I first discovered Steemit while researching cryptocurrency. Many Google searches on the subject connected me to Steemit posts, and I was reading about Bitcoin on Steemit without ever realizing what Steemit was.
When I finally realized what Steemit was I got very excited. This was something I could do! I was already discussing cryptocurrencies with anyone who would listen. Here was a way I could earn cryptocurrency while doing it!
Once I signed up I was disappointed to discover there was a waitlist. I quickly consulted Google to determine how long I would be in Steemit purgatory, waiting for account approval. In my search I found several articles on the subject which were, of course, on Steemit. These articles were several months old, but they all mentioned a wait time from a few days to a week. The users all said that they felt this wait time was bad for Steemit because it might discourage new users. I reluctantly accepted that I would have to wait 7 days before I could start posting on Steemit.
I was pleasantly surprised today to get my approval email almost exactly 24 hours after I signed up! Still, I would have been willing to wait a week. I think a waiting period of a day to several days is reasonable to discourage abuse. Considering the monetary reward system of Steemit, it is likely to attract many spammers and bots. A waiting period goes a long way to cut down on that.
So to all the new users who may be reading this while awaiting your account approval, welcome, and before bemoaning the wait time consider the practical application of it.