Appreciation Storm

[Eynhallow 412]

Appreciation

 

I have to agree wholeheartedly with Beketov on this one.  All too frequently forum-based games, such as this one, can become toxic due to some perceived personal attack or inequity.  It is unfortunate that this type of post is, by far, the fewest in number, but seem to dominate the entire forum when they occur.  What seems to go unnoticed is the fact that the whole forum and all its activities are done by volunteers.  These folks work very hard at making sure things run smoothly and dealing with issues in a fair, unbiased manner when they arise.  My hat goes off to all of those people who give so much of their time and energy to making the VHL what it is.  The VHL is, in my opinion and enjoyable and interesting place to be.  If it weren’t I, for one, would not be participating.  Again, this is mostly because of the folks who run the site as well as many of the members who are of like mind. 

 

So what is all this appreciation stuff about anyway ?  According to The Harvard Business Review, whatever else we gain from our participation here, on this forum in specific, there may be nothing more important than feeling valued, feeling that we have contributed something of unique value to the forum as a whole and we are recognized for it.  At the basic level, being appreciated makes us feel safe.  And, as a consequence, frees us to do our best work, or give things our best effort.  The other side of that coin is that if a person does not feel appreciated, the attendant worry, concern and sometimes drama deflectc our energies away from the stuff that really matters.

 

OK, so why are we nor slinging around “attaboys” or virtual back slaps with abandon?  Well, it appears that we are far more experienced in expressing negativity.  It is almost as though we don’t know how to express appreciation without feeling awkward about it. So what can a person do?  Firstly, there should be a bit more thought going into our reactions to what others say and do.  Try to be positive, even when things have gone a bit south.  Negativity breeds toxicity and that's what we are trying to eliminate.  Start with yourself,  take a look at what you have done or said and ask  “What can I be proud of in all this ?”  We also have to make it important to recognize peoples’ efforts when things go right.  We are very willing to take for granted when things go right and complain when things get derailed.

 

So that it for my 2 cents about appreciation.  I have a couple or three kudos to throw out there.  When I first started here at VHL and was learning how to get around and develop a player both Spartan and Mexican Cow offered invaluable advice (some of which I actually acted upon!).  As well, my player at the time, Isau DaMoose, was fortunate to spend his entire VHL career in Riga.  Hedgehog was very helpful and I still count him as a friend today, even though we do not communicate nearly as much.  Then there are all of those folks who treat others with concern and respect.  Good on all of you !!

 

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