One question that crops up regularly on Gateworld (beyond stuff about the 9th chevron, the non-dissolved status of the iris and why MS left for S6) is How can I become a moderator??
The short answer is: you can't.
This is DARREN'S board. DARREN makes the rules and unless and until HE is convinced that Gateworld needs more moderators, it isn't going to happen. No matter how much begging and pleading you do, no matter how much you run around the forum trying to order people around and tattling to the real mods about every minor infraction, the only thing you're going to accomplish is pissing off a LOT of people. That isn't a good attitude for a regular poster, never mind a Moderator.
Being a moderator is NOT all fun and games, it's a job, just like any other. It consumes a lot of your time, fills your in-box with every reported post, forces you to intercede in fights (and sometimes those fights involve friends of yours and/or issues important to you) and can create just as many enemies as friends. And you don't even get paid for it, unless you include the magic beans.
Being a Mod is a big responsibility and it is not to be entered into lightly. Or on a whim. Or because you want to lord it over others. Or because you're too damn impatient with the other mods and want to be able to play god on the forum all by yourself and delete/merge at will. That is NOT what being a mod is about and if you can't take the role seriously, you have no business trying to be one.
When Darren does decide more mods are needed (and this happens even less than once in a blue moon) what qualities does he look for?
* Maturity- spoiled brats need not apply
* Longevity- someone who's been around the forum for a while (no newbies) and knows how the forum works... and how it doesn't
* Temperament- Mods have to be friendly and open-minded and they have to be able to put any personal issues aside to deal with a problem.
* Maturity- this bears repeating; high-maintenance fans prone to hystrionics make bad moderators
* Intelligence- You don't have to be MENSA level, but it helps if you know how to communicate effectively and if you're able to see both the bigger picture AND the smaller picture. Mods should also have enough active brain cells to know that they are NOT the center of the universe and that they do NOT know everything. That's Darren's job.
* Respect- The best mods are those who already have a good rapport with other fans, who are able to get along with a wide variety of people, and who are respected (or at least not reviled) by the community-at-large.
* Responsibility- Mods have to set themselves to a higher standard, they have to understand that everything they do reflects not only on them but on all of Gateworld, and they have to be big enough to 'fess up to their own actions.
* Maturity- has that part sunk in yet?
I'm sure there are more criteria, but that's a good start and covers the more basic needs.
All that being said, the mods do have fun and they can, at times, be even sillier than the averagebear poster- they're a great subsect of Gateworld and they help make this place one of the best places to be. Gateworld may have its share of issues and problems, but in general it's managed better than a lot of places out there on the web and that is thanks in no small part to the moderating staff and their ability to do the job right.
Personally, I can't see why anyone would want to be a mod. You have to be friendly and polite at all times, you have to deal with every whiney little pisser who thinks that their problem is the biggest issue in the whole world, you have to put up with all the anger and hatred from folks you've modded- WITHOUT replying in kind and you have to merge, shuffle, delete and mambo posts/threads all the time. You can't mod people just because you think they're a jerk, you can't delete threads because you think they're stupid, and you can't change things around just because you're bored and it amuses you.
Mods may have fun, but it seems far too much like work for my tastes and I wouldn't be able to be myself if I were a mod, so what's the point?
You can't be a mod just because you want to be one or because you think you're perfect for the job. Moderators are NOT self-selected and just because you think you're the bee's knees doesn't mean you are. In fact, the more you harrass Darren & company about being a mod, the less likely it is that you'll ever be one.
Mods aren't chosen because they want it, they're chosen because they are the best people for the job and that usually (if not always) means Joe Poster, flouncing around the forum in blissful ignorance, never giving a thought to mod-dom until they get that PM asking if they want to join the club. From what I recall, most of the current mods said they were surprised to receive such a PM and wondered what kind of drugs Darren was on that he should be asking them such a question.
Anyway, I'm sure the mods will all swoop in to mock this thread and mislead you all about blackmail schemes, sporks, magic beans and other trade secrets of mod-dom, but since I am an absolute innocent about such things, I'll leave it up to them to explain the dark side (or is it the lighter side?) to you all.
The short answer is: you can't.
This is DARREN'S board. DARREN makes the rules and unless and until HE is convinced that Gateworld needs more moderators, it isn't going to happen. No matter how much begging and pleading you do, no matter how much you run around the forum trying to order people around and tattling to the real mods about every minor infraction, the only thing you're going to accomplish is pissing off a LOT of people. That isn't a good attitude for a regular poster, never mind a Moderator.
Being a moderator is NOT all fun and games, it's a job, just like any other. It consumes a lot of your time, fills your in-box with every reported post, forces you to intercede in fights (and sometimes those fights involve friends of yours and/or issues important to you) and can create just as many enemies as friends. And you don't even get paid for it, unless you include the magic beans.
Being a Mod is a big responsibility and it is not to be entered into lightly. Or on a whim. Or because you want to lord it over others. Or because you're too damn impatient with the other mods and want to be able to play god on the forum all by yourself and delete/merge at will. That is NOT what being a mod is about and if you can't take the role seriously, you have no business trying to be one.
When Darren does decide more mods are needed (and this happens even less than once in a blue moon) what qualities does he look for?
* Maturity- spoiled brats need not apply
* Longevity- someone who's been around the forum for a while (no newbies) and knows how the forum works... and how it doesn't
* Temperament- Mods have to be friendly and open-minded and they have to be able to put any personal issues aside to deal with a problem.
* Maturity- this bears repeating; high-maintenance fans prone to hystrionics make bad moderators
* Intelligence- You don't have to be MENSA level, but it helps if you know how to communicate effectively and if you're able to see both the bigger picture AND the smaller picture. Mods should also have enough active brain cells to know that they are NOT the center of the universe and that they do NOT know everything. That's Darren's job.
* Respect- The best mods are those who already have a good rapport with other fans, who are able to get along with a wide variety of people, and who are respected (or at least not reviled) by the community-at-large.
* Responsibility- Mods have to set themselves to a higher standard, they have to understand that everything they do reflects not only on them but on all of Gateworld, and they have to be big enough to 'fess up to their own actions.
* Maturity- has that part sunk in yet?
I'm sure there are more criteria, but that's a good start and covers the more basic needs.
All that being said, the mods do have fun and they can, at times, be even sillier than the average
Personally, I can't see why anyone would want to be a mod. You have to be friendly and polite at all times, you have to deal with every whiney little pisser who thinks that their problem is the biggest issue in the whole world, you have to put up with all the anger and hatred from folks you've modded- WITHOUT replying in kind and you have to merge, shuffle, delete and mambo posts/threads all the time. You can't mod people just because you think they're a jerk, you can't delete threads because you think they're stupid, and you can't change things around just because you're bored and it amuses you.
Mods may have fun, but it seems far too much like work for my tastes and I wouldn't be able to be myself if I were a mod, so what's the point?
You can't be a mod just because you want to be one or because you think you're perfect for the job. Moderators are NOT self-selected and just because you think you're the bee's knees doesn't mean you are. In fact, the more you harrass Darren & company about being a mod, the less likely it is that you'll ever be one.
Mods aren't chosen because they want it, they're chosen because they are the best people for the job and that usually (if not always) means Joe Poster, flouncing around the forum in blissful ignorance, never giving a thought to mod-dom until they get that PM asking if they want to join the club. From what I recall, most of the current mods said they were surprised to receive such a PM and wondered what kind of drugs Darren was on that he should be asking them such a question.
Anyway, I'm sure the mods will all swoop in to mock this thread and mislead you all about blackmail schemes, sporks, magic beans and other trade secrets of mod-dom, but since I am an absolute innocent about such things, I'll leave it up to them to explain the dark side (or is it the lighter side?) to you all.
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