So you get a successful post and you made some steem. Woot. You can cash it, you can hold onto it, you can look it and pet your screen creepily, or you can put it into steem power. What should you do? The option is 100% up to you, it is your money and if you want to cash it out and buy something nice, go for it. But I suggest, if you are here to stay, to put it into steem power. When you do you will not be able to take it out fully, for 13 weeks, but your vote will be worth more. It might take some building before you se a difference but it can really add up if you post often.
There is also the matter of how much you get when you sell it. Today the value of steem is $1.65 on the market, so you can sell each one for $1.65 USD. This is not a bad price but it is pretty low for what it was. Recently it was over $2 and was even around $2.50. I think, and this is just me, bitcoin might see a rise soon and if it does, the price of steem goes up with it. That means, if it does, you can sell it for more than you can today. But on the other side, it can drop, so always keep that in mind.
What you decide to do is up to your needs, but if you are to stay and are going to continue to work to build and grow your account, you might as well put the steem into voting power. Even if you are only getting a little more voting power that is more than you are making before. Unless you think the price will spike and you are going to sell it quick, sitting on it as SP is the smart thing to do.
How about you, do you put your steem away? I know I do.
*my upvotes/rep disclaimer: https://steemit.com/steemit/@whatageek/my-steemit-account-where-i-stand-on-bots-self-votes-and-multiple-account