What the future holds for Steem | An honest, non shilly social analysis after Steem Fest
Whatever would happen during this event was going to be crucial and most likely would determine if Steem as an experiment would thrive or fail. As a third year attendee, I've noticed that the events that take place on SteemFest set the pace of what the year will bring, not only because of the projects and announcements that take place but also because some - if not most - of the community builders and project leaders are there, watching and being part of how things unfold, and their attitude towards Steem is permeated to a point where they will eventually influence everyone they work with. If Steem Fest goes wrong, that sets the pace for the general attitude towards Steem.
But this year this aspect was even more important than any other. After being fed promises and pure smoke to an extent, Lisbon set our expectations incredibly high for what Steemit inc had to offer and was supposedly launching in the short to middle term. The hype was real, everyone was positive and even the sceptics were shilly. A year passed and Steemit inc didn't deliver, Appics fell way short on their promises, most of the first Dapp experiments turned out to be just wrongly executed ideas. But the hype was still there during most of 2018, although if you ask me, I believe that hype was mainly driven by the ATH bull run we were part of and not because of how things were unfolding on Steem.
But the community builders, project leaders and Steem believers were still 100% committed. We kept on doing what we do best with a mind full of positivity and belief of what Steem represents and the potential it has.
Then, Steem Fest in Krakow happened, which to be completely honest, apart from a few Dapps that did deliver what they promised, the general perception was that Poland was mainly a party and regarding the projects and tech part, nothing much happened. What did happen was that the community builders and people focused attendees really came together, bonded and the core soul of the community - if you can call it like that - was stronger and more committed to Steem than ever. The negative part was that Steemit inc didn't deliver anything they promised they would, but that didn't surprised anyone because sadly, due to their lack of communication and unreachability during 2018, we were all kind of expecting they wouldn't deliver anything. Krakow was poor regarding good news or even promises, from both Steemit inc and the community driven Dapps.
2019 was a great year for dapps. Despite what I mentioned on the previous paragraph about the lack of deliverance and overall short of expectations from ideas presented at SF, the community was stronger than ever. Alliances were formed, leverage between communities began happening, consulting other dapp leaders became a reality. We were no longer competing against each other - or at least not as much as before - because SF3 allowed us to realize that we need to work as a whole, help each other when it comes to projects, value and embrace alliances. What kept steem going during 2019 was the community strength rallied by several of the SF3 attendees. We understood that things needed to happen, and that they wouldn't - at least for the biggest part - happen thanks to Inc, we would need to get it done by ourselves. There were several attempts to get organized and start things rolling, as a community, everyone together working for the same goals, trying to get things done from within the community. We witnessed the first organized efforts where several top witnesses, Dapp founders, community leaders and community members came together and began speaking like a truthfully strong community. In terms of advantages and edges versus any other Blockchain, we were really leveraging ours: The power of community.
The change in leadership on Steemit inc and thus, the evolution of how they do things combined with how they communicate them, set our expectations high for what SF4 would bring. As I said, what happens at SF sets the pace of what will happen over the next year.
We didn't want promises, we definitely didn't expected smoke and for sure as hell some of us were going to demand results and concrete things. That first presentation from Steemit Inc was crucial, it would set the attitude of us attendees for the rest of the event. I can tell you, for sure, some of us were hesitant, even a bit nervous, hoping that whatever they had in store, would be enough to keep believing in Steem, to keep committed to Steem, to not be obligated to step aside and stop believing on this Blockchain and to never again work to improve it.
This Steem Fest was set to be the defining point where, and I know this as a fact, several people who are very beneficial to the chain would decide if we stayed with a renewed 100% renewal of belief and committment or we began to drift away from the chain, beginning to look at other coins and blockchains.
Promises and half deliveries wouldn't be enough this time. Not after almost 2 years of waiting, not after everything that happened - and didn't happen - since Lisbon.
The good news is, Inc delivered and the better news is that they were realistic and down to earth while doing so. That along with a few incredible ideas presented by other people, got most of us in the mood we were hopping to be, the attitude we were so desperately looking to have but this time, with real basis and concrete reasons supporting it, not just plain belief in an idea and committment to what Steem represents.
There wasn't a lot of Dapp presentations this time, but that's completely fine. Now that we have several working dapps going strong every day, I'm convinced we didn't really need to have a lot of Dapp ideas presented to us this year, in fact, new ideas without proof of work and a achievable business plan was the least we needed.
SMTs and Communities are a reality, they are not just ideas or work in progress projects. They are here and people can't be more thrilled about it. For the first time in quite a while, and after having several conversations with people whose opinion I respect and I know were sceptical about this event going smooth, I can perceive a general positivity and I could dare say and attitude of real hype and back to believing.
For the first time in years, we actually have an MVP that is not a work in progress. The community builders like me actually have something to sell to potential adopters. We are finally in the correct path to mass adoption instead of just hanging out by the bus stop wondering where should we go.
The news that Steem Fest 4 brought to us are graspable, not just something that is yet to come. We are not ready for mass adoption yet, but for the first time since I've been on Steem, I actually know for sure - and not just believe - that we can realistically achieve it. The best part? I'm convinced we can begin working on mass adoption now, start little, begin testing ideas and tweak them as we advance, because now, we can actually test them on a working scenario and not just speculate of how would things play out.
As a closing statement: I'm glad I'm hyped with reasons and not just belief on ideas and ideals. This is mainly because of the community behind Steem and the projects unfolding, but I would be lying if I said that most of this recently acquired hype and positivity is not driven by the New Steemit Inc and them delivering the two most important features steem needs to take the next step on our way to mass adoption.
The future looks bright, happy days look close again.
Congratulations and thank you to the people behind Steemit Inc, good times ahead, I'm sure.
@tipu curate
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that's the kind of stuff i like to read. thanks for the write up
Oh man, your comments sometimes are sarcasm and sometimes they are honest, now well, what could it be this time? :P :P :P Thanks!
Thank You for this post.
I have been wondering how people felt that were there.
The live stream was on way too late to see more than a few minutes.
Yeah, the livestream can only give you some info, that's why I wanted to get this post out soon enough so people would get an honest opinion of what happened from my eyes, and then help them form an opinion of themselves by reading and watching other people's stuff. I'm glad it was useful to you :)
Great to hear about you, I hope you're doing great! Thanks for dropping by
Thanks for your perspective, it is helpful especially since you were there.
This year came across and real and mature, vs. hype. It's hard to know for sure from the live feeds though.
We where missing you for some interesting chats. Hope to see you around next year on SteemFest 5 in ?!?
We definitely didn't need baseless hype and shills for the sake of shills but needed something real, and we got it, now as community it's up to us to keep that momentum going and build on top of the tools the devs are providing for us :)
Glad you found it useful, thanks for dropping by!
The future looks bright, I can feel it!
Me too man, me too :9
Rightly so, 2018 at Poland was filled with a whole lot of expectations really and promises but it never really happened. 2019 was much more Fufiling by all means. A great write Eric
Exactly, we were really waiting for terrific news in Poland, they didn't happend, so this year if they didn't come it would pretty much suck balls xD
Everything did seem a lot more grounded this year, which was very encouraging for sure! 2020 sounds like a good year for progress! It's got a '0' at the end, so that's a sure sign!
There's only a way after that 0, that's up, right? :P
I'm glad to hear your optimism, and that your continued enthusiasm isn't built on empty hype, but on promises being delivered. Wonderful!
I'm sorry for replying so late, but you know, Thailand got in the way :P
I'm currently in your area, BC. Sadly I'm just staying here for 16 hours otherwise I'd do everything to see you again!
I know right, feels amazing to be hyped not just by ideas (which were great) but also because of concrete development of those ideas. I hope you're doing great, thanks for dropping by.
I'm so glad you had fun in Thailand, and I hope you enjoy your brief stay in BC. And, yes, it's wonderful to see progress and concrete ways the blockchain is improving. I'm doing great up here, with my new kitten and my wonderful family. I hope you're doing well, too. Safe travels to you!
Great piece.
Would love to go to a steemfest one day.
I got to ask though.
What’s hour steem price prediction in the short medium and long term now that you went to steemfest
I would say moon to star value over the next eons :P
Well, anything can happen next year, make sure to join one of the ticket giveaway contests that blocktrades and I will hold, maybe you can win one and attend Steem Fest!
Hey @anomadsoul,
well said and yes, there will be the Thailand sun leading us into another year on the chain and #NewSteem is the down to earth „restart“ we needed.
Looking forward to use all the upcoming features to
See you all around and a !BEER from me to you!
Thanks for the beer amigo! And definitely yea, the Thai sun is leading towards a positive 2020 :)
View or trade
BEER.Hey @anomadsoul, here is a little bit of
BEERfrom @detlev for you. Enjoy it!Great summary of the last SF's and the visions it brought. I hope that Steemit Inc. will keep the pace on delivering code so that the community can jump up again from that point.
I'm pretty confident the code will develop as best as possible, having met first hand the Steemit inc devs supports this statement :P
Thanks for the unbiased perspective. Real talk. Also, seconding your observation:
Definitely. And I believe that after these news, it's up to that very same community to keep the momentum going and keep building on top of what the dev team brought to us, no community = no moon.
Glad your travels were safe and fruitful, @anomadsoul. I’ve been looking forward to the post-Steemfest summaries from friends like you. I’ve been fortunate to see some of the developments over the last year, as they happen, and the new leadership has done an incredible job of setting and meeting realistic expectations. Not only that, but communicating it to the community. I wish I could have met you in Bangkok, but living vicariously through your travels and enthusiasm. Thanks for sharing this summary for those of us that couldn’t make it.
Having joined Steemit in 2017 and seen some of the ebbs more than flows, this is good news. Consolidation is essential. It's good to hear that lessons are being learned.
I feel the same, being here since '17 and witnessing how things unfolded and continue to do so, I can only say I'm positive that we are heading towards big things.
I do hope so.
Awesome post, it was a pleasure to read :) Not just because it's quite positive but also well written :)
Thanks so much for the kind words about the style, that is actually one of the things I strive for, how well it can be written something, not so much as the topic (although the topic here rocks haha)
I don't have the means to attend SteemFest so this article was an amazing read. Glad that we have an actual working product to look forward to, in 2020! (Even though I fear with SMT, a massive dump is going to happen.)
Rather than focusing on Mass Adoption I rather focus on making people who are already here stay. So many users left already...
If you ask me, the users who are already here... most of us have an incorrect approach and mindset towards steem, we should strive to change that. Bringing new users with the correct mentality is more important than trying to retain the ones here with a not so positive for the blockchian/coin mentality. Mass adoption is needed, not soon, but short term definitely.
I'm a first time attendee to STEEMFEST so I cannot gauge what the previous ones were like. However, what I did felt was a palpable sense of battle-harderned sobriety. The speakers were mindful not to make overpromises and those who shared their wins (@aggroed) backed it up with numbers. Others even announced their next plans is to stop and take a break (@deegram)! To revisit their product market fit.
This is uncommon for a crypto event. But it shows character in my opinion. I feel hopeful and I think this is the general takeaway from this years' STEEMFEST... But we got our work cut out for us.
I'm keen to help and just a text message away.
Thank you for this. I’m looking forward to next year.
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Hope to see you next year!
No excuses next year mi amigo, I got from good sources it might get sunny for SF yet a second year in a row :P
It's my first @steemfest and I'm really glad to put faces to usernames, chat and hang out with you all. These were definitely the core committed people here for the long-term. Totally agreed; steeminc's presentation was what I'd expect for a four year old product ... Hype done, disillusionment done, now we're setting up for the long-haul. Communities was more well featured than I expected.
And, you don't realise just how many really really smart people there are on this blockchain until you meet them.
The future is possible.
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Glad to read your post and get a feel for how things unfolded this year through your eyes. I'm glad to hear some shiny-ness on the way, and that there is driven enthusiasm. Missed being with you guys this year, but was totally with you in spirit. Thanks for your update @anomadsoul.
I don't understand. You criticize SF3 as being an event where they flat out lied but the fact is that MIRA, RCs, Hivemind, SPS, EIP, SMTs and Communities have all been delivered before SF4. You could say SMTs and communities on testnet, but still impressive.
This all happened despite huge problems, laying off 70% of staff and a bear market that killed most projects.
What I see is simply that you didn't believe in steem anymore, and now you do again. Steemit, Inc have been doing their best since the beginning, and the fact that you don't see that is beyond me. They had to learn on the way, but they did very quickly.
Honestly, the only projects that disappointed are Appics and Steemonboarding (yes, your project). The whole problem against Steemit, Inc was just coming from people's fear and anger because of the price of steem. There was no hype, they have done everything they promised and much more in my opinion.
NEver said that. I said that in SF2 the promised a lot and in SF3 they didn't delivered them. But in SF3 there were no lies or promises, there was actually just vague statements and nothing concrete.
Seriously, read again, not at all what you're saying.
Appics did disappoint, I agree. Steemonboarding, we just released a post (that we had in store waiting for weeks until we saw what happened in SF4 before posting it), you might want to read it. They have done what they promised, late (which is the main issue here) but they did, which is why this very post is up, to recognize their achievements and thank them.
Thanks for your comment.
Thanks for writing this <3 I'm happier in a 'grounded' crypto community than in a shilling one, so this makes me feel good. Glad you went, and I hope this year flies by as fast as the last one so SteemFest 5 is happening soon :P
Definitely. Perhaps we needed hype a couple of years ago as well and in poland, but this time we needed grounded deliveries and we got them. Things can't get better than how they are right now, it's up to us to keep the momentum going though, so let's get to building.
The Photo looks like Bangkok.
greetings from Uruguay
Peter
It is BKK :D
I can remeber this crossing, I drvie there by ma self.
Greetings from Uruguay.
Peter
Hope that good time of STEEM is in near Future.Best wishes for STEEM.
It will be, I'm sure of it. In the meantime, let's keep building together!
I really appreciate your insight into how steemfest unfolded. I'm loving the idea of communities, I think that'll be a crucial way to bring people into the platform. Cheers!
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Thanks for dropping by, I'm glad that my perspective is helping you form an opinion about the event and Steem in general :) Have a great day
I got back into it again after hearing about the change in leadership and I have to say things have been so much better so I am glad to see you backing this up.
Those of us that stuck it out are hopefully in a very strong position going forward and if the ease of sign up and the user experience can be addressed then it's ready to fly!
What other chain has been tested with so many transactions over such a long period of time!
Hey @anomadsoul! @wolfcat and I couldn't make it this year, but I was tracking the fest as it unfolded and was pretty happy to see the direction things were going! Thanks for sharing your perspective here, it helps. Communities and SMT's are going to change everything... I'm glad that Steemfest attendees got a glimpse of the magic, and realism, that is driving this amazing project forward. See you around! :)
Man, I was really hoping to see you guys this year. Lisbon was great but you guys went off grid haha, I did saw you posted something the other day, nice to see you active here again.
Communities and SMTs are the inflexion point we needed, 2020 will be a hell of a ride :) Thanks for droppping by here and sorry for the late reply but you know, Thailand :P
A good read. I really hope things start to move in the next year or two and think SMT will be pivotal.
A year or two?? 😭😢😥 nah
SMT's and hivemind are here, I'm confident we are up for a ride on 2020 man, buckle up!
Alright :)
Thanks for sharing your thoughts. Hopefully, 2020 will be a better year for Steem. Cheers!
I'm trully hyped about 2020!
Obviously you should be as the reasons appear quite glaring.
Steem is maturing, slowly but surely
I'm curious, what does this mean for your average Joe, who lightly dabbles in other blockchains and crypto? Why should they be interested in Steem? What does these fests do other than create a social club? Not saying they are bad, but what do they do to entice and convince the masses that Steem is not just a club and is a real, legitimate blockchain with a plethora of possiblities? Right now, I read this and the comments and all I feel like is "this is a club". Just my two cents.
Will get back to this in a couple of hours, commenting to remember.
fb and zuckerberg chose to not have negative votes for a reason
😂
And now look at them all full of censorship, political agenda driven, a puppet of the government and only full of moms :P
Steem is still falling on cmc though 😭
Let's get it back up!
Steemians and I who could not attend Steem Fest, felt optimism and pessimism from the participants' posts. My hope is of course the same as other Steemians, that this community will get stronger even though in the last two years we have seen the opposite.
Whatever the conditions, now you will see how all parties who are committed to fulfill all their promises.
Exactly what I was trying to say, that whatever the attendees feel about this conference, it influences the perception of the users who couldn't attend. I definitely think we'll see more committment after all of this, I'm sure of it.
An excellent overview -- real and full of real hope! Thank you!
Let's get building already!
Beautiful beautiful. So much positivity. Steem is home
Remember that time Jerry Banfield tried to do a stand up routine at Steem Fest?
Good times, such good times. That Banfield chap really needs to take a bath.
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I remember that, and I also remember the bathroom routine :P
I wish I could forget that video...
I watched the whole thing and I agree about Steemit Inc being passionate yet down to earth. They are a good team of leaders, let's hope for the best.
I couldn't have said it better, passionate yet down to earth.
Very good positif the steemfest.
I too was disappointed by the lack of progress from Steemit after Lisbon, but it looks like we are getting somewhere now. I'm excited about communities and eager to see what they can do for us. We are lucky to have the great set of users and developers who came up with Splinterlands, tribes, Steempeak, Actifit, 3speak and other dapps that kept enthusiasm up. We need to get beyond a small set of users into mainstream use. I don't care if my own rewards go down when thousands more join up as long as it's to build a real social platform. Earning something should be the extra incentive on top of a good experience with real freedom.
Indeed it looks that way. Lisbon was full of promises and Krakow didn't deliver, so this year was crucial for the general user perception. We are in a great spot at the moment, we should make the most out of it and get momentum going! By the way, I know you're getting rekt by the troll, you're taking it like a champ, believe me when I say it doesn't go unnoticed, good times ahead.
Very well explained bro. I have always believed in STEEM, even in low times. It would eventually bring great things to the world.
Me too, I didn't lose any belief in the ideas behind it, I was really hoping to see people delivering this year and they did. Happy days ahead!
Hopefully new and better things will come on the network. I am excited for the coming year.
Me too man, this year will bring amazing things if we focus in making them happen.
Congratulations @anomadsoul!
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I think that s the general feeling after attending this SteemFest, we re gaining momentum and for once, in the right direction. There s still much to do but we re getting more realistic regarding what we can do. Can't wait to see what this year has to offer!
Yeah man exactly, and I think we should use this momentum to pick a lot of things up where we left them and get it done! 2020 sounds promising already :)
Yep, 2020 will be a good year! (and we ll win the bowling tournament as well =D)
Thanks for the post.
Thanks for the post.