This is a true story: after learning about the forum, I went to see a friend for assistance. He helped me set up an account and then, when I tried to ask him for help posting, he refused and told me that since we are not close, I would have to learn how to post on the forum on my own. I found it difficult to ask him questions about how the forum operated, and after several months, his number was unreachable.
You are doing very well for yourself if you have been able to earn 10+ merits by yourself without anyone's assistance in showing you how to earn them. If you can earn that amount of merits, it means that if you continue, you can keep earning. The person who introduced you to this forum has already done the best thing of introducing you here, as you followed up by trying to figure it out yourself, you have done the best. Congratulations because in like two years, you will notice a massive increase in knowledge.