Exploring Indonesian Community Growth and Empowerment [Guest Interview @ayijufridar with @mariska.lubis]

This post is a guest interview conducted by @sndbox incubator member @ayijufridar. [Guest Authors and Interviewers receive 20% of the SBD post rewards and an opportunity to showcase unique activities, projects or host challenges within the community.]

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Guest Interviewer: @ayijufridar

Interview Introduction with @mariska.lubis

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@ayijufridar: Since joining Steemit in August 2017 with the account @mariska.lubis, Mariska Lubis has become one of the most significant figures within Steemit Indonesia as a productive community builder. Lubis has a long legacy across social media platforms as a SoMe celebrity, accomplished author, entrepreneur and blogger.

At the moment, @mariska.lubis lives in Bandung, West Java, Indonesia. Bandung is a beautiful city with a lot of history and is known as Paris Van Java. She cares a great deal about promoting Steemit in the country. By her hand, the 1st KSI National Meetup in Bandung was born and was attended by hundreds of Steemians from all over Indonesia. Mariska continues her organizational work to leverage Steemit for its Indonesian members.

@ayijufridar (AYI): Welcome Mariska! Let's jump right in, you're currently planning for the National Meetup in Bandung with an interesting concept that combines painting, music, and Steemit. What do you expect from that event?

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@mariska.lubis: My concern is about the social psychological condition of this world, particularly in Indonesia, due to the bad influence of social media at the moment. There are too many destructive hoaxes, spamming, and plagiarism that tries to destroy and disrupt our country and nation. On the other hand, I saw a lot of young people in Indonesia that are very creative and have the ability to create incredible work but do not have a chance to grow for certain reasons.

I thought that a National Meetup in Bandung could become an event to get to know each other in much better way for us Steemians who come from different regions, culture, and tribes that lead into unity and collaboration. I really hope the event and everything that will be shown will become an inspiration for everyone to be more creative and productive. And besides, since I know that a lot of media will cover the event and be attended by other people, I really want that meetup to also become a gateway of opportunity for anybody who has their creative work.

AYI: How do you feel about the presence of Indonesia within the Steem platform?

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@mariska.lubis: I am very happy with the Indonesian Steemit Community. Indonesia has the most diverse tribes, cultures, religions, languages, and others that live together peacefully with respect under the same flag. Big thanks to @levycore and @aiqabrago in particular who are the leaders of this community. In short, Indonesia Steemit Community is a place to learn and share everything concerning Steemit.

AYI: What should be improved in the Indonesian Steemit Community?

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@mariska.lubis: Communication is the biggest issue. We have different backgrounds, cultures, experiences, aims, and interests that make all of us have our own “language” to communicate with others. If all members of the community agree with this, than I am sure all will grow faster. I also suggest that we need to think about the way we communicate when we all do promo Steem and Steemit, just to make sure that we are on the same page and decrease the possibility of misinterpretations about Steem, Steemit, and the community itself.

AYI: Plagiarism is still a serious problem for the Indonesian community. What should we do to reduce plagiarized content? Do you campaign against plagiarism?

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@mariska.lubis: My opinion is we must all face the problem head-on. We need to realize that erasing all plagiarized content is very difficult. What we can do is to help decrease it by providing good guidance. We need to remind bloggers that it is not good to “steal.” It is not only against the law and general ethics, but being a plagiarist will not make them successful within Steemit or anywhere else. We could flag repeat offenders together and help them accept responsibility for the risk and consequences of their choices. I despise plagiarism.

Since the beginning, I work to share my methods of writing and drawing, not only providing tutorials, but also examples. I always hope that my posts are useful not only by reading them, but also by learning how I present. Some people are strong learners and are willing to listen, but there are a lot out there who are stubborn and need stricter guidance. A lot of Steemians have never written or made any posts previously and it is difficult to give them theories of writing or drawing in general. They don't always get it very easily. I try to teach by example and hopefully they will improve themselves step by step.

AYI: Tell us about your efforts to encourage quality content on Steemit.

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@mariska.lubis: At first, we all should spread awareness that instant money is perhaps easy to get initially, but it will not last long. That is the thing that I always try to teach everybody. Do not be afraid to follow the process and learn along the way. We have to accept it sincerely and with patience if we want to be the best over a long period of time. Overall, these strategies will help us to nurture better confidence as well.

Furthermore, I always remind everyone the mission and vision of Steemit. Steemit is not just a social media platform that provides rewards, but also has to potential to create a better global economy. We all are complaining about our conditions in the world today and we all want to have a better life. Then, we all must work hard to help this community to reach its goals by providing good quality content and ideas.

AYI: In the past, you have said that you are against autovote applications. Why?

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@mariska.lubis: This is about respect and honor. I oblige myself to always try to respect others and maintain their honor, as well as mine. Autovotes are perhaps is a very easy way to give rewards and make people happy, but reading and commenting on someone else's post is how I respect them and this is an honor for them as well.

AYI: You also use the Steemit platform to promote social activities. What do you do?

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@mariska.lubis: Yes, I use Steemit for my social activities since I realized that it is easier for people to share and to donate in Steem instead of asking for currency in the real world. Some Steemians and I collected some money for Banten’s Earthquake Victims and also tried to help others who do the same. I also withdrew my rewards from Steemit for my own social activities - I have been working for Tuberculosis, HIV, and STD causes for more than 20 years and the rewards from Steemit really help push these campaigns forward. I don’t need to wait for sponsors or other people to help, but I can count on my own posts and its rewards. I am not saying that I am good, but simply willing to provide an example fo what we can do with Steemit.

AYI: What do you see as the future of Steemit? What should we do to strengthen this community?

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@mariska.lubis: Steemit has a very bright future though we all need to work hard, be patient, and have a high commitment to get there. Steemit is a new thing that is different from other social media before, no doubt. Steem and the Steemit application has a lot of challenges that have to be faced, especially related to politics and economic competition.

I hope all stakeholders and investors of Steem realize that we all need to work with each other. We need to encourage the community to grow faster and stronger collectively. We also need to have people involved in politics to approach governments with diplomacy, lobbies and events which need to be supported by Steemit. We cannot deny that business is about politics and when we are talking about money and changes, it means we are talking about countries and governments as well, not just wealthy people.

AYI: When Steem and SBD price are falling, the spirit of Steemit also goes through ups and downs. What do you think about this?

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@mariska.lubis: For me, this is a proof that a lot of Steemians do not really understand the currency; Steem. They see Steemit as just tools for their own benefit and purpose, not thinking about others and what we are actually trying to do. This is sad but also represents actual social conditions, where most people are not thinking further or beyond, but just thinking about what what they want and need today. Modern people will think further and beyond, and always have a strong will to fight. In this case, what we have to do is conquer ourselves and keep the spirit alive. When we cannot do it, then it means we are losing. On the other hand, if we can do it, it means we are champions.

AYI: At last, what is your message for all Steemians in the world?

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@mariska.lubis: Let’s have a better world and future with Steemit. Be the best and do the best for all.

A special thank you @ayijufridar for moderating this interview with @mariska.lubis! Make sure to follow both Steemians to learn more about the Indonesian community and empowering campaigns being developed. (This post was edited by the @sndbox team.)

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