Let's Talk About 'FAIRNESS'.
261.18 LEO
That is the total amount of pending LEO rewards I have from commenting over the last 5 days. Add the total amount of pending LEO rewards I have from the articles I have published and we're up to 776.3 LEO.
Over the last 5 days, I have published a total of 6 articles and I have made 100 comments. As I get to keep 50% of the rewards, that gives me a total of 388.19 LEO. I know, anything can happen and all that, but these are the numbers we can see at the time I am writing this.
I am positive that some people would consider this to be outstanding results and some would say that it is unfair and that I am lucky to be rewarded that much.. And this is exactly what I want to talk about.
Someone told me recently that I am "everywhere" and that I deserve to be rewarded for my contributions and my efforts. I guess we have always had that same idea in our head, that we should reward quality and those who are putting in tons of time and effort, they deserve to be rewarded. I like that and I have rarely had any problems with that. People who work hard deserves to be rewarded. Most people I have talked with about this since I joined Steemit 4+ years ago seems to think in the same lines.
Despite that, we occassionally have these posts and articles where people talk about the distribution being flawed and bad, that the rich gets richer due to circle jerks and because they aren't spreading votes etc. You know what I'm talking about. You have seen those posts. They are often talking about the trending pages and how boring it is to see the same authors being heavily rewarded each day, and how bad that is.
While I might agree with some of those things, I want to talk about #LEOFinance and how different it is, even though it's not perfect. As you all know by now, reward curve change, manual curation and engagement is a few awesome things with LEOFinance.io, but we also have 'curators picks', which helps in terms of exposure and recognition. In a perfect world, that would obviously lead to more juicy rewards.
Before going any further, I just want to tell you that this post has nothing to do with me being unsatisfied with my results, or that I am angry or disappointed in any way. It's actually the exact opposite, which is why I feel that it is important to talk about this.
My three last articles was picked and showcased on the top of LEOFinance.io. As you can see on the screenshots, two of my articles where picked at the same time. The last article was picked and sat there for something like 10-12 hours in total. I am not entirely sure as I went to sleep, but I estimate that my 3 articles where sitting at the top for about 20 hours in total. I know that they rotated a bit, as the first post in my mini-series was the first to be picked. All of them where picked.
I am not sure if @khaleelkazi is the only one picking these posts or not, but I am obviously very grateful for the amazing encouragement and for the confidence boost!
Some of you might think that those posts, especially as they got to be "curators picks", must have been heavily rewarded as well..
And here's the thing, the actual rewards are not the most important part. Not by a long-shot actually. What's more important is the overall growth for me, and I don't see stake alone as growth.
However, at the time I'm writing this these 3 articles have pending rewards of: 40.80 LEO, 27.93 LEO and 28.92 LEO which is far less than the 3 articles I published before them. The articles before my mini-series have pending rewards of: 145.77 LEO, 136.91 LEO and 135.68 LEO at the time I'm writing this.
Trump and Biden might have been a factor for this, but the actual rewards on these articles are not that important and I will tell you why. First of all, these 3 articles got a total of 6 reblogs (so far), which obviously leads to more visibility (which increase chances for rewards & followers). These 3 articles where not crypto or finance-related content, so that I earned something is awesome!
My intentions with the mini-series was to spread knowledge and in an attempt to improve the overall optimization, as this will lead to more traffic towards LEOFinance, Hive and other communities as well. More traffic leads to higher Ad revenue on LEOFinance, more eyeballs towards content and this will also lead to more users.
- Any amount of rewards for doing that is considered to be a bonus.
However, due to manual curation on LEOFinance, there is still a good chance for more upvotes before the mini-series pays out. I have personally seen this happen more than once on my own content from both wealthier accounts as from smaller ones, so anything can happen.
Let's be honest though, I wouldn't really mind to be heavily rewarded for each and every article I wrote, because truth is that I produce quality content. I put in a lot of time, I write, edit and create my own covers. It doesn't help that I am not native in English either..
We don't decide what our content is worth though. That is for others to decide and while we are honest, how would Hive, LEO or any of the other communities look like if everyone who produced quality content was heavily rewarded for everything they did..? - Also, time spent has never been rewarded.
Seriously, think about that for a second. I can name at least 20 users who is producing quality content. If I spend some time trying to come up with more people, I would probably be able to think of about 50 users in total. Something like that. I can also tell you that I personally think that the majority of these 50 people are under-rewarded. Some of these users are rewarded well-more than they should be though, according to me. That is my personal opinion, and it is based upon how things are currently.
If everyone started to think about the rewards, and nothing besides that, I bet that most people on Hive would think that they are worth more than they get. I am sure most of them also think that they are producing high quality content as well..
- Is there even something called heavily rewarded?
Anyhow, nothing would work if everyone got hundreds of tokens for everything they did. There would be no value in tokens or in the platform. Distribution is necessary, especially to spread the rewards across the platform, as that will strengthen our community and give us a sturdy foundation to build upon..
But this is not something that happens over-night. This is a marathon and not a sprint.
- This is a journey and an adventure.
~800 LEO In 5 Days.
Let's take a look at this number again.. 776.3 LEO in 5 days. I keep 388.19 LEO for 100 comments and 6 articles. Is it fair that I have these pending rewards?
Honestly speaking, my mini-series is worth far more than my comments according to me, but something important to understand is that comments will not continue to be rewarded in the same fashion going forward. It won't last forever. Sooner or later, we will have more "accurate" rewards on comments.
The main reason for comments to be rewarded like they are and have been rewarded lately is only to boost and reward engagement. We want to have a thriving community with users who engage and interact with others and with content. The wonderful bonus that comes with this, is the distribution of tokens. It is healthy to have a strong engaging community and that is why we see people focusing on engagement.
Out of my 100 comments I have made during these last 5 days, 56 of them was rewarded.
261.18/56 = 4.78
That's 4.78 LEO per comment.
If we divide the rewards with the total amount of comments we get this:
261.18/100 = 2.61
So, the average for my comments are 2.61, but I have 44 comments that have not (yet) been rewarded, so I have earned 4.78 LEO per comment that has been rewarded. Like I mentioned previously, about manual curation and that I still have a chance of getting more upvotes on my articles, the same goes for the comments as well. They can be rewarded at any time until it pays out.
If I would have the same earnings on all comments, it would be a total of: 478 LEO.
100x4.78 = 478
I know that I am just one out of dozens of people making comments. Some of them have greater results than me and others have less. That's just how it is, but our actions matters.
Without my 100 comments, those 56 comments would not have been rewarded. Without the 44 comments that has not been rewarded, I would have 0% chance of potential future rewards for them. So for each comment or each article I post, I increase my chances to be rewarded. Not only for those specific comments or articles, but also for future comments and articles I make, as I slowly but steadily will grow my audience while I am being active.
- So, am I worth the pending rewards?
I don't know, but it doesn't matter what I think, because it's not up to me. It's up to you and everyone except me to decide what my contributions are worth. I can upvote my own things, if I wanted too, so I could reward myself ~0.200 LEO for each upvote. That's the only amount I can sort of guarantee myself..
Source
Regardless of your decision, I will continue to do my own thing, continue to have fun, create content and engage. I would recommend doing the same thing, because it will benefit everyone in the long haul.
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I think they picked those posts because they could potentially benefit the ecosystem as a whole. Anything that tends to benefit everyone on the whole does very well in terms of votes. I know that is why I voted for the ones I saw from you as well. :)
It is most certainly like that and I love the idea of having curators picks as well. It's great for visibility and to make sure that active users doesn't miss out on any "gems". I didn't think that my SEO related posts would be picked though, so it came as a nice surprise. :)
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That is true. It all is part of encouraging people who have something to add.
Those who detract through complaints or garbage posting tend to get overlooked, at least on Leo.
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I'm not a native English speaker too but then, it's part of the effort, your contents are good, no doubt and sometimes the way it's showcased it could relatively help a new leofinance user navigate the entire UI for useful information on how to settle down.
Being relatively new too you've done well as well and this should be lauded. This is quite impressive. Your stats shows that hardwork eventually pays off.
While I do understand the definition of "hard work", the best part of this is that I don't see anything of the things I have done as "work" in that sense. I'm just having fun and it seems to pay off.. :)
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Yeah most of us just have fun with it and it pays off. Thing is, we're used to being consistent and constantly bringing it and that's hard work
That is very true. Writing articles and making comments are natural to me. It has always been natural. If I didn't have any experience at all doing it, things would definitely be very difficult. So you're right. It is hard work.. But I enjoy it.
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The same could be said for you. I like the posts you put up and a variety of backgrounds/viewpoints are needed.
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I couldn't agree more to this... Actually I don't see why anyone should be mad over another person's Success.
Comment engagement is a necessary factor in any blogging platform! Why?
It is only fair that don't only come into a blog, drop a post and zome off... Not even caring about the people that may have questions about your content, seeking rewards when you don't deserve it!
Engagement in comment helps build a community, promote it and make it stand out showing it's worth...
The best bait for any blogger to make massive profits is just to engage the comment section, especially as a newbie that is not yet known, you definitely can't get much attention when you are barely know in the community.
So it is ideal to first marry every comment section with relevant contribution because honestly, that's just the best bait to attention and audience.
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Without engagement, authors wouldn't produce content, which leads to less content to consume. So engagement is vital. Not only for the creator of the content but also for the entire platform. You are totally correct with the things you say about the comment section. It's also easier to make comments than to write long, in-depth articles.. So rewarding comments are a superb way to encourage more engagement but also to reward and grow those who comment.
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GREAT POST! NOTA 10 as we say in our native language.
Also thumbs up for you being everywhere, because this is the time to be everywhere. Build when others are sleeping and spending shit loads of time on facebook and instagram.
As I wrote in my last post, in one month I have outperformed myself, as a blockchain blogger, in an amazing way. I don't count rewards as math and counting is not my strongest skill, but I feel I'm doing great, I see it in my interactions, I get to see posts upvoted way better, and comments as well. 40 LEO for one comment is immense and I am definitely grateful to @onealfa for that.
Regarding the initiative 10 and the massive curation that is taking place on comments right now, I believe and hope at the same time, to last longer and I'll tell you why. There are quite a few good posts, well written and done with quite some efforts, that are under performing comments in terms of rewards, and it's OK to be that way.
Otherwise we would risk to have a community where everyone is chasing large chunks of rewards through blogging, and nobody interacts with nobody. The way I see it, a successful social media platform is defined by the content it provides and the level of engagement between its users and that's probably what @taskmaster is trying to achieve with this initiative.
A balance between content creating and engagement and thus far it works smooth. And NO, I don't see it unfair for you to collect high rewards. It's time spent, dedication and passion poured in creating this type of content that you have and all that deserves every penny that you received.
Honestly, after long long time spent on this chain I really feel like efforts are being paid for users around here. It doesn't feel at all like in the early Steem days, or at least my early Steem days, and I'm not talking solely about rewards, but also about interaction, a really genuine one and the feeling of belonging to a community.
One where everyone of us has a purpose and a way to bring value to the platform. Great job again!
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Thank you!
40 LEO for a single comment is insane, but awesome! That would obviously not have been possible without onealfa, so I am very grateful for his generosity and willingness to strengthen the community. He could easily have ignored Initiative 10, or he could have been a part of it and decided to reward a handful of comments instead of these crazy amounts of comments he manages to reward currently. Even though I'm not sure about it, I do believe that it is due to taskmaster's hard work. I don't think we would have seen this without taskmaster, so he definitely deserves credits.
The best part is that it spreads like wildfire, so others are doing the same thing. Even lesser accounts, which is exactly what we should be striving for.
I also agree that this feels very different compared to Steem and Hive. It feels like you have a place and that you are part of a community rather than being someone who is trying to prove his worth to be allowed to enter or join. I had a fantastic time on Steem from time to time and a couple of wonderful experiences throughout time, but LEO feels different, especially nowadays due to the increasing engagement and the overall vibes.
It's awesome to see & to be a part of.
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Definitely credits go to @taskmater4450 for initiating this insane engagement tornado and supporting it through his own example and curating power.
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A perfect description for taskmaster.
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Those who complain tend to get nowhere in life (well maybe in politics). It is interesting the ones who complain the loudest tend to be the ones who contribute the least. They write a few posts and expect everyone to magically vote for them. When that doesnt happen, they start the crying.
It will happen on Leofinance at some point too. When people start to realize the value here, and newer people flock in, they will start the same bs. As I stated in one comment yesterday, if you dont like it, there is a simple answer: get more stake. That is what drives Hive and Leo also.
You are putting in the effort and that is appreciated. None of us are going to make this thing go on our own. It is a collective effort and we all have a part to play.
You are being rewarded because you are filling your role.
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Another answer would be: quit. lol
You are totally correct though, those who complain the most seems to contribute the least. I actually think that is because they compare themselves with others immediately. Especially on a place like Steem/Hive. They expect the world for nothing, because they ignore (or don't understand) the fact that others they compare themselves with have been putting in tons of effort and time for a long time. I mean, you have to work your way up.. Sure, you can be lucky and whatever, but you still need to put in the necessary work.
Some people doesn't seem to understand that though..
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You are doing the work and fully deserve the rewards
You’re a quantum particle!
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Yes this is a difficult topic so let me give my honest opinion. When Steemit first started there was this big debate and analysis of it and some of the reasons i believe people think this way were referenced here in this video:
I'll summarize some of the issues. The first problem is there is so much information plentiful and free on the internet you can tap into information on almost any article and knowledge base free. So often times content creators believe it is my hard work paying off the labor or time i've included in the production of this thing.
I believe it's more their participation and that it is attention based. So it is in the "attention value". In a traditional market if i produce something there is competitive pricing to help determine the value of what i produce. It is also a self correcting market condition that makes it difficult for someone to get astronomical value for what they produce. This is why in the early days of steem a person could earn $20k a post or $40k a post no competitive pricing.
So most engaging in this type of system will always reach similar conclusions in the idea of " fairness". I'll give this quick example. At the start of this decade in france. Social Security retirement was raised to 60 years old. The country went crazy almost burned down Paris. Meanwhile in the United States the retirement age remained for full benefits around 67. One group fine with a higher Social Security age another not.
The idea of "fairness" seems to follow moreso a level of consistency than any measure of practicality in some cases. As to say some may be quite okay with it being 67 many others not. So what happens in these models people notice the inconsistency. You place up articles of comparable value and of similar quality and the value of them are far different.
Solution or second approach. The general thought process from the side of this equation that receive favorable outcomes often times whether it's through sheer luck or timing.. etc., Is the conclusion party B is jealous and thus they should purchase more voting power or something like that.
The only issue is we've now been going strong with social media for over 20 years now. The behemoth's the most gigantic and valuable we've ever seen have grown and produced without the participants spending one upfront dime of their own money. So purchasing something to use social media is going to be quite foreign for many people. Now i understand some say well yes but it's because of censorship resistance. Upkeeping the network and securing it. You don't have censorship resistance proteciton on the facebook and twitter's as it were.
Unfortunately this argument atleast at this time isn't holding up very well. People on social media are doing everything they can to reveal their identities lol. I go on these sites i know who everyone's mother and father's are. I know where people live where they work. They don't seem to complain or quit these networks. So my thoughts are not that censorship resistance is not important. I would determine it's just not a priority for the people at this time otherwise i'd believe we'd see different results. Maybe it will take a significant incident where the majority of people feel their voices are being threatened. Not sure when or if that will ever happen. As far as social media it's probably more likely you'll see some free social media interaction like facebook libra coin or something with paypal being super successful in the crypto space.
I"m not 100% sure how you fix that in this model. I'd probably suggest some new algorithim created to do it or bot or something. In my own project i created something called the Proof of Participation model later changed to the Proof of Growth model. Something that could prove fair value without many of the complications i mentioned above. So you'd probably need a bot in something like that. I'm not sure the POB model can solve that issue .. maybe.. maybe not. Those are my 2 cents but i can only imagine it will continue to be this way. What's going to be important is how it's handled. In that what you don't want is a situation like on Steem or Hive. Where you keep creating bad experiences for either new people or existing contributors just find the future doesn't look as bright. Then you could have growth issues. So far i'm impressed with the distribution from Leo. I think it's limits in what it can do in that department due to limits in how people enter the dpos ecosystem. However so far so good. How far can it go.. well that yes has yet to be determined.
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The manual curation for Leo is something that can't be overlooked and is what I find very positive. I have noticed all the Leo posts have comments as well which is what we all want on our posts. It just feels wrong seeing a post with no comments and is a reward in itself when it happens.