven’t read our previous stories and posts, the 4 of us moved to Berlin right after college and tried every which way to survive and create what we wanted to create. It was a daily battle to find and make opportunities that would allow us to stay motivated and simply alive. Without a rewarding outlet or reliable community to rely on, each moment was difficult and uncertain.
The reason I bring this up is because of my constant disbelief that we exist in a world where blockchain environments and token economies exist. Even with my current work with @sndbox, it’s an absolute miracle that I’m able to monetize the work that I actually want to do and with a bit of finesse, I could feasibly craft a lifelong career with this type of foundation.
And for those of us well into our adulthoods, can you imagine what it would have been like if Steemit existed when we were younger? Maybe during our early-mid 20s, when we had to scramble for entry-level work wherever we could find it? Maybe during college, when we had to take part-time work to pay off growing loan-debt or a decent dinner date? Maybe during high-school when your sports team needed brand-new jerseys or your club wanted to raise money for a trip? No matter the age, we can all remember times when it would have been a complete godsend to be able to raise money and build communities by focusing completely on ambition at hand.
This is why I have always viewed Steemit as a lemonade stand, a tool to put in a bit of effort that would directly pay off. Sure, you could treat the platform lightly as any other social-media website or app. But again, think about what you would have used this technology for when you really needed it in the past. I’m eager to see how this tool will transform as we navigate through life - what activities and opportunities it will create, where it will allow people to go, and most of all, the type of personality that will be cultured through long-term commitment.
A few members of Steemit have already been using this platform like a lemonade stand. Prominent KR members @leesunmoo and @sochul invested in the platform early on and upvote their young children when they make meaningful posts. There are even great older posts by @leesunmoo who told his college-aged son to post in order to raise money to travel. It’s an allowance that younger members can really earn.
I also see great young users that I respect such as @gringalicious who are fully committed and unwavering in terms of their content. Most adults (myself included) wane in intensity and enthusiasm when other events come up or the price of Steep wanes a bit. But even amongst younger generations, we see a real bootstrapping ethic that’s hard not to fully admire.
What’s incredible about the way cryptocurrency is earned on this platform is that it’s self-investment. It isn’t a weekly paycheck that’s earned to be spent. It isn’t a small stack of bills that will eventually run out depending on how you use it. It is an investment that will continue to grow with your commitment and already is a feasible footing for you to pursue real ambitions regardless of age or stage in life.
Steemians could feasibly fundraise for the boy/girl-scouts with this platform. We could pay our way through college. We could start businesses soon after high school. We could travel and learn perpetually. We can set up interest and community groups. We could do so much more as this technology matures and becomes adopted.
The part of ‘traditional’ social-media that I’ve always despised (even more so than the fact that it doesn’t pay) is that it makes us lazy. It discourages us from making new friendships or providing meaningful, unique information. It patronizes us, providing cheap ‘likes’ for baby photos (because you would have to be a monster to not ‘like’ your friend’s baby photos), selfies, hollow soundbites from Buzzfeed, the latest Kanye West tweet or Swift scandal, and no much other meaningless dribble. It’s no surprise that we see so little of that on Steemit.
I explain to all my friends and colleagues that Steemit is a lemonade stand. Use it to learn how to be independent, entrepreneurial, social, introspective, proactive, inquisitive, fearless in the face of a completely new technology or system, and confident. Mix together the damn sweetest batch of lemonade you can and hustle your way through the platform. Ultimately, it’s completely on you to sell what you’ve made and very few will give you pity upvotes.
If you’ve been on Steemit since earlier this year, you probably know full well how to keep churning out that lemonade as the crypto market avalanches on us with lemons galore. The future is uncertain, no doubt, but I believe it’s that very uncertainty that is nurturing in us a communal resiliency that will have us winning in the end.
Steem on!
