"Get your facts first, and then you can distort them as much as you please."
- Mark Twain
Thankfully, Steemit statistics are readily available.
But before I confuse you with the facts, let me tell you my own surprising story.
Can you make a living on Steemit?
Photo courtesy of Jordan Whitfield and http://unsplash.com
I once wrote for a living.
In the early '80s, I paid the bills working as a software engineer for a small San Diego company. A couple of managers that I worked for had moved across the street to an R&D facility of much larger Burroughs Corporation.
Knowing that I was reasonably articulate, one of the managers recruited me as a technical writer. I moved across the street, and for years I waffled back and forth between writing and engineering.
While my heart is in designing and creating new and exciting inventions, I do have some skill as a writer. I enjoy telling tales and offering fresh perspectives in words.
I once wrote for a living.
Photo courtesy of Andrew Neel
Fast-forward about 35 years.
My livelihood has come from a considerably larger set of endeavors. I've developed skill sets in a broad range of engineering disciplines. I hold patents in networking and user interfaces. I have made significant contributions to the engineering of life-sustaining medical devices. I have created the hardware architecture for people-counting systems. Several of my designs have been deployed globally.
I have skills in product design and manufacturing engineering that I've developed for others and have unleashed as my own private enterprise.
Along came Steemit,
and renewed my interest in writing. I've been publishing here since August '16, and have enjoyed a surprising measure of success.
I've met many amazing people, and enjoyed hearing stories from their lives. We've had many interesting conversations. We've shared advice, recipes, tips and tricks.
But, is it possible to make a living here?
StartUps - So very hard to do...
Photo courtesy of Oscar Nilsson and http://unsplash.com
The existence proof.
While you can't prove a negative, given the data available to anyone it is fairly easy to see that some people are earning a "living wage" creating content for Steemit.
Writing on Steemit has certainly been far better than the old "freelance gig" of writing, printing duplicate manuscripts, submitting, waiting for acceptance or rejection, get paid pennies per word, and then "rinse and repeat."
However, I am not (yet) earning a living here, not by a long shot.
The frustrating realities.
Reality #1: The definition of "making a living" varies from person to person. What is yours? For many of us, it takes a lot of money to survive. If your budget is $10,000 a month, it might be tough to live on Steemit earnings.
Hope #1: If you don't need huge numbers, there is hope. The smaller your needs, the better chance you have to make a living here. Can you live on $1000 a month? If so, and if you have a few thou to "tide you over" while you "build a head of Steem," then you probably have a good chance.
Reality #2: With rare exceptions, Steemit is not a "get rich quick" scheme. Unless you are already notoriously famous, when you start blogging here your payouts will seem discouragingly low.
Hope #2: Even for slow earners, Steemit may very well be a "get rich slowly" scheme.
Assuming your basic needs are already met, you may want to keep on blogging and save all your Steem. Use your SBD to purchase Steem Power. Gain an equity position in the platform.
Later on, when Steem reaches (and passes) the moon, you can power down a little at a time, sit back, and enjoy your wealth.
Reality #3: For big payouts, you need to attract the attention of some Steemit "movers and shakers," a.k.a. "whales" or guilds with delegated voting power. This is the reality of Steemit voting at the present time.
Hope #3: Plans are afoot to make voting power more democratic. In a "linear system" where little guys hold a more proportional amount of voting power, it will still help to gain the attention of individuals or groups. But if you are socially active, commenting and supporting others, you will gain a larger and larger following to vote for you.
Focusing on a unique subject with your writing may also increase your following. Study the typical "best practices" for growing a blog, and you will attract readers who will become loyal voters.
Reality #4: You must deal with exchanges to translate "Steem" into your local currency. Many find it frustrating and hard to understand how to convert cryptocurrencies into "real money."
Hope #4: Anyone with a basic level of intelligence and a willingness to learn can overcome the barriers to entry posed by dealing with Steem. The ability to buy and sell directly using crypto, especially Bitcoin, is growing. More exchanges are becoming available online. It is possible to trade crypto for fiat (again, Bitcoin in particular) via forums such as https://localbitcoins.com.
And, to be sure, as the Steemit community grows, you can do your buying and selling right here.
Reality #5? Luck!
Photo courtesy of Unsplash and http://pixabay.com
Reality #5: There is a large element of luck to success on Steemit. You are only as good as your most recent post.
Your payouts may depend on random factors such as the time of day, week, or month. Somewhat frustratingly, also on who (with influence) happens to notice your incredibly clever click-bait title and photo.
Hope #5: In the real world, some people do win the lottery. In the Steemit universe, some articles go viral and gain myriad followers. It is easy to see that on Steemit, some have already achieved that level of success.
Being totally subjective for a minute,
I'll mention just a few Steemians who right now are making what I'd consider a decent living on Steemit: 
It's quite easy to spot these top earners; just click on the trending tab near the top of your Steemit window and look at the earnings from the last week of posts by any author you are interested in.
Don't let looking at these "top dogs" make you jealous. Just let it make you hungry, and try to learn from what they are doing. Almost invariably, they are regularly producing very high quality content, and are truly earning their keep.
What's the bottom line?
Can you make a living creating content on Steemit?
Yes? Definitely? Maybe?...
Absolutely? Almost? Perhaps?
As we've seen, some folks are making a living here right now. Some are even making a killing. But your mileage may vary.
On Steemit, you're always struggling with the hope that your next post will be the breakthrough. That your next article will find that huge following. That your next piece will go viral.
Don't give in to despair...
Photo courtesy of Gerd Altmann and http://pixabay.com
When it doesn't, the temptation to become discouraged is strong. Don't give in.
One day, your post will be noticed. A whale may re-steem it. Someone may tweet the link. All of a sudden, there are thousands of viral eyes who have read what you wrote. Your Steem Ship has finally come in.
Making that happen? Well, that's up to you.
The bottom line is this:
Your chances of earning decent money as a writer are probably better on Steemit than anywhere else. Apart from years spent as a salaried writer, I have had greater success here than any other writing gig.
I plan to persist.
Tune in as I continue building my Steemit blog, reputation, and readership. Watch me as I keep on producing content that adds value to Steemit.
As with most things in life, if you are patient, persistent, and if your writing has inherent value, I think your chance of Steemit success is quite good.
FIN
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Thanks for your time and attention.
You are why I'm here on Steemit!
I have very eclectic interests and hope, over time, to write about them all.
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