We spend a lot of time here "in analysis" of what is going on and trying to determine what Steemit "could" and "should" do to make for a better future.
Maybe it's just human nature to believe that if we tweak something long enough, we'll derive a "magic formula" that somehow reveals precisely how to proceed, from that point forward.
"If I post this and that topic, in this and that format, I will succeed!"
Red rocks near Sedona, AZ
But then what?
Let's imagine, for a moment, that Steemit IS a "Social Content Platform."
(Well, DUH!)
For a moment, let's set that aside from any thoughts of cryptocurrency and the ongoing debate as to what "quality content" means, or what "value" means, and so forth. Let us set aside the idea of "earning rewards," which inevitably clouds the issue.
What Do We DO on Social Platforms?
What do you DO, when you're on Facebook? On Instagram? On LinkedIn? On tumblr? On Reddit? On any number of of other social sites that could give a rat's ass about rewards? Where your "reward" is simply your creativity and interaction, for its own sake?
Why are you there?
Building a "Brand You?
Using the web in place of therapy?
Promoting your art?
Sharing with family?
Coping with loneliness?
Trolling because you feel powerless?
Developing a hobby?
Learning about an interest?
Polishing up your writing skills?
Looking for love in all the wrong places?
Part of a support group?
Distracting yourself from boredom?
What am I getting at here?
Evening clouds building...
Looking at the above list — all of which are "real things" people do on social media — it would be pretty evident that we can't just summarize "what people do on social media" with a single phrase.
Beyond that, some people post once every 30 days, some people post 300 times per day. Some people write dissertations, some communicate entirely in emojis.
What Does That Have to Do with Steemit?
A lot, actually.
Once the novelty of "creating content for rewards" wears off, people inevitably tend to settle into their usual routines.
I find this is increasingly true of myself, too. After two years, I'm less and less worried about whether I post every day and whether I am creating content that's likely to be popular. I have little idea what's on the Trending page, except for a cursory glance once a month or so... then then it only serves to confirm that my interests have zero bearing on what's evidently "popular," or PROMOTED as the case more likely is.
Rewards? I'm delighted if a post makes $15.00 or more, kinda bummed if it makes less and $1.00. Beyond that? I don't think about it.
Which ends up looping me back to a point my friend 
Finch on the bird feeder
I mean, think about it: anywhere else you use social media, your focus is going to be either imparting a targeted message for a specific purpose (business/promotional) or just sharing whatever you feel like (personal) without much of a second thought.
In other words, social media really isn't about "quality" anything.
Without a specific mission statement to the contrary — like, "We're trying to copy what Medium is doing," — you don't get to control what social media "does."
You Can CHOOSE to Make it Quality!
Of course, you can choose to make your feed about your impression of quality content, but it's just not a "global" thing.
It is your thing.
So when I talk about Steemit "Coming of Age," I'm basically talking about the fact that we're increasingly settling into a place where people stop obsessing quite so much about "writing for rewards" and instead just do their own thing and trust that their ability to be "social" will automatically take care of their earning some rewards...or not.
Of course, the typical comeback is something along the lines of "Yeah, but what about the hideous TRENDING feed???" it leaves SUCH a bad impression...
Evening at Flathead Lake, Montana
And Then There's THAT...
Indeed, that is the pervasive elephant in the room.
Whereas I don't care (because I rarely look at it) the problem does remain that Trending is Steemit's de-facto "front window to the outer world." It's what you get to see as "representing" the community when you're not logged in, which would be the status of the general public visiting Steemit.
It's also one of the reasons I really don't like promoting Steemit. Even if I send a friend a link to one of MY posts, odds are they'll click on Trending and see the ocean of overpriced mediocrity that dwells there and think I've lost my good sense for recommending this place. Lost sale, bada-bing. Lost credibility for me, bada-double-bing.
In an Ideal World...
... Steemit, Inc. and the devs would get together and completely get rid of "Trending," still allow people to promote the heck out of their posts with bidbots, set up a team of "Community Moderators" (along the lines of what new Steemit clone/upstart Weku is doing), rename the "Trending" tab to "Best of Steemit" and make it so that only hand curated content selected by the moderator team ends up there.
Water droplets on fall leaves
Farm it out to trusted teams like 
"But I paid $400 to bid bots! I want my stuff to be VISIBLE!"
Absolutely!
Your bidding contest will put your $700 post precisely where it belongs: In "Promoted Content."
Because that's what it IS — PROMOTED CONTENT.
Not sure why everyone is so afraid of saying that. Facebook has it. Twitter has it. Most places have it. I find it ironic that we pretend to value "honesty and transparency" so much on Steemit... and yet this one thing is treated like a hot potato.
Well, that's all I have to say about that!
How about YOU? Do you think Steemit is starting to "come of age?" Do you agree that social media rarely is about "quality?" What do you think about "adding value" vs. "quality content?" Are we each responsible for our own impression of "quality?" Given that 99% of people on this platform probably earn less than $10 a month, are we wasting too much energy worrying about content "should" look like, to get rewarded? Leave a comment-- share your experiences-- be part of the conversation!
(As always, all text and images by the author, unless otherwise credited. This is original content, created expressly for Steemit)
Created at 181021 16:34 PDT