Recently, after an interesting conversation with someone close to me, I came to realize that because of the non-anonymous nature of Steemit, there are things that people do/don’t do, say/don’t say, post/don’t post, and like (upvote)/not like (not upvote).

Your Account and You

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Your account, in a way, shows who you are. If you’re serious about the platform, it most likely includes some level of personal information/detail about you, your life, and your interests. Many of us have read about Steemians meeting up in real life or have been those who have met Steemit friends IRL. This seems to be somewhat a _normal_ thing to do here and I feel like that is because of the transparency some people have on their blogs. It’s easier in a way to trust someone online if you can get an idea of what they’re like, what they’re passionate about, their aspirations and goals, etc. @biasnarrative and I actually met @polebird yesterday since we were in the city she lives in. She’s such a sweetheart and I’m thankful for Steemit for making this possible; the ability for people from the Midwest connecting with someone all the way down in Texas within a matter of weeks is pretty incredible. On Steemit, we are associated with what we post, who we follow, who we resteem, who we upvote or flag, and who we interact with through comments or Steemit.chat/discord channels. Because of this, some people may want to keep everything PG because they don’t want their partner (or parents) knowing they follow @bustygirl111, @nudesfordays, @buyillegalthings, @drugdealer420, etc. etc. (these are random names I came up with and any association with anyone is strictly coincidental) while others don’t really care about this and truly do whatever the f**k they want on here, just like they would on, say, reddit, 4chan, or real life.

Anonymity on Reddit

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Since I brought up Reddit, let me discuss this a bit more. On a platform like Reddit, most people stay anonymous. If you’re familiar with the content on Reddit, you must know that there’s plenty of people who share things by staying anonymous or saying they created a “throwaway” account to post something just so they could make sure they stay completely anonymous. This may be for NSFW content, relationship advice, embarrassing pictures or stories, etc.

NSFW Content

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Let’s take NSFW content as an example. Most people on Reddit don’t think twice about liking a NSFW post of a very attractive woman flaunting her breasts or a hot guy with really nice abs. Most people don’t care about commenting on a “hot” girl’s post and how much they appreciate this and that on her. Most people aren’t afraid of being identified if they share a relationship_advice post on Reddit as long as they make a new throwaway account. All this is mainly because they have that _anonymity wall_ that prevents them from being identified as someone’s father/mother/guardian, husband/wife/partner, boyfriend/girlfriend/partner, boss, coworker, colleague, therapist, physician, or even just friends.

Are You Less Likely to Post Certain Things vs. Others?

This makes me wonder how big the NSFW and NSFW-esque communities here on Steemit are. Is it as big as other platform where anonymity is easier to achieve? Do these tags have the potential to be as huge as, say, r/gonewild or something along those lines? This makes me wonder if Steemit, with the blockchain foundation behind it, is missing out on some aspects of other platforms where users can stay anonymous. Has this nature of Steemit made people think hard about what they post, upvote, resteem, and who they follow on here? OR, has this nature of Steemit actually helped people show who they are and truly not care about what others think of them as long as they are being genuine? After all, as humans, we tend to appreciate truthfulness and authenticity in people. At least I do… People who want to pursue professions or passions that are _looked down upon_ can pursue them without any shame or judgement because they truly are passionate about what they do. They believe that they can bring change in the platform/world and this may attract other like-minded people's support.

Could Non-Anonymity Be a Downside?

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I see local community projects being successful through fund-raising from Steemit. I can definitely see versions of GoFundMe being successful by raising money through Steemit. It’s a brilliant way to be heard and get help from people all over the world as long as they have a good cause. However, could the platform be lacking other areas of support for people, especially those requiring some level of anonymity like counseling, advice on relationships/legal issues, etc.? Anonymity to openly follow who someone wants to follow, what they want to comment on, what they want to say, what they want to express without being judged or shamed…

Steemit As a Professional Workplace

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This just makes me think of Steemit as the “professional” version of social media platforms. You can be whoever you want to be, dress however you want to dress up, use whatever kind of words you want to use, have whatever kind of opinion you want to have when you’re alone or with friends/family, but when you’re on Steemit, you almost follow certain “terms and conditions” to be successful… as if you’re at your workplace and you need to keep your boss/HR happy to keep the job. As if people on Steemit are the professional versions of who they are on the internet. You could say you can do the same on Facebook but one has the ability to hide their friends list, their posts, their photos, and restrict who sees what on it. Not on Steemit though. Everything is out there and your _reputation_, your contribution, and the content of your posts are quite important to set up a good image on here. It’s also harder to make a new account and start back over unless you’re loaded to begin with.

Is Steemit Changing People’s Image On The Internet?

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The non-anonymity may be a good push for some people to give their best and be their best on the internet. It could really help someone truly develop and grow with the right kind of support and motivation. If there’s passion, motivation, and hard-work, as far as I’ve seen, read, and heard people say on here, you will likely be successful! Since Steemit is so strict about valuable content and true support, are we turning the nature of the internet around by helping people become a good versions of themselves on the internet, just like they would want to in real life? Are we helping people become more creative by pushing them to come up with original, thought-provoking content? Are we helping people think for themselves and come up with their own conclusions by rewarding good comments on posts? ***

Thoughts?

What do you guys think about the non-anonymous, permanent nature of Steemit? Do you think there are any downsides of it? Do you agree/disagree with the fact that people seem to portray the best versions of themselves on here as if it were more like a professional setting and less like a social media platform? *** **Credits:** All images are from Pixabay.com