This is my first post in this category. I've wanted to write it for a long while, but in lack of an angle I've kept putting it off. But I don't really need an angle, do I. I have to decided to just write what I'm thinking - because I want to and because I think it's a good start to start holding myself accountable to some degree.
This post is first and foremost for myself - to keep myself accountable to my own goals, by posting it to the blockchain. I do know however, that there are others in a similar situations as myself, so if someone can find any inspiration for themselves and their own Hive activitiy and engagement by reading this, that would of course be a very welcome bonus.
I created this account more than 5 years ago.
And I'm still here because...
I'm very passionate about Hive. I strongly believe that this protocol will be a significant part of the future of web3. I mean, we already ARE. Just look at everything that's going on, and at a seemingly accelerating pace.
I may not appear all that dedicated on the surface, if you look at the consistency/ of my posting and my general engagement. But have a look at my stake and power up history vs. my power down history - only on a couple of occasions have I powered down. I (almost) never let my voting power go to waste even when I do all my votes are manually. Or miss a single brawl with my SPL Guild every 5 days or so. And of course -not necessarily verifiable by the blockchain - my daily (and significant) consumption of Hive content, whether it's written posts/podcasts, video content. And this is just to name a few of the things I do around here.
I think I started out writing that last paragraph as a justification for my existence here and excuse for my lack of engagement. But in listing all the things I DO do, I realize I'm actually really proud of my level of activity. Even if it mostly consists of everything BUT what yields mentionable rewards and reputation growth for my account (SPL stuff excluded).
Being an active member of the community
But I want to do more.
I want to engage better with people, and I want to do more posting of my own. I want to use Threads more. Get to know more people. And I know I can do it. It's just that whenever I've tried to be consistent about it, I come up with excuses like "there's just too much going on in my life", and I fall off after a couple of weeks at most. It's certainly true that I'm busy, but it's all about priority, isn't it. And I've come to a point that I seriously want to prioritize the growth of my Hive account a lot more than I've done up to this point. I've certainly prioritized every other aspect of this ecosystem, so why not actually focus on growing my account as well - in a much more direct way that is. More about my concrete strategy to achieve this in the goals-section.
I'll also mention that I'm a fan of the Cryptomaniacs Podcast, and is feeling thankful for the inspiration I've gotten by listening to them discussing the importance of engagement (and so many other general Hive topics). Too many times have I heard from 
When I don't want to engage at all.. that's when I do it.
So enough is enough.
My Hive Goals
These types of posts are usually centered around current stake and target stake in x amount of time. The numbers I'm currently looking increase however, are for engagement and not stake. That will be saved for a future post, when I have proved my track-record to myself and know I can keep up.
I'm starting out easy:
- at least 1x Thread a day
- respond to someone else's Thread or Post at least once a day
- post at least 1x full length post once a week
I know this isn't all that impressive. But I know it's an achievable start for me.
When you start going to the gym, you don't do 5 hour sessions a week initially. You go a couple of times, until you've built up the strength and stamina to increase the amount of workouts you're able to do without being physically destroyed afterwards, with the inevitable result of being demotivated and falling off.
I set these goals with the past week in mind. Because I've already done this for a week! And it's already increased my engagement level significally. Now I just need to keep it up. And you know what? It hasnt been a chore like before. I've actually enjoyed it. Not sure why.. Maybe I matured, maybe I've just gotten more confident having a presence in this space. Regardless of the reason I'm enjoying it.
I will do a follow-up post on this post at a specific date; One month from now, july 1st. In the mean time I shall keep a calendar and cross of each day/week every time i complete the goals I've set.
Web3 is real on Hive. Click the animation and create your account, if you don't already have one.
Credits: Divider and animation by 