Merit is like a reward and you know rewards don't just come easily, you must work hard to gain it. And with things like this if you are not very patience you may be disappointed to keep on working towards it. The best way of getting merit is to contribute in discussions that will benefit the community and you will definitely get it with time.
I know it is not very easy with most newbies because some newbies joined the forum without having much knowledge but they have no choice to grow as they join the forum to meet the standard of the forum and sometimes this process of learning may delay one in getting merit, but you shouldn't be bothered so much if you don't get merit quick as newbies, it is better to be patience and focus the process of learning, this will fasting your growth in the future. Just focus in your learning and give the community what will benefit its members.
It is true that getting merit is not easy and it is especially hard for new members who might not know much. But instead of getting upset it us better to focus on learning and improving. With concentrating on learning and sharing useful ideas with community new members can learn faster and eventually get merit. Your suggestion to be patient and focus on helping others is very good. And by working hard and being patient and helping community is important to get merit.