My Steem / Steemit story began just over two years ago (specifically in November 2017) when I accidentally discovered (during a research on how to make money writing and publishing articles) this new world where writing and virtual world interactions began to have a new meaning for me (something much more promising than I already knew).

Initially (before deciding to be part of this family) I did some research to see if it would not be a waste of time to devote myself to writing and interacting here, but I quickly found many testimonials from many satisfied users of this ecosystem. From then on, I didn't think twice, created my account (which in a few days was proven) and I started taking my first steps.

Once inside this platform, I found that nothing was as easy as it seemed to be. While I was outside (just as a reader), I imagined the dynamics would be very similar to blogs (which I was already used to writing) and in fact there are similarities, but the overall context of this place is much more intense, much more dynamic and also much broader. Given this, I - literally - had to start studying the workings of Steemit.

Daily and little by little, I began to absorb many types of content and from then on I began to see how much this place was impacting my life (inside and outside the barriers of the internet). The various examples I describe below will make this clearer because it will be through them that I will illustrate how this interactive platform has transformed the way I see and learn new things.

#01. Blockchain System.

Blockchain was a word I didn't even know before I came across Steemit. Once within this field, I had the opportunity to discover the immense world of decentralized content and the possibility of no longer relying on traditional banks (as financial institutions) because not only did the way to make money change, but so did the save it, transfer it or exchange it.

After I started participating in Steemit, I did some external research and saw that the term / system was already very popular and it was me who was out of the bubble. So I had to familiarize myself with a completely foreign theme for me, but adapting to this new concept was more than an obligation for me... It was a reality (even though for many people this is a huge waste of time).

#02. Cryptocurrencies & Tokens.

When I met Steem and joined Steemit, I knew that the money I was going to earn would not be money in its "traditional" form, because it would come in the form of virtual currencies, and until then, I knew absolutely nothing about this new dynamic that dictated the new financial world standards and sometimes I wondered if I would adapt and learn how to work within this new scenario filled with strange and seemingly complicated information.

My first contact was with Bitcoin (before I met Steemit) and it aroused a lot of curiosity because here in Brazil this kind of subject was not so talked about (and in fact, it is not yet... considering the repercussion that this already has in other countries), later with Steemit's own coins and more recently with the creation of the tribes and the new tokens, which in turn further energized this place.

#03. HTML World

My knowledge of online editing was practically nil (I knew only the basics because of the blogs I already wrote). Although my knowledge of this has not improved so much, Steemit aroused me enough curiosity to want to know about it. Gradually, I have come to understand concepts that were previously unknown to me, and in addition to learning I am also teaching those who - like me - also had difficulties.

The high tech field is not my strong point but i always try hard when i decide to learn something new (it's like I create a competition with myself). For me it's just a matter of willpower and willingness to want to learn what I don't know yet and Steem / Steemit has also helped me to do this more steadily. So... Knowledge is never too much because it always brings something constructive.

#04. Improving Writing Skills.

As a child, I have always enjoyed writing and have always made a point of striving to create interesting content for my readers. I didn't become a writer (at least not a professional writer, haha!), But blogs were a constant part of my writing improvement process, because it was through them that I devoted a lot of time and patience to delivering good articles and being able to inspire some people

In the meantime, one of my obligations was to pay attention and maintain that I was good and to change what could improve (in this respect, the feedback from my readers, besides encouraging me a lot, always helped me in many ways). After I started writing on Steemit, I have been challenging myself not only to write with more quality and more attention, but also to write for various nationalities and this has an extra motivating factor to continue participating in this journey.

#05. Knowing New Cultures: An Inside Look.

In the previous topic, I mentioned that I've been writing for several nationalities... So writing in one more language has been a constant for me. I recently decided to write in Portuguese, English and Spanish (something that I had tried before, but I gave up on the way) and I see how much this has motivated me to know new cultures and this happens because each new comment I get, I usually click on the profiles of users who interact with me and I enter their world.

In this way, I indirectly have the opportunity to know various cultures and can highlight landscapes, customs, governments, cuisines, entertainment in general (music, sports, movies, theaters, museums and many other examples) as the main highlights. This kind of "cultural exchange" is something that would definitely not happen if I had not met and decided to be part of Steemit.

#06. More reading? Yes, please!

Because of Steem / Steemit, currently my reading has been more assiduous not only in relation to the posts that are daily pubicated here (which is quite a thing) because in real life, I've been reading a lot more books than I used to read and that It has certainly also helped me to refine my learning process with regard to improving writing because the mind expands in ways we cannot imagine. The thinking gets faster, the number of new words increases vocabulary and the imagination gets even bigger wings.

I've always enjoyed reading, but Steemit challenges me to do it more often and more intensely than usual (at least from my point of view). For example, I suddenly find myself reading 1 book a week and a few years ago this reality did not exist for me because until then I was not so motivated to read so many books. This scenario is "new" to me and I confess that I am a little sorry that I did not dedicate myself so much to reading books before.

#07. Spreading Concepts and Thoughts.

One of the things that fascinates me the most here is the way and speed as ideas navigate. Steemit tags help delimit the priority groups that will have access to what we have written, but every person who is willing to search (ie is a curious user eager for new concepts and thoughts) can come across the content of everyone, and this further strengthens the idea of ​​spreading information (either by commenting, sharing, or referring articles to friends who are also on or outside Steemit).

The chance to have my ideas win the world is very compelling to keep writing around here, because I know, that one way or another, there are many people who are reading what I strive (almost daily) to write and This makes me extremely happy (although there are often not so many interactions in the comments). Knowing that I am able to contribute good articles and perhaps influencing new users to write more is very rewarding.

#08. Setting Goals and Glimpsing Dreams.

One of my most visible learnings here (which is only more noticeable in the real world) is the question of visualizing a part of my dreams through the goals I set to make them a reality. For more than once, I've mentioned here at Steem / Steemit that one of my biggest dreams is to exchange English in Australia. Financially speaking, I'm still a little far from getting there, but I remain firm and confident that this place will help make that a reality pretty soon.

Going further, there are other goals that I have developed that are making me virtually more organized and committed to my goals. For example, here on Steemit: get in here at least 1 or 2 times a day and post relevant content, if possible interact whenever I find content that interests me, seek to elevate my profile by numbers so that I become more influential and have more " power "to help other users more, create contests to add value to the community, and other goals that I am always renewing.

Basically, these are the reasons I'd like to comment on and I believe they all show how important Steem has been to me. The world of possibilities here has become increasingly dynamic and the boundaries are increasingly expanding and while financially the moment is not the best, there are other rewards that each user can have (it all depends on each person's view).