So you wish to live the Way of Steemit?

It is a long and winding road, grasshopper, filled with towering joys and sobering defeats.

The Way of Steemit is brimming with life lessons that must be yielded to, lest you risk whacks with the flag, or worse- banishment. There is nothing worse than being exiled as a Steemit has-been; shoved into the world wide web amongst the slaves of Facebook and other nonrewarding web-lands.

I am here to show you the way, grasshopper.

Transcend the minnow pond and swim with the big whales...

Follow my wisdom and bask in the blockchain glory. Once you can take this pebble from my hand and present it for another tiny minnow, then, my friend, you will have surpassed my teachings and are on your way to being Master Whale.

Steemit has etiquette and guidelines- both written and unwritten. I have compiled the Tao of Steemit for your growth and rewarding knowledge, as @reddragonfly brought to my attention during a conversation that there may be a number of Steemmates who have not read the Whitepapers or FAQ's. And there a few common courtesies here that may not be common sense in all walks of life, but will help you transcend the minnow pond and swim with the big whales. So for ease of all and consistency across the platform, here is the Tao of Steemit.

The beautiful thing about these common courtesies is that they transmit across all areas of life, too ;)

1.. Be Kind!

This should go without saying, but far too often I see people doing the opposite. Sure, some things on Steemit may seem like common sense, like not asking for follows and upvotes, but you must keep in mind that Steemit is a wonderful melting pot of all kinds of cultures and peoples. Different things are kosher in different societies- it is not polite to slurp your soup in America but if you don't in Japan they consider it offending. The middle finger is offensive in the USA but the pointer finger is rude in Italy.

I understand if someone keeps doing it, then by all means be a little less nice. But do not be mean to someone new to Steemit. Remember, you were once new too. Most of us have made the same mistakes before- if not on Steemit in other areas. Be kind and empathetic and help a fellow crypto rebel out :)

Help the new kids out. The bigger Steemit grows the better it is for us all.

2.. Don't Upvote the Already Trending

Steemit even tells you this. The purpose of this is so that the rewards can be equally distributed. For curation purposes, Steemit rewards those who find good content and upvote it before it becomes popular. After it is already trending you are supposed to go look for other good content to upvote. There is no reason to upvote content that is already trending.

3.. All About Comments

Interact with your community. Do not post and forget it. People who read your article want to talk about it. If someone takes the time to leave you a comment, show them the same courtesy and respond with an equally well thought out comment, or at the very least thank them for reading your article.

On the same note, do not expect to attract a following if you only comment "nice post!" Nobody of any substance is going to pay attention to that weak comment. Expect to be ignored. Strong, well thought out comments will gain the respect of the post author, and quite possibly start a longstanding relationship (following).

If you flag (downvote) a post, leave a comment why. But do not flag a post just because you disagree with the author! People are going to differ in opinion. Steemit is a place of free speech. I repeat, do not flag just because you don't like what someone has to say. The flagging system is to be used if a user posts something against the TOS, or is otherwise abusing the system. When in doubt, ask. Do not flag just because you are upset or feel wronged.

Alternatively, it's nice to leave a comment with your upvotes, too. It especially helps new authors know what they are doing right, and it helps everyone know what you like about their content.

And don't put links in comments, unless you have a good relationship with the poster and know they will appreciate it, or it is VERY relevant to the post content. When in doubt, don't do it- instead say you just posted something similar and what it is about and why you think they will enjoy your article. Then the author can choose to read more on your page if they are interested.

4.. Do Not Beg

Follow for follow? Upvote me and I'll upvote you! No. Just, NO. Do not ask for upvotes and follows. It is not only slobby etiquette, it is poor style and could get you flagged. Would you go up to people on the street and ask them to follow you? Granted, yes, Steemit is a social media outlet, but keep in mind it is different from the rest. You are here to build a community of likeminded people. Do not go onto peoples posts and beg for follows and upvotes. Go onto their posts after reading and write something that will interest them. That will get follows and upvotes.

5.. Get Rich Quick?

Even the Steemit Whitepaper says that Steemit is created for the long term. You must be in it for the long game to succeed at Steemit.

Do not expect to see great financial rewards and retire from your day job after two weeks at Steemit.

Nothing great was ever built overnight. Not one person on the trending page is new; they all posted daily for months to get where they are today. You must be dedicated and patient and write quality and compelling content and be an asset to the community. You must build Steemit, like anything else. You will get from Steemit exactly what you put into it.

6.. Treat Steemit Like Life

The best thing I can say is to treat this platform like the neighborhood in your community. Your page is your house. Everyone can see it. You want to keep it looking nice, and put up things that are "you" and distinguish your house from the others on the block. Make it colorful and entertaining so people will want to stop and look, perhaps stay a while and see what else you have.

Build a strong foundation so your house will last years by posting unique and interesting articles. Keep your "windows" clean because everyone is watching you.

You want the neighborhood to respect you. You do not wish to be seen as the bully, so be nice to all who pass. You don't want the reputation of being a thief, so don't steal content and put it in your yard pretending it's yours.

Remember, everything on Steemit stays on Steemit. Every comment, like, post, argument, everything is recorded forever for all to see until the end of the internet. How do you wish them to see you?

7.. Community Spirit

The rest of the internet is a dog eat dog world, where everybody is out to help themselves only. Steemit is different!

Steemit was created to be a community. We need to get out of the Me Me Me mindset and adopt a all for one and one for all mentality. Get into the habit of viewing your fellow Steemmates as your own personal community members- I like to call it my Tribe- and helping one another grow. We are all here for the same purpose. We are all rebels. And we are all slightly different from the crypto naysayers- we are risktakers and dreamers and believers and innovators. We are all creative and intelligent and helpful and friendly and generous. Lets uplift each other so we can all grow!

And always remember to show appreciation and gratitude for those who help you :)

8.. We're Only Human

Remember that we are a community of Humans. We make mistakes. We have good days and bad days. Keep this in mind before reacting, or overreacting. Take a step back if necessary, and tickle your empathy bone.

There will be differences in opinion and arguments. Do not take them personal. This is, after all, the internet.
Celebrate peoples accomplishments and offer a shoulder in times of need.
Be a good friend, just like you would in real life.
Offer forgiveness and ask for it when you are wrong.
Be critical of others work only when they have asked for it, and offer help where you can.
Never ever attack someone until you have gone to them and made an honest effort to communicate.
Conduct yourself like a gentleman or woman and have fun.
Never be immature, save that for your frat house- it has no room on Steemit.
Don't troll and remember to respect everyones differences.
Racism and Sexism and any ism should not be brought to Steemit.
Be real and be honest and be yourself always.