Guildleader chores - Remembering that everything is NOT my responsibility
It is stupid to feel like everything that doesn't go right is my fault or my responsibility. I know that. Just that sometimes when things don't go right, I sit there thinking about it and wondering how I could have done it better. Like, a LOT.
Take for example, recruiting. I feel it's like a personal failure on my part if people don't perform well, and I guess the reasoning behind that is like it was my pick, but you have to start SOMEWHERE.
The new guys are slowly gearing up, but their damage has not increased to a satisfactory amount. I'm pretty patient, and think that people need to find their stride, but everyone else complains that it holds us back. It doesn't help I suppose that our top few dps have decided to take a break, but I have always advocated that superchickens do not make a team. Working together make a team. Yes damage counts for it too, but that should come with time and practice. Unfortunately, not everyone is as patient as me, nor do they have as much faith.
(I actually also felt guilty that me recruiting caused some of our team to quit raiding. But perhaps it was a good excuse for them to take a break? I think if you're sick of the game you tend to get more cranky and easily upset by game things. Take what happened with Madcow, as an example. He and I have since kissed and made up so we're all good now - he was sick of the game and the argument about the addon was the last straw.)
I feel personally responsible that they have not lived up to expectations. Part of the reason why our highest DPS players stopped playing was because they felt like we were carrying them - and perhaps we were. However, when you recruit, you always have to recruit lower and train up, just like in real life. For example, why would someone with my qualifications apply for a training job? Even if they were short of trainees? Of course I wouldn't because I am overqualified for it. Why would I take a paycut, get worse hours and less management responsibilities, if I was looking for a job, when there are other places that would take me at the higher paygrade?
I imagine that people who have good ilvl and already done 13/13H are thinking like that. So we are left with whoever hasn't done that. Which is why we will always get people who are not as geared.
There is also the flipside. People who are looking for guilds feel like they are never given the opportunity to be able to prove themselves because they "haven't got the ilvl or the AotC". And of course, you can't get into a PuG to get the AotC because they don't want to take you if you haven't got the AotC achievement. So it's a vicious cycle and people end up disillusioned, and they quit playing the game.
It's hard to find the people that are those that start from not much and work their way up to being great additions to the team. I remember Hwired started like that - he only PvP'd and came to raid with us and played well and rapidly became an officer and raid leader - though, he does get bored easily and has since quit playing. Danleet/Thohand was like that too - my one and only raider who came through the in-game guild finder tool - and he has been fun to play with and a great team member. The thing with Dan was that he did casual raiding on the weekends and then worked his way up to Heroic raiding. Not so easy now because we've cut back on weekend raiding due to lack of interest or people needing it, but perhaps when expansions/patches hit, those are the times we do that.
I was feeling more glum about the whole thing yesterday, but I feel perked up today because one guildie said that instead of being down on the new people for wipes and not so great play, that we should be helping them. This came from someone I didn't expect, and I felt like perhaps the generous heart of the Frostwolf is still there, and even if I am the only one who tries my hardest for it to continue, even if I influenced one person to think the same way, then the effort and the emotional ride are worth it all in the end.
I guess I won't give up my recruitment forum trawling just yet then!
Take for example, recruiting. I feel it's like a personal failure on my part if people don't perform well, and I guess the reasoning behind that is like it was my pick, but you have to start SOMEWHERE.
The new guys are slowly gearing up, but their damage has not increased to a satisfactory amount. I'm pretty patient, and think that people need to find their stride, but everyone else complains that it holds us back. It doesn't help I suppose that our top few dps have decided to take a break, but I have always advocated that superchickens do not make a team. Working together make a team. Yes damage counts for it too, but that should come with time and practice. Unfortunately, not everyone is as patient as me, nor do they have as much faith.
(I actually also felt guilty that me recruiting caused some of our team to quit raiding. But perhaps it was a good excuse for them to take a break? I think if you're sick of the game you tend to get more cranky and easily upset by game things. Take what happened with Madcow, as an example. He and I have since kissed and made up so we're all good now - he was sick of the game and the argument about the addon was the last straw.)
I feel personally responsible that they have not lived up to expectations. Part of the reason why our highest DPS players stopped playing was because they felt like we were carrying them - and perhaps we were. However, when you recruit, you always have to recruit lower and train up, just like in real life. For example, why would someone with my qualifications apply for a training job? Even if they were short of trainees? Of course I wouldn't because I am overqualified for it. Why would I take a paycut, get worse hours and less management responsibilities, if I was looking for a job, when there are other places that would take me at the higher paygrade?
I imagine that people who have good ilvl and already done 13/13H are thinking like that. So we are left with whoever hasn't done that. Which is why we will always get people who are not as geared.
There is also the flipside. People who are looking for guilds feel like they are never given the opportunity to be able to prove themselves because they "haven't got the ilvl or the AotC". And of course, you can't get into a PuG to get the AotC because they don't want to take you if you haven't got the AotC achievement. So it's a vicious cycle and people end up disillusioned, and they quit playing the game.
It's hard to find the people that are those that start from not much and work their way up to being great additions to the team. I remember Hwired started like that - he only PvP'd and came to raid with us and played well and rapidly became an officer and raid leader - though, he does get bored easily and has since quit playing. Danleet/Thohand was like that too - my one and only raider who came through the in-game guild finder tool - and he has been fun to play with and a great team member. The thing with Dan was that he did casual raiding on the weekends and then worked his way up to Heroic raiding. Not so easy now because we've cut back on weekend raiding due to lack of interest or people needing it, but perhaps when expansions/patches hit, those are the times we do that.
I was feeling more glum about the whole thing yesterday, but I feel perked up today because one guildie said that instead of being down on the new people for wipes and not so great play, that we should be helping them. This came from someone I didn't expect, and I felt like perhaps the generous heart of the Frostwolf is still there, and even if I am the only one who tries my hardest for it to continue, even if I influenced one person to think the same way, then the effort and the emotional ride are worth it all in the end.
I guess I won't give up my recruitment forum trawling just yet then!
I do think that Frosties have a big heart, and are, overall, more than happy to assist people get themselves "Ready for Raiding".
ReplyDeleteHowever, where this heart does shrink, is when the inclusion of a player inhibits are chance of killing a boss.Understandably so.
I think, as a guild, we have often not put constraints on people in many and varied circumstances, as we do tend to follow the philosophy that if people are paying money, they are entitled play as they will.
I am starting to sense that this is changing, to greater expectations being placed upon people within our guild. And I think this is a good thing. As much as you pay the game, you also accept an invite to the team that is Frostwolves. There is nothing wrong with us expecting certain behaviours to be a part of that team. If you don't like doing that, then really, I don't think you would like to be a Frostwolf.
I do feel that our concerns with not wanting to make a fuss have negatively impacted upon the team experience in the past. Now that we are more willing to make a fuss, I think that it is positively effect on the team, We do need to ensure that we keep the balance right, and that making a fuss doesn't start to create more issues than it is fixing.
Kyxyn
I am hoping we move forward from here and be a bit firmer than what I have been!
DeleteI can't really speak to the inner workings of the Frostwolf raiding team, I just wanted to say I was impressed with the guild's longevity and ability to still be raiding heroic years and years later. I think your inclusiveness has given you that resiliency. Navi, don't internalize any personal responsibility when you finally have to cut someone after a reasonable amount of time/expectations. There are objective aspects of this game: dps/mechanics required, raid awareness and role responsiblity. Tyrant doesn't look at your raid and think, "Well , that huntress is the wife of their highest dps, so I'll go easy on her." Tyrant Velhari is a complicated algorithm with preset parameters. Parameters your Frosties work hard to meet, so please don't guilt yourself.
ReplyDeleteThank you for your comment! Sorry for the slow reply - I am still on holidays. Thanks for the sentiments - I was merely voicing my crazy inner wheel-turning and trying to reason with myself. I have been pleased to see that our underperforming players so far have been volunteering to sit out when they realise they hold the raid back, and I hope that eventually everyone will be up to speed so we can all kill stuff together as a team.
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