Guild leadership 101

Most of you will understand the difficulties faced by a guild leader in a big guild like the Dambusters but I’m sure there’s more than a few who think it’s easy.  People display an arrogance towards me on a daily basis which leads me to the conclusion that they feel they can do a better job, advising me to change this or do that. I appreciate all suggestions since the people of the guild have always helped our progress by giving worthy ideas and a lot of them have been implemented.  That said, there are those people who get all upset when their ideas are not implemented,  furthering my opinion that they ‘think’ they know more than they do hehe.

Being a guild leader is not rocket science.  You need to be painstakingly meticulous about how you hold your own standards and how you apply the rules you’ve laid out.  If you don’t, then people might think you favour certain people.  1 thing is for sure, I never favour people whom I know in real life and I have taken drastic measures in the past to prove it.  Actually my officers are held in such high regard by me that I will strike down upon them with furious rebukes when they let me down 😀

These guys and gals have a high standard to live up to and as such, they have a long way to fall when it goes wrong, that is why I must implement the rules as fairly as possible, it’s not an easy job to be in a responsible position and consequences of questionable actions are less likely to be forgiven.

We all should remember that it’s just a video game after all, so we should be jovial and have fun, take things lightly.  The only people who need to take things seriously are the people in positions that ensure the masses are able to have fun and play the game in an environment of relative safety where there is a low likelihood of being abused or ridiculed. That job goes to your guild leader and less directly, to the officers.

I can tell you now, most of my rants are done with a cheeky smile on my face.  I play for fun and really enjoy playing with the guildies, even chatting on trade with a bit of mischief is done with a big silly grin haha.  I liken guild leadership discipline to dog training.  There are certain behaviours that may be funny on the face of it, but deep down you must remain stern and try to eradicate the bad behaviours for the greater good.  I find myself in this position quite often, having to remind someone of certain rules we must uphold, not because I think they are a bad person but simply because if everyone just did as they pleased, the guild would be utter chaos 🙂

Here’s a link to an excellent column on WoW insider which really hit home to me as I read it a few days ago.  The 4 lessons the author learned (especially number 1) ring home with alarmingly close sentiments to my recent forced activities within the guild.

Guys, be sure that I always consider the good of the majority first.  I am never leaving the guild and as such, it’s very much in my interest to ensure the guild grows to fulfil my own personal progress goals so any Dambusters who remain with us can be sure we will try to evolve and remain a viable for the foreseeable future.  You can bet the Dambusters will be a front-running Xavius guild in Mists of Pandaria due to the foundations we have laid.

/SALUTE