Without investing I believe the climb is a steep one. I have been a member since September and have only earned about 0.60 cents, but I'm on here a lot anyways conducting research on crypto. So for me, it's not an issue to slowly grow my account size. Also, the content you post must be quality and sourced to be rewarded. Everyone has an opinion, but when people are trying to make decisions based on your content they want to be assured that your article is backed by a little more than your opinion. In my small time on Steemit I have recognized my posts with legit sources tend to pay out better than opinionated articles. Just my two cents bud.