The answer to that question is very simple if you have a small following and try so hard to get likes but it seems not to workout.
If you have no big balance and see people with big balances continually being up voted and yet with articles you think are less viable than your own
Steemit stinks when you see already famous people making thousands of dollars on introductory posts and you have been on Steemit for over a year with hardly any balance on account
Steemit stinks if you are poor and see millions of dollars just sitting on people's accounts on Steemit
Steemit stinks if you don't have funds on account yet you would have liked to promote your posts
Steemit stinks when you see most of the trending articles not worthy of attention and yet they making so much money.
But there's a bright side, if you try.... and maybe try hard enough, maybe one day people will get to appreciate you and your posts. So my dear brothers and sisters, don't lose hope, dont' give up......continue posting so that the stink can stop.