There has never been an opportunity in the blogging space like we have with the Steem blockchain. Over the past fifteen years of blogging I have never seen a community so willing to help hardworking writers as I have in the past seven months on Steemit. Then there is the monetary compensation, a real asset we are able to trade for goods and services.
It's Buys Real World Items
Recently I purchased a monitor and keyboard thanks to the STEEM earned for these blog posts. It was not the easiest process but it was possible to buy physical goods without the need to cash out into fiat. The process is as follows:
- Move STEEM or SBD to Bittrex or your exchange of choice.
- Convert to Bitcoin Cash.
- Send the Bitcoin Cash to purse.io's built in Shapshift exchange.
- Purchase any item on Amazon thought purse.io.
- Wait for the goods to be delivered.
The reason I chose to convert to Bitcoin Cash and then convert again to Bitcoin on the Purse website is because the amount of value I needed would not have been worth the fee that Bittrex charges to withdraw Bitcoin. On days that Shapeshift allows for STEEM conversion it makes it much simpler.
Why Tell Of This Purchase
I wanted to tell everyone this because Steem is so unique and so far ahead of any other blockchain. Sometimes we can take what we have for granted and it takes a slight kick in the rear to get back in the correct mind-set. Buying that keyboard and monitor did that for me, even though it was a slight hassle.
We all see the payout amounts on our posts and may think it's cool that we are earning some level of income by blogging. However, it does not matter how much STEEM we earn if we are unable to trade it for goods and services. There are many online currencies that are not cryptographic in nature.
In games, we earn 'money' to buy more in game stuff but it is not common to have the ability to sell and get a new keyboard. We could even say that 'internet points', like we see on reddit upvotes or Instagram likes, are a currency of popularity. But those popularity points can not be traded for a new monitor in the same way we can with STEEM.
This is why my focus on Tuesdays and Thursdays is helping the creators of Steemit. Even if it is just a post like this aimed to give a little motivation so we can put in the work needed to succeed. Steem is real and we are still at the ground floor. As long as the blockchain keeps moving along, and we create, it will never die.
Why I am Bullish on STEEM in 2018
You may know about and watched the video by 
Earning For Creating
As an online creator for over about fifteen years I know tho struggle of working hard on one's content only to see no return. It was not until I chose to focus on the Steemit community that I saw any real return for my time and effort.
The fact that we are able to earn a digital coin that has the ability to rise in value over time is huge. Blogging is no longer a paycheck to paycheck kind of hustle. It's now an investment into our future and our family's future. It's best we do not take this opportunity for granted.
Undervalued Blockchain
This is what got me the most fired up over the past month. Over on blocktivity.info they list the top cryptocurrency not by market cap but by the number of transactions per day. Guess what is at the top of the list, our beloved STEEM! Not only is it handling the most transactions per second but STEEM is not even close to slowing down. That is what the CUI column is displaying. Take a look at Ethereum. It's maxed out and still only in second place. The best indicator of an undervalued coin in my opinion is shown in the columnd labeled 'AVI'.
This index takes the Bitcoin value (market cap) and the number of transactions (Tx) per day and makes it an index set to "1". Then, it varies with the other blockchain's data. The index grows when the blockchain is very active and its market cap is low.
That is how blocktivity calculates the AVI but check this out:
A blockchain with the same amount of Tx as Bitcoin but with only half of its market cap would have an AVI of 2. From the investor's point of view, it would be twice as valuable as Bitcoin because it would have the same level of activity with only half the market cap.
Did you catch that?! If a coin has the same number of trans actions as bitcoin but half the market cap it should be considered twice as valuable! Look at steem: as I write this the AVI is around 824. By Blocktivity's calculations it should be 824 times more valuable than Bitcoin!
What kind of insane number would that be in USD? At a $13,000 dollar Bitcoin that would pig STEEM at about $10,712,000. Astronomical and very unlikely but this goes to show how early we are in the history of STEEM. Even if someone joins a year or two from now they too will benefit.
My 2018 Steem Goal
So it is 2018 and my new found love for STEEM and the Steemit community is flurishing with a great gusto each and every day. My goal for this year is to power up to five thousand Steem Power by December 31st. By doing so I will be able to award better upvotes to all your wonderful comments. As well as all the blog posts, videos, live streams, and audio everyone creates with proper effort.
I hope you found this post motivational and possibly a swift kick in the butt. Don't underestimate Steem like the rest of the crpyto-world is currently. Take this opportunity as a blessing that you are here now or are reading this now and about to join. Steem has the ability to change more lives for the better than Bitcoin did and we get to witness all of this from the start.
Thanks For Reading!
If you have a blogging topic that you would like my fifteen-year experience on, let me know in the comment section!
Other Posts in the "Blog Coaching" Series:
Answers To Bid-Bot Questions You Need To Know
How To Use Steemit Bid Bots Effectively
4 Reasons To Avoid Steemit Drama
Using Journals To Improve Our Blog
How To Leverage Criticism To Improve Your Blog