Hidden Contests and the start of the Small Fish Games! - All are welcome to join!
Hello all my friends and followers! Over the last couple weeks I have gained quite a few new followers, and I have been thrilled to meet and talk with so many new people! We really have a special platform here, and I have so many examples of that in my memories and on my feed; if you are new here, you don't just have to take my word for it, let's make some new ones now!
Doing creative, fun things that otherwise would be outside of our comfort zones, collaborating and competing, sharing and caring, building and creating, all these are things that I love about the community that I have met around steem. It seems that every new tag that I dive into, I am finding communities budding, developing, collaborating, enjoying, sharing and loving what they are doing. There are so many more initiatives now that before, it just keeps getting better and wider!
Now, throughout my Steem journey, I have been helped and supported by so many great users, and in fact still to this day I try to make it back around to friends that I met from earlier days on this platform. I also try to give back, I try to 'pay it forward' to my current followers and friends, as well as newer users who are just trying to get integrated here.
I like to reward the best, most thoughtful, funniest, most caring, most adjective comments that I receive on my posts! I haven't really advertised it, but if you read carefully all of my posts, you will notice that I do mention it occasionally. This time I went back more than 2 months of posts, all the way back to the results of my homestead caption contest, and found 28 of my favorite comments from that period, or should I say that I picked my favorite comments and it turned out there were 28. You'll notice that three users got more than one rewarded comment!
The winners are:
@itravelarts @quillfire @janton @cecicastor @phoenixwren @coinsandchains @mariannewest @jaichai @sugarcreek @deadgrlsuppastar @headchange @lyndsaybowes @whatisnew @hobotang @samic @canadianrenegade @buckaroo @eroche @thekittygirl @eveningart @maverickinvictus @quochuy
Now I have interacted with a lot of you in some very engaging comments, but these are only on my posts, not on your posts, and since I make the arbitrary rules here, that's the way it is!
So anyways....this is the official beta period of what I am going to call Small Fish Games. That name is also in beta, so if I find that the tag is being used or anybody thinks of a better idea (including me) I might change it. But the idea is the following:
I am going to continue to work on different projects that relate to steem in different ways. I have had success here and have developed different strategies. I like rewarding users who engage and do good stuff. Now I want to have a long form contest where new users (and anybody!) can play around having fun on steem like I do. If I have to work more on one aspect, and I may not be able to comment as much as I like, I might send the competitors to comment in a certain tag that week for a chance to win a prize. Or other things that I think of, I have lots of great ideas already.
For this first week I do have some homework for any interested participants:
Week 1 Homework
Express your intent to participate in a comment, let me know how long you have been on steem, what is your experience so far, what have you tried, what has worked, what hasn't worked.
Register in Asher's Engagement League if you haven't already.
Prizes
I will use three forms of prizes, and maybe more if I think of them. They are:
Delegated SP - This week there will be a 100 delegated SP prize (length too be determined, but probably several weeks at least)
SBI shares - I love these things!
@treeplanter upvotes - Trees are good. The best even!
I have to run now, I am accepting entries, comments, suggestions, clarification, notification, queries, confused looks and complaints in the comments section!
Love and LIght!
I wish I had half the energy that you do! It is probably due to the fact I am double your age!) I was really gung-ho when I started, now I find due to other commitments I have less time and energy to do the things I did do before. I still love the engagement and I wish I had more time to devote to making quality content every day. When I come up with a solution for this problem, I will let every know what the secret is! LOL
Do let us know the secret! I found that the videos take me way less time than the posts, so now occasionally I do still do posts, but this competition is me transitioning to a time when I won't be able to as much.
Life goes in cycles, and steem should add not subtract, don't you think?
It should add indeed. Life does get hectic at times...
What is the one task that is taking up the most of your time right now? Its not worrying is it?
Some days just looking after 21 people is a bit daunting...keeping life normal for 7 kids under the age of 10 can be a challenge!
Normal is such a funny word! But I am so happy that you can keep 'em fed, kids eat a lot!
Does that make you the matriarch?
I guess that it does! 🤣🤣
Ceci I have really enjoyed chatting with you over the past month!
What would you say is your number one reason for using steem blockchain?
Thanks for the post, ecoinstant.
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Yes! Thank you for detecting the feel good vibes I put into this post!
Nice. Thanks for the SBI share!
I've been on Steem since late February. I'm hooked, it's addictive and I've since slowed down so much on other social platforms. But I think I need to start going back there to promote Steem to the others.
So far on Steem, my most profitable kind of posts are development (programming) for @utopian-io. I then discovered @ulog and I'm trying to commit to post a daily ulog talking about everything I do that includes in real life but also here as a Steem witness.
Engagement is something I'm trying to improve, so thanks for doing all these.
I have had a lot of success on utopian as well! In fact, I have an open source project that currently needs an ally (I'm still learning!)! Maybe you are such an ally! Maybe hit me on discord!
This almost looks like you intend to participate! I am thrilled to accept your almost intentions to play in the Small Fish Games!
Yes I intend to play. I misread and thought I just needed to comment with the responses to your questions. 😊
Will chat on Discord
I was just being silly when you answered all the questions perfectly but didn't actually say 'I'm playing!'
Look forward to chatting on discord! You seem like you are full of interesting abilities!
😂😂😂
Just woke up and answered your DM
Hey good morning! Thanks for getting back to me!
What do you think is the right way to account for the cost of hosting a free tool, just doing a monthly post?
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STOPTo support your work, I also upvoted your post!
The more friends you get, the more your beard get bigger. That's wonderful.
Wonderful Max! Wouldn't you like to participate in the Small Fish Games?
Sure I would love to.
I would see to it anyways.
Hey Max! What has been your most successful experience so far on steemit?
Aw- thank you so much for the gift- that was a really lovely surprise and gave me the biggest smile when the notification of your post popped up. And yes please, I'd love to join in with your small fish games :) I'm already over at Asher's place, loving what he's up to each week - so that's that bit covered.
I have been here since the 15th June, so yesterday was my 2 month mark here on Steemit. I was lucky enough to be scooped into the madcap loving embrace of the @welcomewagon early on and they pretty much made sure that I found my feet and met lots of gorgeous people. They are my highlight, and I love scouting around for new newbies for them to scoop up now as their unofficial WW Spy :)
Then I have to mention PYPT- the first Discord chat I ever joined in- and I quickly found a second home over at The Ramble and love listening in to the wonderful shows there.
I got a lot of pleasure from the Curie Comment Challenge last week- and also love the C2 community and the wonderful curation community they have surrounding them.
Ultimately, I've loved getting to know the people that make this place feel like home- writing posts, writing and responding to comments, reading so much fab content... I've even played with video (something I swore I'd never do!!)
All in all? Bloomin' brilliant! Thank you for asking :)
E x
This is a wonderful entry! I see you are loving lots of the same groups that I have been involved in, and even gotten outside of your comfort zone!
An unofficial spy! That sounds exciting, why haven't you made it official yet?
Wow man, I just made a pretty elite group. Thank You for the SBI, how I wish I was a comment master like you though. This platform is becoming rather addicting, I find myself checking it more and more often.
I like the #smallfishgames idea, that is a great initiative.
Wouldn't you like to join in the #smallfishgames? By the way, next week for your contest I want to update my 'promo' from daily sneak to #smallfishgames.
But of course, I'll slate you for next week. I'm going to have to start posting the contest on Monday mornings to garner a little more support from the SBI group and their advertising of the contests. It will also let me link from the winner's post to the new contest.
Just write it up and I will drop it in there.
Are you in the steem basic income discord? They also have a channel there for promoting contests in which steembasicincome shares are prizes.
Are you expressing your intentions to participate in #smallfishgames?
Yes to both questions.
When was it that you got started here on steem? Was there a period that you felt discouraged first?
I received my account March 5th this year, after waiting almost 4 weeks for the account. I didn't do a whol
Where did the rest of my post go?.....
I just wrote a book in a comment and it's gone.
Wow I can't believe I got a comment award. Mostly because we just met when you arrived in Florida. I lose track of time but it seems recent. Anyway thank you ever so much. I love those SBI shares and they really do add up.
I am pretty sure I will want to do some of your contest. Very interested to see what you come up with I like your style so if nothing else will be watching the games.
Do it! Tell me more about your experience so far and about what has worked and what hasn't!
I don't remember now which comment it was, but it was probably pretty neat!
I left you a pretty detailed response comment yesterday but that was on someone else's post so probably not it.
Alright I arrived in March just before my birthday,(I discovered I share a birthday with the platform. Thought that was a good sign. There is a SMT release scheduled for my birthday this year. An even better omen?)
Anyway, I assume anything that hasn't worked is because of my own lack of working it. Probably on that score I would say dodging a delegation and also dodging numerous newbie nickles was not the smartest move. My reasoning at the time was it seemed unfair to take from projects designed to help newbies grow. I was still looking around unsure of my commitment to stay.
To turn that around those have also been some of the most helpful things once I decided to commit.Community involvement is a must for me. Most people I interact with on a regular basis share more than one community in common. Also the engagement league but that one can be a huge time commitment in order to place well.
And for a really fast answer. For me the platform feed is useless (cleanup is on the todo list) On the other hand Ginabot is a lifesaver. Combined with Steamworld that just transforms the whole experience.
Oh yeah the add on tools are really important! And your feed is your problem, sounds like you follow too many people, or the wrong ones!
I know that sometimes we might follow people to make them feel good, but that only works if we completely sacrifice the feed. Did you know that you can see other people's feeds by editing the URL?
I still have to get back around to your nice comment over on Matt Clarke's post...
Yes I do have a lot of dead follows that need to come out Asher made me a great little list of my follows by order of most recently active. His data is amazing.
Oh don't even worry about the comments I am not steeming real hard this week. More of a slowly chugging along.
Chugging along! What is it that you do between steem sessions?
Aw, thank you for the SBI! I would love to play, but I am falling asleep and so not in best commenting form. XD My Steemiversary is next month, but I am still a red fish, soooooo ...I probably don't know "what works" very well, other than I've met some great people and had a lot of fun!
And you are closer to minnow than ever! Good that you are having fun still!
What are some of the things that haven't worked?
I would say, not being on Discord. It seems everyone makes their friends and groups there, instead of here. For most of my time on Steemit, I worked on a Kindle alone, and Kindle, though technically an Android, doesn't use the Google Play store, but a native Amazon store, and Discord wasn't available there. Only recently have I gotten a smartphone and a laptop. So I could do it now, but ...eh, I don't know. I haven't been chat-room-y since AOL and IRC days. I'm not sure if I have the energy to split my focus even more.
Hm! That is interesting! I also was resistant, and now being there, I can attest that there are a lot of people that spend a lot of energy there! But GINA bot alone is worth it to me to be on discord, she notifies me of anything I want her to, for me it is mentions, replies and wallet movement.
Do you have a way of knowing if I mention you in a post? Like, how did you find this post?
Steemworld is where I look for mentions, though sometimes I forget. :)
Tools! Hey what other cool tools do you use? There are so many!
Also, at what point in your journey did you meet up with lyndsaybowes?
I've known Lyndsay from Facebook before I joined Steemit; she's what brought me here! :)
I use SteemWorld, SteemNow, Steemd, and SteemReports. How about you? Also letseat, actifit, and Partiko now. Probably won't use Partiko a lot, as navigating on a little phone is, well, back to an even tinier touch screen. LOL
Aha! So she is your madrina so to speak! That is very interesting! I definitely use steemnow the most, also GINAbot on discord. I will check steemd and steemworld and steemreports for specific things. Now I was to make some of my own tools! I made one last year but I let the hosting expire, need to get my act together....
There are so many cool dapps! I do like letseat, I hope it gets an update soon with my recommendations in mind. I haven't been able to get actifit to work in a way that actually makes sense to me, seems I need to leave the app open, because when I do other things with my phone (which I do!), it doesn't work. It may have been updated since, let me know when it is awesome and I will try again!
So with your extensive contest experience, what are some of the things that I should consider doing in the small fish games?