No Complaining! I R leadur!!!

I honestly haven't posted much these days not only because of my current workload and RL responsibilities (sorry, I gotta graduate soon and I can't do that if I play WoW all day >.<), but also because....well, I don't have much to complain about. I rarely PuG these days mainly because I have a solid guild that always wants to run something, and I genuinely enjoy their company. I can't complain about raids because we have an incredibly solid group of people that mesh well socially. So there's really no room to bitch. One thing I will say though is that it is amazing what a guild can accomplish when the leadership isn't incompetent, petty, or insufferably childish. Which brings me to my topic for today: guild leadership, or more importantly, what constitutes good guild leadership?

When it comes to guild leadership, we can all pretty much agree on what makes a bad leader. For the sake of brevity, I'm going to skip all of that. What then separates a good leader from the rest--the average, the bad, and the just downright despotic? At minimum, a good leader will possess the following:

1. Confidence-- It is impossible to lead people if you do not believe in yourself. At the very least, a good leader is confident in their abilities: be it leading a raid, making decisions, or just handling the administrative minutiae that everyone hates. Getting groups to cooperate is a challenge in itself, and it is made even more difficult if the leader has difficulties in demonstrating their confidence--confidence in their abilities to lead, confidence in understanding an encounter, and confidence in their people to work together to accomplish a goal. Leadership requires belief in oneself as well as those who are following to believe in the leader as well. However, as confident as one may be, it is also of benefit to understand that everyone has limitations. In this case, having too much confidence (to where it becomes arrogance) can be just as detrimental as having no confidence at all.
   
2. Communication--Adequate communication is imperative for the success of any organization. Merely logging on and saying, "hi" isn't enough. Talk to your people. Actually ask how they are doing and take the time to listen to whatever they have to say even if it is horribly "boring" or mundane. It is important to establish that you want to communicate and that members can approach you for whatever reason. Make it a priority. If you cannot establish a rapport with your organization on some basic level, then you're likely going to cause future issues do to a lack of real/adequate communication.
   
3. Delegation--As mentioned under "Confidence", good leadership understands their limitations. The largest leadership obstacle in any organization is trying to run an organization by oneself. Tackle the tasks in which you are confident in your abilities and delegate other tasks to those who would thrive while performing those roles. Suck at raid leading? Give that task to someone who understands the encounters very well and is also a solid tactician. Suck at managing day-to-day things? Appoint an administrator. Also, keep in mind that it can be as detrimental to delegate all tasks to either one person or multiple people. As a leader, you also have to do something in regards to guild leadership and not merely serve as a figurehead. Ask yourself--at the end of the day, what have you honestly done for the guild today?
   
4. Patience--This one is a no-brainer. Leadership positions are really thankless jobs marred with stress and a lot of ingratitude. Regardless of the situation, keep your cool and keep your patience. Ultimately this goes back to effective communication and understanding limitations. Not everyone is on the same page, nor is everyone capable of effectively communicating what is going on. Having a bit more patience, as well as trying to understand the underlying issue can and will go a very long way.
   
5. Impartialness--Don't take sides. Plain and simple. There is nothing worse that can happen to any organization than having clear dividing social lines. These social fissues will cause more issues and will be the source of many problems, once again going back to a lack of effective communication. Even in situations where it is you vs. a member, don't even take your own side (as hard as it is). Really listen to what the other person has to say and try to reach a compromise. If one cannot be met, then try at the very least to reach a mutual understanding. It is ridiculous to assume that everyone will always get along, but you can ensure the brevity of your organization if you take the "I'm right because I'm the leader!!!!!" attitude. No one likes a pompous asshat, so don't be one. And finally, always be fair. Make decisions that are the most fair and that would benefit the most people.
   
6. Heart--In my own experience, the best leaders have always been the ones that genuinely care about their people and their organization. It is very difficult to like or even respect someone in a leadership position that doesn't fundamentally care about the people they are leading. Like I have said previously, leadership is a thankless job, and if you're in it for the glory or recognition, then this job clearly isn't for you.

Next time, what makes a bad leader (or how to slowly kill a guild).

A Heartfelt Thank You

So it's nearly 4AM where I'm at and insomnia is kicking my butt. Instead of spending my time trying to count sheep or bore myself to sleep I decided to do a bit of data analysis pertaining to our guild and World of Logs.

Long story short--until the last raid, I haven't had any gear upgrades in a little over a month. Yet I am doing substantially more dps than I had in the previous guild (long story, may divulge at another time). How could this possibly be? My rotation hasn't changed in the least, nor has any of my gear, stats, nor enchants. I should also mention that I also switched from 25s to 10s, so my dps should technically be a bit lower--yet it is not.

It finally dawned on me--our tanks can actually hold and maintain aggro from the start of the pull. I don't have to sit on my hands for 30+ seconds and still potentially pull off. I've been able to pre-pot again without issue and charge in almost immediately after the pull. In fact, since working with this new team, I haven't had to worry about pulling off of the tanks at all. For this, gentlemen, I cannot thank you enough for being as skilled as you are at your role and allowing me to go nuts like an insane, malfunctioning Cuisinart. And thank you, even more for making this fun again.

Outsider looking in

With recruitment going into full swing for the Firelands, I figured I'd dedicate this post toward the dynamics of finding a guild that works for you. I've been on both sides of the fence--recruit and recruiter, and there are a few things to keep in mind during a recruitment process. Keeping these things in mind are important towards finding either a new home or new people for your raid force:

1. What are the goals of the guild?
This is pretty straightforward. Is it hardcore progression, is it a casual social guild, is it PVP-based? Knowing what your in-game goals are and having an understanding of the goals of the guild is key toward predicting whether or not you'll ultimately be enjoy your time there.

2. Does the actions/activity of the guild coincide with these goals?
Is this a raiding guild, but doesn't actually raid? Does the guild claim to be friendly, yet the social atmosphere doesn't exactly feel the most welcoming? This is pretty straightforward--if you sign up for a raiding guild, yet they do not raid or constantly call raids, it may be time to look elsewhere. If the social atmosphere is of importance to you and it doesn't line up with your values, it's better to leave with a sense of grace and dignity instead of compromising your own values, or being involved in potential drama. Are you interested in RP, yet no one can stay in character? Find an RP guild on an RP server. Long story short--if the activity of the guild does not coincide with their goals, this can lead to potential dissatisfaction within the guild for certain members. As a recruit, this might not be the environment in which to stay, and as a recruiter, perhaps a reevaluation of the guild might be in order.

3. If the guild claims to be a progression-oriented guild, do they have an understanding of the fight's mechnics?
This is key. Every prog-oriented guild has to have a fundamental understanding of the fight mechanics in order to be successful. Do they understand which fights possess unfortunate insta-gib mechanics? Do they understand the importance of interrupts or other nuances of the fight? Running any raid with a group that does not understand the mechanics is not only frustrating if you are progression-oriented, it can also be a waste of time for all involved. As someone who is a part of a team it is important that everyone in the team knows and understand the fight extremely well. Recently I pugged a run on an alt with a guild that clearly did not fully understand the fight's mechanics. Guess who got the blame for the majority of their failures? You guessed it, me. So if you want to avoid being the scapegoat, avoid this type like the plague.

4. What are the overall needs of the guild?
Is the guild in dire need of another tank/dps/heals? Is the guild merely looking for warm bodies to fill their raid roster? Having a good understanding of the guild's needs is important before recruiting or applying. As a recruit or applicant, it is a good idea to do a little research as to the guild's history and find out what the guild is about before applying. Is this a level 25 guild that has strong membership and low-turnover? Or is this a new guild that wants to get their name out but doesn't have the numbers? Is this a guild made of people who just hit max level and want to raid? See where your values and goals line up before applying.

As a recruiter, be honest about your guild. Have you been around for many years? Do you have a great reputation or trying to rebuild? Also be realistic in your expectations of what you're trying to get. For example, in trade the other day I saw a level 6 guild that was comprised of people that just started playing--all new 85's and all really green when it came to raiding. What caught my attention was their spam of, "looking for solid, well-geared tanks that are well-experienced with current content (pref 12/12)." Fair enough, right? One problem--not a single member of this guild had anything beyond 5/12 experience. A request of that sort is demanding and insane. It tells the rest of the community at large that they demand people to carry them, thereby are not capable of actually earning their achievements or gaining respect. Furthermore, tanks that are well-geared and have that kind of experience usually already have core-raiding spots or are looking for guilds that are much better progressed. Just saying. So instead of spamming, "WE R LEETZ", be honest and say, "we are new".

5. What are your needs?
This is very important--do you enjoying raiding in a high-pressure environment? Do you enjoy fostering a high-pressure environment? At the end of the day, the only person that "has" to log on is you. Keep that in mind.

Accountability

So there's a long back story behind this post, but I'm just going to cut to the chase--player accountability and what constitutes it.

If there isn't anything that causes me to go on a panda punching rampage more, it's not holding players accountable for their actions. I'm not just talking about repeatedly standing in the fire, I'm also talking about other aspects of the game where everyone involved is affected.





/sigh. If only things were that simple these days.

I'm going to be 100% honest here, I haven't been exactly the happiest camper on the RV, but I've put aside a lot of my frustrations for the greater good and sucked it up. But after last night and my meltdown of near Sue Sylvester proportions, I feel compelled to at least define what player accountability is and how a lack thereof can even make the most tolerant and patient guildie leave in a firey blaze. And for those of you who can't envision what this could look like:




Yes, I'm video happy today.

So player accountability, what is it? In short, it's holding every single player in your raid force, or guild, responsible for their actions or lack thereof. This could be something as simple as reducing a member's rank for not showing up to a designated number of raids, or even as involved as reprimanding members for setting up rival alt guilds and then spamming recruiting messages on trade.

When does holding players accountable matter? Simply put--always. There is no easy way around this. Yes, we all want to be everyone's friend, but if the goal of the guild is to be a high-end progression guild instead of a casual social guild, then unfortunately this isn't plausible and people have to be held accountable. If player X decides they are going to engage in Y behavior and it causes issues within the guild, then player X needs to be held accountable for it. Furthermore, this goes both ways--for players that go above and beyond in their endeavors, then they should be rewarded for their efforts.

Where would accountability apply? Granted this is a situational basis, but there really are few instances where a gray area exists and it's best to leave things be. However, in most cases, the actions are so obvious that something needs to be done to ensure that the environment of the guild is sound. Here are the most common examples:

When a player:
1. Doesn't show up. Ever. Especially on progression nights.
2. Rarely shows up when they do.
3. Shows up late repeatedly.
4. Shows up late repeatedly without giving prior notice or having a really good reason for not being there.
5. Shows up intoxicated.
6. Frequent AFKs...also usually without telling anyone or a legitimate reason.
7. Shows a clear disinterest in being present or participation.
8. Performance is lacking--not just limited to standing in the fire, but also ignoring certain game mechanics that are vital to success.
9. Under performing or just doing the bare minimum required.
10. Having a lackadaisical attitude.

Actions should be taken in these instances. Personally, there is nothing more frustrating than raiding with someone with a piss-poor attitude that repeatedly fumbles around simply because they can. Or even worse, being benched to take that person instead because they don't want to piss that person off. Really? Like placating the wrong person is going to make anything better?

And finally, for the dedicated few that really go above and beyond--reward them for their dedication. Best way to do that? Show them that their efforts are not unappreciated or in vain, and more importantly--also show that as a guild, we do not reward bad behavior.

Open recruiting

Ysera-US is now recruiting heals and dps. We are a 4 year old progression raiding guild currently 4/4 BoT, 5/6 BWD, and 1/2 ToFW, and we are looking for solid raiders for 25s. We are one of the few Alliance-side 25-man guilds on Ysera. Raids are Monday/Wed/Thurs @ 7:30 server and Sunday @ 6:30 server. For more information and to apply, go to prime.guildlaunch.com.

WotLK review

We've come to the conclusion of yet another expansion. Here's a quick run down of what we've accomplished:

• 11/12 ICCH (10/25)
• meta drakes for both ICC (10/25) and Ulduar (10/25)--yes, I have all four drakes
• Ended the expansion as #7
• Halion down (10/25)
• Got Kingslayer for my priest....and yea, I healed my ASS off for that.

The expansion ended on quite the high note with a number of things accomplished. Cataclysm here we come!

Server Transfer

That's all. For now.

Left in the dust

I hate leveling. In fact, who doesn't? The grind from 1-80 is a real pain in the ass with a fresh toon on any server. Without having the benefit of a previous level 80 for heirloom gear or other benefits (including Recruit-a-friend), the long arduous journey can be quite frustrating. Back in the days of the Burning Crusade, I remember being a lv65 and being able to run some of the higher level, but not endgame content, yet none of the lv70's in my guild were interested in running with me. Farming badges and obtaining better gear were always a top priority. Even when I finally hit lv70, the gear I had still wasn't good enough to run most of the endgame content, and yet again, I was left in the dust. Needless to say, this left me feeling very frustrated and left behind. Akin to the adult version of playground exclusivity--"You're wearing THAT? Sorry, you can't play with us." And for some strange reason, it hurt just as bad in the virtual world as it did in the real one. So when I finally left my former guild and formed my own I vowed not to be an elitist asshat and to help others with leveling and eventual gearing. Why? Because I remember just how frustrating it was to be so very alone in a very group-dependent game.

Granted, it is possible to completely solo levels 1-80, but where's the fun in that? Especially when you are a member of a guild of supposed "friends" that have agreed to help you be the best player you can be. So then, how does one handle this situation when the people involved are also your friends in real life?

My current guild consists of people that I know in both RL and friends that I have made in-game. Because of our collective experiences, we have a rule that requires the higher levels to help out the lower levels and we provide incentives when doing so (extra DKP). This way no one is really "forced" to drop what they are doing and help the lower levels, but at the same time it encourages those who normally wouldn't be inclined to do so. Typically when I am online, I do not notice that this is an issue. I am typically quick to help out others because of my experiences, but today while taking a day off to deal with RL matters, I found out from another guildie (who is still leveling, btw) that his requests to run lower level content were completely ignored and he was literally left behind by his lv80, geared guildies. Unfortunately, one of those guildies is a RL friend of our guildmate. To say the least, I would have expected better from this person. And at the very least, I'm severely disappointed with regards to this situation. Officer meeting anyone?