Steemit 101: How to make real money real fast!
If you're reading this article, then that means you've heard the mystery of STEEMIT. Perhaps a friend told you about how you could make real money doing something that you're already doing for free on Facebook, Twitter, and other social media platforms.
Well, I'm here to tell you that the rumors are true.
So maybe you're the college student wanting to use Steemit in order to make his rent payment each month, or the stay-at-home mom wanting to bring in a little income, or the guy who wants to ultimately quit his 9:00 to 5:00 office job and be a full-time Steemian making full-time money.
Many people are doing just that. Blog posts are appearing on Steemit all the time, many of which are stating they made an extra $1,000 this month alone. Some are even cutting back their hours at work because Steemit has allowed them to make enough money at home doing something they actually enjoy.
If this sounds like a dream come true to you, then read on because this dream is about to get real!
Where do I start?
Okay, breath. Jumping into a new job or field is always stressful at first; you're overwhelmed with new information, jargon, and trying to navigate through all the pitiable advice in hopes of finding that golden nugget article is often times harder than parallel parking (remembering having to do that in high school?)
Here's a question asked by skeptics and newcomers alike: “What is STEEM?”
STEEM dollars (SBD) is a form of cryptocurrency, which is a digital asset – real, but virtual money – exchanged, traded, bought, sold; all of said information is stored within the blockchain. A blockchain is a digital ledger in which transactions made in Bitcoin or another cryptocurrency are recorded chronologically and publicly. In 2009, Bitcoin became the first decentralized cryptocurrency ever, and as we see what has taken place nearly a decade later; what started out with a value of pennies on the dollar, is now hovering between – albeit, volatile as can be – $2,500 - $2,950 a coin – that's nearly a 300,000% increase in ten years!
Are your eyes glazing over yet? Don't worry, it gets easier with practice.
How do I earn STEEM?
STEEM can be earned in a variety of different ways. The easiest way is to troll different posts and Upvote (i.e. “Like”) them; you will earn a percentage of whatever that article makes over the course of it's life (though, typically, 95% of what an article/post earns will be accumulated, unless it's a blockbuster post, within the first 48 hours at the time of the initial post).
The next most common way, and most popular, is to write good content – emphasis on good. No, we don't want to hear about how your ninth cat, Snowball, learned how to use the litter box all on its own (seriously, that's just creepy).
Examples of good content would be: How Bitcoin will increase/crash in value (providing you have tangible facts to accompany this post), or how a specific ab workout gave you that coveted six pack in 90 days, or perhaps by using your God given talent to showcase that epic work of photography, painting, music composition, crème brulee recipe, ect. Good content doesn't have to be life-changing, it just needs to be worthy of an upvote; something informative or entertaining. Posting good content consistently will earn you STEEM.
Another way to earn STEEM is to RESTEEM (i.e. re-blog, re-post, re-tweet, ect), as that will earn you a percentage whatever that article earns from the time that you post it on your wall. The amount of money you'll earn is largely dictated by how much STEEM power a voter(s) possesses. Let's take a closer look at this subject . . .
How can I earn more voting power?
At the time of publishing an article, you'll have the option to choose to either be rewarded 50% in SBD and 50% in STEEM power (displayed in the image above) or 100% in STEEM power. There's an argument to be made for either option, but I recommend choosing the 50-50 option, as that will allow you to earn real money at a faster rate initially, while still increasing your voting power. As time goes on, you may wish to switch to 100% power and become a “whale” (more on that in a moment).
What is the difference between STEEM dollars and STEEM power?
STEEM power is the influence your vote has on an article. The more voting power you have, the more weight your vote carries. For example:
Voter A has STEEM power equivalent to $0.10, while voter B has an equivalent of $0.50. Each voter upvotes the article, so now that post has earned $0.60. At the time of the payout, authors will receive 50% of what is earned, while voters will split (the majority going to those with higher STEEM power) the other 50%. Does that make sense? (feel free to ask in the comment section below if you have any questions).
STEEM dollar is a virtual currency, a stock, so it can be sold for its current value on the stock market. At the time of this post (as seen in the image above) STEEM is trending at $2.10. That means, for every $1.00 of STEEM you earn, it is actually worth $2.10 USD. Using the example above, if your post earned $0.60, then it is actually worth $1.26 USD.
$0.60 x $2.10 = $1.26
You are able to claim your rewards seven days after the post was initially published (this is to prevent manipulating the price of STEEM). At the time of claiming your rewards, you will earn 50% of the money accumulated per post. Write good content frequently to gain more followers. Gain more followers to achieve more voters. Achieve more voters to earn more money. And earn more money to drive around in a Lamborghini.
Why should I increase my STEEM power instead of earning STEEM dollars?
Again, there is an argument to be made in choosing the 100% option vs the 50-50 option. If you plan on writing blockbuster articles that receive lots of recognition, then it may be a wise choice to choose 100% STEEM power, because as you vote, the more influence your votes will have, and thus, at the time of claiming your rewards, you'll earn significantly more than you would've if you had chosen the 50-50 option. However, you will not get paid in STEEM dollars if you choose this option, so selecting 100% power increase is only pragmatic if you're planning to do a lot of voting and become a “whale”.
There's that terminology again . . .
There are different degrees of Steemians, like a food-chain, if you would.
Plankton: The people who post a handful of times without much success, never to return to Steemit again.
Guppies: The people who post once every couple of months, earning a few cents or dollars here and there.
Minnows: The people who post several times a month, earning $5.00 - $10.00 a post on average.
Dolphins: The people who post several times a week, earning $25.00 - $50.00 a post on average.
Whales: The people who post daily or close to it, earning a consistent $100.00+ per post, such as 
Each time you post an article, everyone who follows you is immediately notified, giving the author the opportunity to present their work to a wide audience and get rewarded for it, so get that “followers” count up!
Buying and selling STEEM
Despite the naysayers, who generally say that STEEM is “phoney” or “monopoly money”, they're wrong! STEEM is every bit as real as the paper currency you use everyday to buy your everyday necessities. You can trade your STEEM for Bitcoin, or transfer it directly on your credit card and pay bills with it in any store, franchise or independent, brick and mortar or online, anywhere in the world, as well as several other options.
Jeff Berwick is a fellow Steemian and is uber knowledgeable on cryptocurrencies, namely Bitcoin and STEEM. You can visit his blog wall by clicking his username 
The value of STEEM
As we showed you above, STEEM is valued at just over $2.00 USD at the time of this post. The beautiful thing about Steemit is that no matter how big your pocket book is, everyone can be successful if they're willing to put in the effort. An article/post today may be worth $10.00 USD, but six months from now may be worth $1,000 USD. Again, STEEM is a stock, a cryptocurrency, so the value of your rewards today may be worth significantly more in the near future!
Bitcoin surprised the multitudes with its success; it nearly topped out at $3,000 a coin. Who knows, instead of being worth $2.00, STEEM could be worth $200.00 someday soon, maybe even $2,000.00. My advice, don't cash out as soon as you claim your rewards; keep them in your wallet, let them mature overtime, because I truly believe that $50.00 STEEM is just around the corner!
Have any questions? Did I leave out an important bit of information? Let me know in the comment section below. And if you would be so kind and feel this post is worthy, Upvote and Follow 
Steem on, my fellow Steemians!
