Help I've been abducted by Stemmians

One month review on my introduction to steemit

My first 31 days on steemit I kept seeing these ransom like photos of people holding up a dated sign.

Almost like a proof of life dealie.

This is not mandatory but it helps to prove that you are indeed a real person.

Thanks are also due to my 102 followers. It's been a pleasure to meet you all. Steem on.

Well it has been a roller coaster ride for this newbie. So much to learn so many things to figure out.

So many brilliant and helpful human beings and quite a number of bots (programs) floating around doing all kinds of weird and wonderful helpful things.

You will see many very technical conversations going on here but don't be put off by that.

We are not all nerds, geeks or crypto currency freaks. Although I do fit in there somewhere.

In keeping with steemit's full transparency and just for the record, let me add that I have made more money on steemit in one month than I have made on YouTube, Blogger and several other websites combined.

I will continue to make videos because I like to make videos but they will eventually be hosted just here on steemit.

And let me just add.

It's not just about the money. It's about a load of money!

You can check my wallet. As a semi retired teacher in the UK I need every penny I can scrape together.

So let me try to explain what I think every newbie should know and do first. If I missed something please add your ideas in the comments

Check out your own profile page in detail. This is not like any other social network you have ever been on.

Most people come to steemit as they hear that there is serious money to be made on steemit and this is absolutely true.

Just so you know. There is nothing wrong with making money from your content. That is the purpose and main point for most people.

If you can do that on a friendly well paid platform. Brilliant.

We are not all communists or self deluded.

You really do need to spend a bit of time getting familiar with your own profile.

Try to make it as appealing as possible. Above all. Be genuine. Be your true self.

Stemmians can spot a fake at 100 yards.

Spammers beware!

Especially check out your rewards, wallet and settings. In the rewards you will see that a bot called @bottymcbotface has left you some things called steem power and some actual real money? $0.79. at time of writing.

Don't be alarmed you will be bumping into many programs that run around the steemit ecosystem doing all sorts of weird and wonderful things, like giving you even more money.

You can use steem power to vote up blogs (upvoting = curation) and upvoting on comments (also curation) that you liked.

You get a portion of the blogs earnings when you upvote either the blog post or the blog posts comments.

Your portion is based on when you voted and how many votes have been cast.

Do download and read the white paper. Hosted by @liondani

Don't

Before you run off and start using your votes on everything that moves.

Remember that this voting power will drain away as you vote but don't worry your account gets a 20% refill everyday with fresh steampower.

It will fully refill to 100% in 5 days of not voting. If you keep voting on every single thing everyday then your steem power will drop until it hits close to zero.

For example. If you have been voting like a person with 5 arms, and your steem power is down to 50%.

The next 24 hour period it will increase by 20% of that 50% so it can take a long time to fully recover. The consensus that I have seen from other stemmians is to keep their voting power in the 90% range.

It's not a rule. Just my suggestion.

As a newbie of course your vote is not attached to much money or voting power but enough for you to participate in the activities on the website.

@penguinpablo has made a handy calculator to check your steem power. steemnow keep and eye on this from time to time.

How to add your bio photo

To add a photo or avatar of yourself there are two methods. Your photo of yourself has to be hosted on a website somewhere. Fakebook etc.

Go to the website and copy the photos website address (URL) and paste it into where it says website url in the photo below.

The second method is to write your introductory blog post and then drag and drop your profile photo onto the blog post.

When you publish it you can then use the website link in your profile like this.
You can then write your epic bio, location and your own website and your just about done.

Next you will notice these five buttons in a row on the centre left hand side.

Now comes the interesting bit. Go and explore these 5 different threads. The titles are self explanatory.

Earning from curating good content

What is good content? It's a subjective issue which I addressed already in the link below.

As you read through or watch the videos you may see something that you like that you think your friends may like or find interesting.

At the bottom of the blog post your will see 4 buttons that you can use to share the blog to your social networks.

One of them is the direct link to the blog if you want to put it on another social network like Reddit, Tumbler or Google+.

Okay that's about enough for now. I don't want to overload you with the technicalities of steemit but you now have enough to get going and enjoying some of the brilliant content of this website.

Disclaimer: This is my understanding of steemit at this time. I was not paid to write this...no wait. I was lol

If you found this helpful let me know in the comments. There are lots of helpful tutorials on steemit that you can use.

Just hit the search bar and type in your question and something will appear.

Steemit can look a bit complicated. That's because it is!
Not the bit that you are using. These blogs, but behind the scenes.

You don't need to know how an engine works to drive a car but you can find out if you want too. Steemit is the same.

Steemit is paying out real money in huge amounts so it requires a bit of time to get your head around it.

There are no distracting adverts and you can virtually forget about search engine optimization as it really doesn't matter anymore.

What you should focus on is finding or creating content that is interesting and useful.
If it is interesting and useful to you, it may well be useful to other people too.

Persevere and you will find that in addition to making some money you will meet some amazing people in the process.

So what makes good content? Click below and find out. You may be surprised at what you may learn.

What is good content?

Listed here are my first 34 blogs that I have posted on steemit.

They have had varying levels of financial rewards and represent the kinds of things that people have found interesting/useful and also the not so interesting or useful.
Full transparency.

If it's worrying or bothering you just don't do it. No one is forcing you to join or stay.