I'm just about to receive my payout from my #introduceyourself post, which means I have been active on Steemit for a week now; I signed up in November, but didn't post anything until December 23. I thought it would be nice to take this opportunity to reflect on why I joined Steemit and how it's going for me so far.
I joined Steemit on the recommendation of a couple of friends who don't use the website themselves, but know about it and recognised that I could achieve success on the platform with my skills as a writer. Over the last 3 years, I have shared detailed accounts of my extensive travels with my friends on Facebook, with the goal of providing entertaining stories, educating people about the world, and inspiring more people to be curious and discover a world larger than their own bubble.
My stories on Facebook have always been incredibly well received, and I have received encouragement from countless friends, who tell me that reading my stories is a highlight of their day, that I should write a book or somehow try to present my writing to a larger audience. A common refrain is that my writing is a talent that I should monetise. Just today, I had a friend message me and tell me:
I love reading about your experiences, they almost start to feel like my own!
But I've always been reluctant to take my prose outside of the safe confines of my circle of friends.
I joined Steemit for two reasons. Firstly, to get my story out to a wider audience, to spread my message of positivity as far and wide as possible. Secondly, to be rewarded for my content. There comes a point in every traveller's journey when the funds run dry. For me, that point is approaching very quickly. So I joined Steemit out of a need.
Well, it has been more of a grind than I had expected. My first introduction to Steemit was a friend showing me the Trending page, which gave me a skewed view of how much of an audience I would have from the outset. I was seeing posts worth $40, $50, $100, and thought that I would have that kind of visibility overnight.
Obviously, that's not the case. However there have been encouraging signs. When I see the success that people like 
I am incredibly confident in my content, and I know that with perseverance, I can build a significant standing on Steemit. If I continue tweaking and improving my content for a different audience (200,000 strangers rather than 2000 friends), and continue to participate in the various projects on the platform, it's only a matter of when, not if, it becomes a viable platform for me.
Already in my first week, I have made some decent progress. My posts have only earned me about $20 so far (which is a terrible hourly rate), however I have gained 65 followers (after a big spike last night) and improved my reputation to 41. Edit: $20 Steem is actually about US$140 - so not too bad at all! I have also received various endorsements from some experienced and respected Steemians. For example:
@mikepm74's Fresh Five for December 23.
@photocontests' Vehicle Photography Contest.
@steemitworldmap's Travel Digest #80.I have experienced wonderful support from Steemit members old and new, and I'd like to make a special shout out to 
Shout outs also to 
Overall, I am happy with my development on the platform in my first week, and I am excited to see how much further I can progress. I am hoping to use my payout from my #introduceyourself post to join 
