User blog:Carnarvan/Teamwork Makes The Dreamwork

 WARNING: There is some mild language present in this blog.

Alright, so I am gonna start this blog off by stating that yes, I will not deny that the wiki has become clique-ish, I don’t think anyone can deny that. So I will not waste my time stating a fact we all know to be true, because, as y’all are most certainly aware of by now, I’m not one to beat around the bush or waste time when communicating with people.

This blog is about solutions and fixing a problem we are all well aware of, but I have GOT to get one thing off my chest before I go anywhere with this. As a veteran of the wiki and the previous… incidents… that have happened on this wiki, I think I can get a good feel for where this gonna head if left unchecked. So, I am going to be blunt about it, and I’m sorry if anyone feels offended about this, but it needs to be said. THE CLIQUE-LIKE BEHAVIOR OF THIS WIKI DOES NOT AND HAS NEVER RESTED SOLELY ON THE SHOULDERS OF ONE GROUP OF USERS. Now, allow me to explain in further detail, to really drive this home. The clique-like behavior is not the fault of the ‘popular’ users, it is not the fault of the ‘unpopular’ users, it is not the fault of the admin team, it is not the fault of the user base, it is not the fault of the AI department, it is not the fault of the OOC department, it is not the fault of the UR department nor is it the fault of the S&S department, it is not bureaucrats, it is not the fault of the administrators, it is not the fault of the Rollbacks, nor does it rest on any one user’s shoulders. Now, I think that covers pretty much the whole wiki. Which, of course may leave many of you wondering who’s fault it is. Well, I’ll answer that question. IT’S EVERYONE’S GOD DAMNED FAULT.

We area team, we are a wiki-wide team, and we succeed together and we also fail together. The clique-like behavior is every single user’s fault. Why? Because we are a team. Effective teams do not blame one another when they fail, it is not the fault of any one particular person or any particular group of people. It’s the team’s fault, and I know that’s not what some of you want to hear, but that’s the truth.

Successful teams work together to solve external problems and they most certainly have to work together to solve internal problems. No one will be able to fix this by themselves. It will take the effort of everyone, and I’m going to tell everyone exactly what they need to do to fix this problem, and it’s a very simple direction that I can give to everyone from the new user to the season bureaucrat, and it’s something we’ve all failed at recently, myself included. COMMUNICATION.

The admin team can not read minds. I have said this a million times and I’ll keep saying it till the day I must step down and leave. If there is a problem, the user base has the responsibility to tell the admin team that there is one. We can not read everyone’s mind and tell how they’re feeling through the internet. And the Admin Team has a greater responsibility to communicate with one another and to the user base that we are solving the problems and concerns they have raised. That being said, not everything that’s talked about amongst the Admin Team should be communicated with the user base. This expansion in particular, and I will address this because I know it’s an issue. This expansion, unlike other ones, is operating on a need to know basis, and the AI team knows who needs to be aware of the expansion plans, and said users have been informed. Everyone else, and this includes most admin team members are in the dark, because that’s the way this expansion is being run. If this is a problem, please, tell a member of the AI Department and we’d be happy to explain further.

Now, back to the issue of clique-like behavior, like the above issue of communication, it will be a joint effort by the entire wiki. We all need to come together and participate in the very activities that the AI team is working very hard to provide for the wiki. We all need to come together, and probably RP with someone outside of our normal RP group. Please, you can talk with any member of the Admin Team and unless we’re truly busy or under RP overload (it does happen), any of us would be happy to RP. We don’t bite, I promise, I will swear up and down and over any object you want me to, we would be happy to RP with anyone. But if no one tells us that they want to RP, it may not happen, and I realize that many people are afraid to ask for fear of rejection, and this why I will tell you again. Unless a user has a valid reason for not wanting to RP, they would probably be happy to. For god’s sake, that’s why we’re all members of this wiki aren’t we?

To summarize, we need to communicate better, we can’t blame any one user or any one group of users for ANYTHING, much less a wiki-wide issue such as this. We need to not be afraid to speak up and ask a user if they want to RP, I applaud the bravery of Fangirl for speaking up. That’s EXACTLY what we as a wiki need to be doing. We need to talk with one another and tell one another when there are problem. Nothing will be solved if everyone keeps these issues buried under everything and trashing on other users in private, whether it be on sandboxes, separate communication software or anything else is not helpful at all. I will admit, I’m guilty of this, but from here on out, I will make a sincere effort to not do that anymore, long as everyone else promises the same thing. We can’t harass and put down other users of our community, it’s counterproductive. We are something akin to a family, so we better damn well start acting like it.

Signing off, Captain Carnarvan