Should I be ashamed?

I was just reading a post by @nonameslefttouse that is a very interesting read concerning bidbots, promotion and organic support that most people could likely benefit from. Earnings are obviously a big component of the platform and a key component to any success for Steem as a content rewarding platform ad therefore will always be a subject of relevance. My question today is, should I be ashamed for earning here?

Pulling a quote from the man himself:

Ever since about the time I earned my first 10k in Steem Power here, I've been noticing how people change their attitudes towards me. It seems once one reaches a certain point, many start looking down on you. You get called names. People think it's impossible to do well here and if you did, it must be due to foul play. No matter what you do, how hard you work, how much you give back; people will eventually start to despise you.

Am I despised for having earned here? Do people make the assumption that I have made backroom deals to vote trade, dropped links begging for support, done something untoward to have earned the 25.236 Steem in my wallet?

If so, that tell more about you than it does me.

We live in a world where financial success tends to come with the assumption of underhanded actions to have it, unfair advantage, lying, cheating, stealing. To be financially successful is admission of guilt to the willingness to crush others down in a greed-fuelled process of maximization of the self. Although there are plenty of cases where this is true, it just isn't true in all cases and to assume such points toward a lack of understanding of how this world can work.

No one seems to say that it isn't fair that Jordan earned for being able to dunk a basketball or have a 36 inch vertical leap, no one cared that Beckham earned by being able to curl a soccer ball into the corner of the net. People do not make claims that a sports star sucked a dick to get a spot on the team, the assumption is that it was their talent and dedication that got them there, their training, experience and above all else, their consistency to produce time and time again.

Transfer that to earning directly and all of that goes out the window, talent, practice, training, knowledge, dedication has no part in financial success; and on Steem, it is all just a circle jerk. The idea that there is no way to earn here organically is complete and utter bullshit. If you hold such thought, let them go because you are wrong and it is only doing you harm.

Yes, I have met people, made friends, chatted, been recommended, had my work dropped in chats and have been lucky to get some of the support that I have received but, if one thinks that this is not organic, you are again mistaken. This is how a community should work, based on relationships formed, conversations had, talent, word of mouth and support for those who consistently show they are worthy of support.

What is worthy? I do not know. I do what I do and support comes or it doesn't. I have done what I have done for a very long time now and on Steem I have done it for zero reward, 1 dollar and 100 dollars. I have had times where the support has been non-existent for months and months where I feel spoiled but, here I am each day, doing what I do as well as I can do it in any given moment.

Should I be embarrassed for being rewarded by the community? Should I forgo payment on posts that people tend to generally relate with and use to build their own positions so that others who are inconsistent and unwilling to develop a well-rounded approach, unwilling to engage or learn how this complicated platform works can earn a few cents more? So those who have constant powerdowns running can extract a little more for their own needs?

Am I financial success? Hell no. I am in debt. I have been in debt a long time and the last years have been incredibly hard on my family but, there is a chance here for me. Finally. A chance where I have a place where I am able to use the skills I possess to not only earn but actually help people in some way develop their own future. In January I will have been on Steem for 2 years and I am still yet to use a Steem for something personal. Not one.

It might be the stupidest hail Mary attempt in hindsight but I have a vision for Steem and for myself and family where things are better for many. It is risky but what I lose if it fails is a massive amount of time I could have spent doing something else, spent with my wife and daughter, spent watching TV, drinking with friends, living a life.

There is an opportunity cost to every action and my approach comes with a very heavy time investment both from a content creation perspective and the social interaction. I spend a great deal of time in the comments sections and, a fair amount of time trying to learn how certain aspects of the platform work and trying to present them for community benefit. It is hard to put numbers on these areas, but I think I have generated a fair amount of value for the platform across several areas. But, no one is asked nor ever forced to throw a vote my way.

What bugs me about the platform is that those who believe that it is impossible to succeed her without being an asshole either haven't truly tried or, are assholes themselves who's first action is to find a shortcut to earning and when they don't get the results that way, assume that those who have managed to earn just have better cheats enabled. They look at the size of a wallet or the pending payout on a post but do not observe the pipeline that led there.

Pipelines will be another post but what people tend to discount is that behind the words of the people who have organically made it here is something that some lack, experience. Couple that with other aspects such as writing and presentation ability, willingness to experiment, learn, adapt and actually get to know people on and off the platform and there is a high chance of getting organic support. Assuming that one can just show up, post and earn without consideration of the environment at all is only possible for those who are incredibly lucky or, buy votes.

I have spoken about it before but I a have always had an aversion to what would be considered success, I have minimized myself and reduced effort at times to stay out of the spotlight, to fly under the radar. When it came to attention seeking, I threw the game so that eyes wouldn't fall on me. I don't want my daughter to be the same if she has talents, I want her to give all of herself to the world in which she inhabits, to not hold herself or skills back. Should she be punished if she manages success, should she be ashamed if she earns, should she hide her accomplishments?

Even if she winds up curing cancer, solving energy problems, writing the next great novel? Should she go unrewarded if people see value in what she does?

@nonameslefttouse's post has made me question my position here as I often do except from a different perspective than normally. I have worked very hard to get to where I am on this platform yet still feel embarrassed if I have a post that earns 80 dollars while someone like Joeparys has 1800 dollars of bought votes coming out of the pool for a position in trending to tell people success is buying votes, Haejin self-votes 3000+ a week on posts no one reads or pinkspectre has 2000 coming on 70 dollar posts with 1 comment on each while it all goes out to Bittrex. Should I be ashamed?

At times, the level of entitlement at Steem fills me with dismay because there is an opportunity for people to really explore their talents and be part of a community whilst being rewarded for it but, so few are willing to actually explore. So few are willing to find a way to connect their unique skills and experience with the audience but they damn well want rewards. It is like creating a restaurant with food no one wants to eat and then expecting people to keep coming in and paying for the meal whilst complaining that the restaurant next door's food is too good.

This entire platform and the concepts of decentralized communities is about taking responsibility for experience, no matter the environment and, the consequences that come with it. You will never know the price I have paid to be here, you will never know what it will mean to me if this survives and becomes a place many people will want to play. Rather than cutting down those who truly are successful here to make yourself feel better, try learning from them instead.

The answer will be the same for all. Learning, work, experience, consistency and time. But, what do I know as I should just be ashamed of myself I guess.

Taraz
[ a Steem original ]