It is common to see a regular poster make reference to the fact that one of the things he or she loves about this site is the community. Many approach this as if it is just another social media site. However, it does not take long for one to realize that something is truly different on here.
We know money can be earned here. With the present marketing, this is something that most likely attracts us to this site. We tell people they can make money blogging so that is what people expect.
To succeed on here requires interaction with others. The only way to truly make money is to get upvotes from other people. Another irony is that if one wants more upvotes, that person will need to upvote others. This is the wonderful circle of STEEM, giving votes away help increase the power of another which means the votes you get are worth more which increased your power.
Community is a wonderful thing but it is something that is not understood by many. Over the last 20-30 years, we see people isolating. We live in "communities" where people do not know their neighbors. Much of our time is spent alone online. We enter the "virtual" world only to become discouraged at much of the behavior online. In short, there are a lot of people with cyber muscles behaving in ways that they never would in person.
That is until we find STEEM. Suddenly we encounter a group of people who appear to truly care. They talk about spirit and uplifting humanity. Peace is promoted believing it is required since we see the conflict in the "real" world. STEEM is a place of freedom where there is no central authority to censor anyone. People do not get banned and are free to express themselves as they see fit.
This is community.
Unfortunately, we know a great deal of this is not true. Much of what I mentioned turns out to be just talk. There is a big difference between talking about spirit and actually living in it. Community is easy when things are calm but what about when people are not getting along.
There is an African concept call Ubuntu. While not having an exact translation, it basically means community.
This idea goes a bit further. It expresses the essential fact that one cannot be human by oneself. We are all interconnected. We do not exist in isolation.
Ubuntu is broken when we start to take sides. It is easy to judge and when we do, by the very act, we are forced onto one side or the other. It is either right or wrong in our judgment. Hence, we determine the side we are on.
The challenge with judging is that we cannot identify with the other person. There is a part of us that can commit similar acts yet we deny that part of ourselves when looking at others. Instead of being the "mirror" we can learn from, we believe we are looking through a tinted window. Looking out is the only way to view it. Nothing is reflected back into us.
This is the epitome of arrogance. Remembering Ubuntu is a humbling. It brings us back to the idea that we cannot be human by ourselves. We are all interconnected whether we want to admit it or not.
STEEM is a wonderful place when we remember we are all a community. When we are judging others and engaging in behavior to tear them apart, we are allowing our arrogance to take over. It is said let he without sin cast the first stone.
We need to remember that we are all tied together. There are forces that are going to start getting into attack mode at some point and it is not going to be on this blockchain. It will be those entities that are threatened by blockchain and, in particular, what is happening on STEEM.
Embracing Ubuntu will help us to remember that we are one. Since we all have STEEM in our wallets, the success of this or not depends upon each other. No one person can make this place a total success nor can one destroy it. This is a collective effort, good and bad.
It is through this idea that we can truly express compassion for others who are operating from a place of fear.
If you found this article informative, please give it an upvote and a resteem.
To receive the free basic income tokens you are entitled to and help end world wide poverty, please click the following:
In full disclosure this is a referral link
Pictures by Google Images