If you check the valuation of Steem, in dollars on coinmarketcap, you will see that it is worth about 16 cents, and if you are new to this platform and blockchain, and out of curiosity feel like looking at its ATH, well... you're gonna have a pleasant surprise. This altcoin, that struggles to get back to top 50, was once a $7 coin, and for what I remember a top 30 one. 

Time and the bear market washed a lot of its dollar value, but haven't killed it and probably never will. I don't want to become a fanatic of this platform and for this token, which I really am not currently, because I see its flaws as well as its pluses. It is still a blockchain with a great potential, apps being created and developed on it, and users constantly creating traffic, and that makes it still a good investment, for both curators, hodlers and content creators. 

The way every one of us perceives the value of it is totally different though, and it's natural to be this way. We're individuals having different perspectives, different balances in the bank, different perceptions of how blockchain technology and cryptocurrency will *infiltrate the world*. Patience is also a virtue in giving value and taking benefits from it, in the case of cryptocurrencies, and especially Steem. 

Taking out the 16 cents, that one Steem token is currently valued at, I will try and look at its value through the eyes of different type of users, investors and hodlers, and I will start with the last one mentioned, which is the hodler. The one that doesn't blog, doesn't curate, and doesn't move his stake at all. It's probably *the most rare type of steemian* and for such a person, daily and even yearly fluctuations in price for Steem, don't matter. 

![photo-1501523460185-2aa5d2a0f981.jpg](https://cdn.steemitimages.com/DQmaQAAKRXBbyyoLaNgryRWMKcyhEqeyqRvxtR8GGVu85qY/photo-1501523460185-2aa5d2a0f981.jpg)
[image source](https://unsplash.com/photos/HYQvV8wWX18)

He made a conscious decision to buy himself *a portion of the total stake of Steem*, believes in the project, has a vision for even a few decades ahead for Steem, and trusts in his portfolio no matter what. His kind of an early adopter that doesn't bother buying tokens at 16 cents and neither at $3. He doesn't seek instant or short term gratification, and he might be highly rewarded over time, but for such a case, his family doesn't rely on an extra income, such as blogging on Steem, to put a better meal on the table at the end of the day. 

This second type of Steem users, *miners*, and sellers, don't have the time for such a long term vision, and are usually folks from poor and undeveloped countries, where an extra dollar a day would make a big difference. They are definitely in the game for collecting Steem through rewards, and hopefully they manage to do a good job and earn as much as possible, and they can't afford to hodl. They can't do that because a Steem a day can buy them a bread... or some potatoes. Think of such cases next time you are hard on spammers, their intentions are similar with the beggars ones, and there's probably no place in the world without beggars. I don't particularly like them either but I understand their pain. 

For huge stakeholders Steem is a business, with fluctuating revenues, and no matter how much the Steem token would be valued on the market they will still be happy with it. Having tons of Steem, somehow tells that you're a rich guy that didn't sold his bike to buy 1000 Steem and power up. Your daily necessities are covered by other businesses and this is just something extra powder. You have your initial purchased tokens and they keep on growing, because you get interest in SP, and curating rewards. You're never at a loss, even if you sell some few hundred thousands to buy yourself an electric bike once in a while, or an exotic vacation, because you are constantly earning big time. Good for you, you're kind of the happiest type of Steemian. 

Then there are the avid bloggers, that probably started with just 15 delegated Steem, and through efforts and passion, persistence, and a strong vision, got to own some 30-40,000 Steem in their wallets, and that's kind of a sweet spot. You haven't made a fortune, but once the token gets over a dollar, you're pretty well positioned. In such category I see people that usually have a day job, or a business and they don't rely on Steem earnings at all. It's fun what they're doing around here, they're involved in crypto, and they even earn some on a daily basis. Good job!

The last category that I want to mention, is the... pretty active users that kind of struggle to get over $1 per post, and they seem to do that for years. They're not coming from a third world country, they don't actually rely on Steem to serve them a meal a day, they even bought some from their own pocket back when it was over $3, although they didn-'t had money to waste, but they didn't managed to make their blog a natural reservation in this ecosystem, where whales come for a drink and leave big tips. They are the ones in my opinion, that are the most frustrated and can't envision a too brighter future for Steem, and for them as bloggers. It's them, and the failed spammers, that fill the buses leaving the Steem station for good. 

The whole perspective on I how I see the subjective value of Steem is somehow targeting a under a dollar per token valuation, because once it gets over that, perceptions change as well. Looking at Steem from this perspective, or should I say perspectives, makes me understand the many categories of users that we currently have on this blockchain, and if Albert Einstein would have been alive, he would definitely agree with me that the value of Steem is kind of... relative. 

**Thanks for attention,**
**Adrian**

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