Hi @jemisteem!
You really need to put in your heart and soul during the initial few months. Just asking for votes and follows won't serve you for long-term. Create great content, connect with experts experienced in your field of interest to start with, support their work, provide genuine feedbacks, add value to people's lives and you will see the difference in few days.
Steemit will serve you with dollars, but you will have to win people's trust by providing them with the kind of value they look for.