Hey all! Hope your weekend is going well. This subject has been on my mind as activity lessens around here and the price of Steem takes a big Wowwweee slide down to nearly $1!
Why Are We Still Here Posting Away?
First, we continue posting because we love the Steem community. It's the best creative and positive engagement to be found anywhere on the internet! That is one reason why it is still so worth it!!!
Also, if you haven't already checked it out, take a look at the @naturalmedicine contest where you can earn SBD and exposure by sharing your natural medicine stories!
Creativity Begets Creativity
Since the beginning of the year, we've been writing posts on the daily. It helps that there are two of us and that a lot of our content is drawn from our lives! Yet, like many things in life, if you continue doing them not only do you get more honed and skillful at said thing, but it keeps the flow going. In this regard, there's simply no need to stop posting when the price of Steem goes down. While earning Steem is a core motive, tapping into the abundant creative energy available to us all and connecting with other creators is also important.
When FUD is high, it becomes about commitment, staying power, long term thinking and not focusing on negative hype or emotions. Can you see a future when it would be worth it to continue posting and earning Steem (ie in a couple years time when you are considered an "early adopter" and the price of Steem is hypothetically much highter)? I can!
This is actually aligned with the Permaculture Principle that we discussed this week- Catch & Store Energy. This principle is all about 'making hay when the sun shines' and then storing it. Capture and retain energy as it's moving through a site. What's important to note in the "down times" of Steem is that when the prices go up, so will the activity on the blockchain. We'll all start feeling more inspired then, but you cannot make up for the posts that you could've kept writing (and earning on!) in the off-time. My point is, keep earning through posting and commenting and store that energy for when the price goes up! This leads to my next point.
We're actually making more now
And while it is worth less currently (compared to USD), we're stacking it up for later. Now I haven't done the 100% factual math on this, but
layed it out well in The Power of Positivity - Thinking Long-Term:
"A lower STEEM price will earn you more STEEM
When you create a post on STEEM, the rewards you are getting paid out as STEEM & STEEMPOWER are based on the USD value of STEEM.
For this example, let's imagine you've chosen the 50% SBD /50% SP rewards option and your post has a payout of 5$.
Additionally, the current payout distribution while writing this post is at:
SBD: 11% | STEEM: 39% | SP: 50%"
Examples
Rewards - STEEM: 1 USD:
- SBD: 0.55 SBD
- STEEM: 1.95 STEEM
- SP: 2.5 SP
0.55 SBD & 4.45 STEEM
Rewards - STEEM: 5 USD:
- SBD: 0.55 SBD
- STEEM: 0.39 STEEM
- SP: 0.5 SP
0.55 SBD & 0.89 STEEM"
Of course, when the price of Steem is higher, the payouts will be higher also throwing this math off a little, but,
We are earning pure Steem here!
Each time I go to my wallet and claim my rewards, I'm noticing that I am collecting more Steem than usual and that I'm hardly receiving any SBD.
While none of it is "worth taking out" right now in my opinion, we are basically just catching and storing that pure Steem for later. While the post may not make as much money as it appeared to in the past, we are cashing out in pure Steem and that is invaluable! The exchange ratio between SBD and Steem is also a lot lower than it has been in many moons, so now is...
Absolutely the time to be powering up!
If I had a Steem for every time I heard someone who's been here for over a year say they wished they'd powered up more...
I would be a much wealthier Steemian.
The fact is that no one knows what will happen to the price of Steem. There have already been incredible downturns in price (like we're talking cents- and the price has boomeranged from there!) We are all inherently taking risks here. Yet I was here in December 2017 when Steem hit on $7+ and I can tell you that the feeling in the air was ELATION. I know many people made a lot of money then by cashing out Steem that they had powered up or saved liquid in their wallets. Do I plan on doing this? Hell yeah! I've been waiting all year to cash out some Steem to reward myself (and pay for things!) for the bounty of my creativity. But I won't be doing this just because the price is low and many are only cashing out due to FUD.
Now is the time to power up. Yes Steem could continue to drop, but with SMTs, Hivemind, Oracles, new voting structures, new alliances and coalitions on the blockchain and more wild cards coming in, I truly don't think it's a smart time to do so. It is wise to remember that elation in the air that happens when the prices go up and stay the course now. Keep posting, let your creative energy flow, continue networking and honing your skills. If/when the prices rise, it will all be worth it!!
I am in Steem for the long term. Hopefully curiosity doesn't kill the cat on this one, but from every angle that I can see (and I read a lot), this whole thing has just begun!
As 
We have only just begun!!
For anyone else out there daily(ish) posting and staying engaged, what are your motivations and reasons?
If you're overcome with FUD and thinking of powering down or selling off some Steem, what are your reasons?