gazes affectionately at her Steemit feed

How #thealliance found me

This is my eighth day on Steemit and I've found myself in a bit of a rhythm. I'm careful with my 10 daily votes (to keep my power up and my curation top-quality!), surf the 'new' feed just as much as I surf the 'trending' feed, and balance my follows between established Steemians and newbies like myself who are destined for greatness.

Down the rabbit hole of new posts opening into seemingly infinite tabs, I discovered a post from @enginewitty about why they joined #TheAlliance. Somehow, the Alliance made its way into my browsing and suddenly, WHAM, I was flooded with exuberance and excitement for this new community that had found me.

@enginewitty so heartily described the family that exists within #thealliance, the commitment to quality content creation AND curation, and the fervor with which everyone seemed to support one another. I checked out every single @ tag and saw one after another STELLAR content creators, following them and instantly growing concerned that I might look like a stalker. As a new Steemian, I'm clamoring to create my best content, curate my favorite finds for my followers, and use my votes wisely to improve the community. I can't help but reach out and connect with those who inspire me.

I want to be a part of a community that's committed to quality AND each other.

Anyone who has ever blogged, been on Instagram, or promoted their business or creations on Facebook knows that the internet can be a very lonely place. No matter how stellar your words, photos, or finds are if you aren't paying to play or sponsored by someone who is, you're basically anonymous in a sea of uber-popular lookalikes. On Instagram, I started to feel like I'd developed a small family, but after a few days off for the holidays, engagement plummeted and I no longer existed to these people. Is it so unrealistic to want to create quality content online and engage with others doing the same? And gasp want to earn a living for it?

All of this commitment and time is right here, graciously afforded to me by my freelance career and my low-impact lifestyle. I'm on Steemit daily, typically 3 - 4 hours, and create content for multiple outlets outside Steemit that all come together here. I want to engage with a platform and a community that gives back ​and to be amongst people who feel the same. #thealliance truly seems like that family.

I love Steemit as it is, and I'm committed to broadening its reach by bringing trends, lifestyle articles, and modern style.

The women of Steemit inspire me every day. On a platform where I have learned tremendously valuable insight about cryptocurrency, technology, homesteading, and photography, I would also like to see more femininity, fashion, style, and lifestyle. I aim to bring an element of softness and gentility to Steemit as a balance to my love for crypto, libertarianism, and off-grid living. I'm a rugged Blundstone boot-wearing wild woman but I'm also a feminine model for ethical fashion brands and a champion of thrifted + secondhand shopping. I want to bring my experience curating trends and beauty to Steemit, where I can apply that to my resteems, my few precious upvotes, and my family here in #thealliance.

I know that I'm different and that everyone may not value what I value, but what I value most is quality, dedication, creativity, and originality. My vow to #thealliance is to curate consciously, value originality, and engage frequently!