Everyone has a story – and all our stories have something in common… we all started from nothing and knew nothing. People want to hear stories. They want to hear OUR stories — they want to know who we are, where we are from, what we are doing, who and what we love, what we have learnt and where we are going. People also want us to hear their story! Being a part of the Steem network is an individual journey for every single one of us and through this initiative we will share our stories not only with all who are already here – hopefully inspiring, guiding and informing them… but doing the same for everyone else in the world too. Through our stories we will prick the curiosity of those who have not yet arrived and illuminate and widen the already open doors to our one in a million blockchain.

Where my Steem Journey began

Although I have shared various aspects of this story a few times, it simply never gets old and I don’t get tired of reminiscing haha! My Steem journey began in June 2017, so I am soon approaching the three year mark – and damn what a ride it has been! Back then, I was blogging in between running my design and print business – but my (back of mind) intention from the get go was to move into blogging full time and Steem seemed like the perfect network to marry with that vision, so I began sharing my content here too. Despite being quite the social media addict everywhere else, I really had no idea what I was doing when I arrived here – in fact, I was such a royal dumbass that I actually did the one thing I was first instructed NOT to do… and that was I lost my password haha! Well, I didn’t actually lose it, but I attempted to change it right at the beginning… and I obviously didn’t copy it properly or something because it simply didn’t work after that lol – so my original account is still floating around and I had to begin a new one – hence Steem is the one place where I am “jaynie” and not “jaynielea” as many of you will know me elsewhere.

I can remember the feeling of excitement as I began sharing my content here, earning a couple of Steem cents here and there… even though I had no idea what that meant or what and how I would actually put it into any practical use – it was still incredibly exciting! Back then, there were a lot less “creatives” and “general bloggers” within the network… it was still very much dominated by crypto brains and enthusiasts so I did feel a little bit like a fish out of water – but I continued to share my stories and experiences and I very quickly began to connect with individuals who clearly identified with the things I wrote about. One of the things that sticks out most in my memory is that people genuinely took the time to give relevant, thoughtful and constructive feedback on posts (excl. the spam comments though… thankfully those have gone for the most part haha). This was completely new to me and VERY REWARDING because you have to be a really “high flyer” in the external blogging world if you want to achieve those levels of post engagement and that was probably one of the first things that encouraged me to stick around and learn more about how this place actually ticked…

My initial challenges & how I overcame them

I suppose the two primary things that I had to wrap my head around at the beginning were: Learning the wallet breakdown and the various facets of Steem / SBD currencies and then, probably the process of learning markdown.

Starting with the first of the two – the wallet. Damn was that sh!t confusing to me in the beginning lol – I really didn’t know my arse from my face when it came to the liquid Steem in my wallet, my steem power, my steem backed dollars, savings, my account value etc. It was incredibly overwhelming so to be honest, I somewhat just “let it go” in the beginning instead of tearing my hair out trying to grasp it all from the get go. I figured that whatever it all meant – it was slowly accumulating and that could not have been a bad thing haha! As time unfolded, I read peoples blogs – learned little bits at a time through reading others discussions, I asked questions and also exhausted Youtube and Google when I had moments of determination for clarity haha! I know there are many people out there right now who can probably relate to the “where is the Dummy’s guide” feeling I had in the beginning – but I can promise you this… you WILL grasp it eventually and once you do – you will realise that it actually isn’t very complicated at all. Besides… there are many amazing people around to help you along your way. Something that I didn’t have at my disposal back then, was the Steem Terminal Server which is a discord community of individuals who are solely geared at helping new people on the platform - no matter what the confusion or question!) You guys and gals are lucky… us “old folk” had to learnt the hard way haha!

The second learning obstacle for me was markdown. As a graphic designer by trade, I was doing my NUT in with the lack of aesthetically pleasing structure, layout and flow on my posts and it took me quite a bit of scouring before I discovered that what I was supposed to be using was this foreign (to me) thing called markdown! The day I discovered it… was indeed a VERY HAPPY day for my OCD design heart lol! Suddenly my posts didn’t look like a dogs breakfast anymore! Not on my list of challenges, but I figure I will add this in here now anyway as it is closely related – for those that do not have the creative ability, knowhow or the time to create really nice header images for their posts… try Canva – you can thank me later, lol!

Something that is not “Steem” itself but is closely related to Steem which I also had to educate myself on in the beginning was Discord… because let’s face it – if you are on Steem but not on discord, then you are doing it wrong. There are SO MANY STEEM COMMUNITIES which you would be missing out on if you are not active on discord. So, download it, and familiarise yourself with it and I promise you… you will look back in six months and wonder how you ever survived without it haha!

My Steem blockchain knowledge

What knowledge?! HAHAHAHAHA!!! Yeah, I laugh – but what I know (even after almost three years) compared to others is probably still scary stuff hehe! I am a creative – I made a career out of producing aesthetically pleasing visuals – you get where I am going with this yet?! My Steem blockchain knowledge when I got here was less than nothing but much like everything else on Steem that can prove confusing at the beginning – you learn in stages. Cut yourself some slack – Rome wasn’t built in a day and really speaking there is no need for anyone to understand everything overnight. I am still learning and as this is an ever evolving space, I have no doubt that I will continue to learn and continue to be behind many others haha – I have different strengths around here mkay! Lol! Perhaps this will offer as comfort to you if you are feeling anything similar, hehehe! I don’t think I will ever FULLY grasp the really intricate and technical aspects of it all – and I am ok with that.

However, having said that – and having simultaneously made myself sound like a complete moron in most of the above lol, I will say that I know enough now to know that I absolutely love the Steem blockchain, everything it stands for and where it is going.

My Steem favourites

I have actually delved a little bit into most aspects of the Steem blockchain since I joined. I tried my hand at podcasts on Dsound, I dabbled in a few vlogs on Dtube but have not done any vlogging since threespeak joined the Steem network. The only thing I haven’t really explored is the gaming side of things with the likes of Splinterlands and Holybread... But through the exploration of the above, I have always found myself gravitating back to traditional blogging and the “written word”.

As for my content, I suppose I am a little bit of a mixed bag really – although I suppose, much like the tag line which I quite like to use for myself, my blog is pretty much ”food for the body and the soul” as I publish a combination of mostly my culinary adventures and motivational/inspirational content which generally pertains to my own life experiences. I suppose each genre facilitates one of my two Gemini twins lol – I am good with that, but I am not sure if she is ;)

As for the “how” I choose to publish my blog content – I have tried and tested ALL the available front ends and for me… the hands down winner is Steempeak! I will go as far as to say that even despite other front ends having actual mobile apps developed for them – when I do post from my phone (which is only in desperate situations) I STILL choose Steempeak! In my opinion, it is STREAKS ahead of the other front ends available to Steem bloggers in terms functionality and aesthetics and it is also host to an array of useful built in extras, such as multiple account login, favourite users, favourite topics, access to tribes, wallet access etc.

My golden nugget advice

I think that each and every one of our Steem journeys is completely unique but with an underlying common thread – so there will no doubt be some unique gems of advice surfacing from different people, with a few parallel things with which we all share common sentiment. From me to you – I would say the following:

Be patient with yourself as you learn along the way. For many of you, as it was for many of us – Steem is an entirely new amusement park to explore – don’t push yourself to a point of frustration in the process of trying to learn – everything will become clearer bit by bit and everyone learns at their own pace. Make use of the resources which are out there to assist you along this new adventure and ENJOY the process of learning.

FORGET about the earnings! Yes, FORGET about it! If that is the reason you are here, then leave now because your enthusiasm will dry out long before your wallet has anything in it worth mentioning. Trust me when I tell you that you will find an abundance of wealth here – but it is a very different kind of wealth, one which is worth much more than your wallet ever could be – and that is the Steem community.

Speaking of the Steem community – EMBRACE it! Take the time to get to know individuals with whom you share common interests and have fun connecting with others who don’t – you will learn something from everyone here and before you know it, you will look back and you won’t be able to remember a time when the people of Steem were NOT a part of your everyday experience.

It doesn’t matter where you go on the internet, there are always going to be those individuals who try to ruffle your feathers… the Steem network has those people too – ignore them! Don’t get involved in the “politics” of things if you can help it… it WILL infuriate you because there is “money and status involved” and when those two ingredients are present – there is always someone “BIGGER” who can really make your experience here a very unpleasant one. Go about your business, enjoy your blog, vlog or whatever it is that you choose to delve into on Steem and let that be that.

Time is a valuable commodity - be sure to appreciate and reciprocate with those that give of theirs to you in terms of engagement on your posts or in any other way. The connections and friendships which your form in this space hold the same value as those you have offline, remember to treat them accordingly. Have respect for your own time too, by taking pride in the content which you produce. Give it the thought it deserves and be mindful of the detail because your blog is your own personal representation. Don’t publish rubbish for the sake of a few votes – you will ultimately be wasting your time because people shall soon grow tired of supporting a blog feed that repeatedly offers little to no substance.

Last but definitely not least… HAVE FUN with your time here! Don’t let people tell you how your journey should unfold – it is YOURS to explore and enjoy, not theirs!

My Steem hood & its peeps

Well, as many here already know – I am the founder of the Power House Creatives community. We kicked off in October 2017 and were known then as the @steemitbloggers and have been going strong ever since! So, it is without question then that this is the space I frequent the most and is filled with all my favourite peeps! Essentially, we are a Steem community that gathers on Discord. We are strongly focused on embracing members who are dedicated to producing content which truly adds value to the Steem blockchain… We are currently 120 members from approx. 30 countries around the world. We are a VERY active and INVOLVED community, so yes, we are a little fussy as to who we open our doors to because we require more from you as a Steem user than other servers may – but 90% of our members have been with us since I founded the community so I can promise you that once you walk in you won’t want to leave! Unless of course you are full of horse sh!t haha – in which case you can see yourself out or I will gladly show you the door, lol!

Aside from our fantabulous community and people, a couple of other awesome servers to join include Innerblocks which was founded by @freedomtowrite and @freedompoint and The Ramble which is the brainchild of @shadowspub.

The people you follow determine your overall experience here so I am pretty selective as to my favourites. I can quite confidently say that ALL of the content you will find from our members on our @steemitbloggers feed is worth a read and those individuals are all worthy of a follow. A couple of the non-phc blogs which I really enjoy following are as follows - and in the words of my recently published post Who do I Follow on Steem & Why?

@meesterboom

I don’t think there are many people around here that have not yet been privy to this man’s completely one of a kind approach to finding the humour in all things “life”. I began following @meesterboom shortly after joining Steem and I can vividly recall asking if he was South African, as his username made me think it was possible… but instead I discovered that he was a Scotsman with a great love for beer and wit! I can say without hesitation that I have NEVER read a boring blog post from meesterboom… in fact, there have been many days where I have been feeling less than chipper and have completely shifted gears after getting a good giggle from one of his posts. Not only is his blog a laugh a line, but I have also discovered that beyond the humour is a man who always does his level best to keep the mood pleasant. This is probably most noticeable to those that are on the Steem telegram group where pretty much 24 hours a day you will find meesterboom cheerfully engaging, sometimes with the most hostile of individuals lol. It is an admirable trait (which many of us lack) and he is one hell of a guy! My feed would be poorer without his candid humour.

@slobberchops

I absolutely LOVE this mans blog! Between his “urban explorer” series and his “true stories” initiative his blog is jam packed with awesomeness, and although I have followed him for quite a long time – strangely enough it is only recently that I have started to see his content popping up on my feed… perhaps because there are a lot less people posting… I am not sure, but I am glad he has because I absolutely LOVE his content… and so will you!

@theycallmedan

This man’s sheer positive hunger for this platform is nothing short of contagious and I literally LIVE for that kind of mentality. He sends waves of positivity throughout this platform every single day and not in a cheesy or sugar coated approach either…. No, he shoots from the hip and says it like it is and I love that about him and his blog! He manages to put firecrackers up peoples arses without them even realising it and that is a gift!

There are so many amazing authors here on Steem, but I will limit it this time to those that I shared on that particular post, which also included:

@joanstewart, @lizelle, @gooddream, @wwwiebe, @abitcoinskeptic, @wesphilbin,@birdsinparadise, @bluemist, @blueeyes8960,@watersnake101, @owasco, @fmbs25, @justclickindiva, @priyanarc, @prettynicevideo, @pennsif, @oldguyphotos, @jayna, @zekepickleman @zord189, @thekittygirl, @dswigle, @brittandjosie, @papilloncharity, @denmarkguy.

To Conclude…

And so that’s a wrap from me – My Steem Story!

Hope you enjoyed it!

And to keep the fun going, and as per the general instructions below… I am tagging the following five people to join in too! (but if you are reading this without being tagged… you are also welcome to take part… just check out the instructions below!)

ok here goes…
@bia.birch
@galenkp
@robertandrew
@blewitt
@tarazkp

ALL THE PHC MEMBERS PARTICIPATING IN THIS INITIATIVE HAVE SET 50% OF THEIR POST REWARDS TO @STEEM.DAO

---

HOW TO JOIN IN:

GENERAL INSTRUCTION:

1. Create a post titled: “My Steem Story – By @your.user.name”

2. The first three tags in order are to be as follows:
   #hive-114105
   #powerhousecreatives
   #mysteemstory

3. ONLY make use of the cover image provided in this post.

4. Keep the same formatting and placement (intro, footer
   instructions etc.)

5. Replace the personal photo with one of your own.

6. Tag 5 people to join in on the initiative.

7. Share your post to twitter.

8. Share your twitter link and Steem post link in the comments of @jaynie’s “Steem Story” post.

POST INSTRUCTION:

Write a post which shares and gives adequate response to the following headings:

• Where my Steem Journey began
_{(How you first discovered Steem and your very first thoughts and impressions “as you landed”.)}

• My initial challenges & how I overcame them
_{(Share a bit about the difficulties you faced at the beginning, whether it was navigation, post creation, engagement – whatever – how you resolved them and how differently you feel about it now)}

• My Steem blockchain knowledge
_{(Give a little bit of background on your blockchain knowledge when you began your Steem journey versus now.)}

• My Steem favourites
_{(What are the things you do mostly on the blockchain – is it blogging, vlogging? What front ends do you like to make use of and what content genre’s do you generally focus on?)}

• My golden nugget advice
_{(What advice would you offer to those that are unfamiliar or new to this space)}

• My Steem hood & its peeps
_{(Share a little about the communities you belong to, discord servers you frequent and perhaps a handful of the awesome people you follow)}

❤❤❤

Until next time...
Much Love from Cape Town, South Africa xxx
Jaynielea
_{FOUNDER OF THE POWERHOUSE CREATIVES & STEEM SOUTH AFRICA}

_{A community of individuals who are dedicated to producing quality content
which adds value to the Steem network and beyond.}

JOIN US HERE

_{Connecting the people of #STEEM across South Africa. #steemsa}

_{JOIN US ON DISCORD (South Africans Only)
JOIN US ON TWITTER
JOIN US ON FACEBOOK}

_{ALL IMAGES ARE MY PROPERTY UNLESS OTHERWISE CREDITED}