There really is a reciprocal nature to what we do here, and being a part of @abh12345's Curation and Engagement Leagues helped me see that. Now it's more a matter of time and what I can do as opposed to picking and choosing, but I think there is no better way to get that idea across—you need to get out onto other people's posts if you expect them to go to yours.

We are, more than anything else, our own content discovery mechanism. Beyond curation, if we're out commenting on other people's posts, there will be some uptick in earnings on ours. The more done, the more chance of a greater uptick.

And it doesn't have to be a vote for a vote, or comment for a comment. The ratio is never going to be 1:1. The more you want, the more you'll need to give. That's pretty much how it works.

All of those here who have primarily earned their way to dolphin or beyond didn't do it by waiting for the hordes to come to them, just as you said.

Whale votes are more likely to come in a curation trail than on its own, and I don't expect that to happen that much differently after the hardfork. Which means, there's a defined set of criteria that people need to follow to get those votes. Plus, you need to get noticed.

So, anyway.

Where STEEM is headed, we'll find out in short order. Right now, the price is headed back down. It has just as much potential to keep going down at this point, because we're heading into another period of the unknown. We seem to keep finding ourselves in uncharted waters. :)