I think that when Steem first began the community was a lot smaller and tightly knit. It meant that if you made quality content and were warm and friendly with other community members you could go a really long way. It was about getting in early and making friends. Now the community has changed a bit there are a flood of accounts owned by the same abusers essentially running botnets and content mills. There are still very good authors on Steem but they are few and far between. Sites like Medium and the one you referred to don't pay for content so if people post there they obviously have something very important they would like to say. That is not the case with Steem where people from all walks of life can earn an income even if its just a small one. Don't try to get rich as a content writer solely on Steem. Use it as a platform to network as you are doing here, find ways you can be of use to people. Frequent the different discord rooms behind all these personalities and then you will find some success. It can be a real rollercoaster at first people love Steem then when they don't find much success they give up but the rare few stick it out, keep improving their craft and getting to know folks and opportunities seem to present themselves. That's the best advice I've got for you at the moment. Take care.