IntrinsicExtrinsic reward has never been a major motivator for me. It is the enjoyment and fulfillment I get from completing the task itself. Just being part of this community has been a constant learning and growth opportunity for me. I see becoming a moderator as another step on that path.
Intrinsic reward has never been a major motivator for me. It is the enjoyment and fulfillment I get from completing the task itself. Just being part of this community has been a constant learning and growth opportunity for me. I see becoming a moderator as another step on that path.
Extrinsic reward has never been a major motivator for me. It is the enjoyment and fulfillment I get from completing the task itself. Just being part of this community has been a constant learning and growth opportunity for me. I see becoming a moderator as another step on that path.
#Linksassin - Nomination Link
- How would you deal with a user who produced a steady stream of valuable answers, but tends to generate a large number of arguments/flags from comments?
If a single user is generating lots of flags from other users then there might be something bigger going on. I would look into the type of flags being raised and if they were valid. If I judge it necessary I would approach the user to get their side of the story, and if required enforce site standards through moderator tools.
No where in my consideration does the volume or value of the users other contribution enter my mind, other than that I might know a more active user better than a less active one. Users are accountable to site policy regardless of reputation. I have always endeavored to vote, flag and comment based on the merit of the content rather than the user. This is a practice I intend to continue as a moderator.
- How would you handle a situation where another mod closed/deleted/etc. a question that you feel shouldn't have been?
If another moderator has already handled a situation, my first response would always be to contact them for an explanation of their actions. As I noted in my recent meta the context for a post can change dramatically between users seeing it. What was reasonable at one time might no longer be.
Once I have established the chain of events I can decide on a course of action. If I find that I still disagree with the other moderators actions and they stand by their decision, I will attempt to involve the other moderators or potentially open a meta post on the issue.
The worst possible outcome is an open disagreement between moderators, so I will keep my actions private until we reach an agreed course of action.
- What practices at RPGSE do you see working particularly poorly, possibly hampering high-quality Q&A or harming community?
I find the quality of moderation on this site so strong that is difficult to identify any specific practices I would like to see changed. Occasionally I do find that the timezone difference for my region can cause an undesirable delay in flag handling and moderator actions. This is one of the reasons I chose to nominate for the role.
- What practices at RPGSE do you see working particularly well to create high-quality Q&A and/or healthy community?
Of the common practices at RPGSE, among my favourite is our open attitude to helping users solve their problem. Where it would be easy to dismiss under-developed questions, downvote and move on. Instead we look to help improve questions and get to the heart of the problem.
Done right this is what separates us from other forums. We have the expertise to help users find the solution to their problem, rather than just the answer to their question.
Other great practice is how we embrace all playstyles. Your fun isn't wrong so long as no one is getting hurt, and I think our community generally does a great job of being inclusive of all types of players.
- Being a moderator is a customer service/public relations job for which there is little to no extrinsic motivation. You will invest hours of your free time dealing with the worst the internet has to offer, and we expect you to do it with a patient demeanor and a smile.
What is your motivation for candidacy, or in short - why do you want this job?
Intrinsic reward has never been a major motivator for me. It is the enjoyment and fulfillment I get from completing the task itself. Just being part of this community has been a constant learning and growth opportunity for me. I see becoming a moderator as another step on that path.
I thought for a long time before deciding to nominate for this election. Last election I thought I wanted the role for what it could do for me. Now I realise that part of why I want it is to uphold the legacy of the moderators who made this community such a great place to be a part of.
This site was the first online community where I felt comfortable. It gave me an outlet for things when I really needed it. Now I want a chance to give back and hopefully, if I'm lucky, provide that same experience for someone else.
- What's your view on whether and how moderators represent sites to the broader SE community and to the company?
Related: recent discussions of moderation/moderatorship on MSE, perhaps starting at the most recent: Introducing the Moderator Council - and its first, pro-tempore, representatives
Recent events have made the role of a moderator as a representative of their community far more significant. I will admit to not being a fan of everything that happened, but I have hope that we have turned a corner and begun to take steps in the right direction.
As a moderator I would have a greater voice on broader stack exchange issues and a greater responsibility to advocate for my community. I've seen great examples of this from moderators here and on other communities I've been part of, particularly Rubiksmoose as a member of the moderator council. I would do everything I can to learn from these examples.
- Our site has struggled in the past with moderators overriding community voices, which made this feel like a moderator-driven site more than a community-driven site.
Suppose you had a course of action or policy you felt strongly the site should adopt, but you were not sure the community would be supportive: how would you handle it? How would you handle that situation if the community vocally, strongly objects?
As a newer member on the site I don't remember the situations this question refers to, but I hope that we can avoid them occurring again. I firmly believe that the community is more important than any individual, that includes moderators.
If I had something I thought the community should adopt I would present my case on meta same as any other user. Making it clear that it was coming from me as a user rather than a moderator. I wouldn't assume to make policy posts in my capacity as a moderator without consultation.
Should the response to my policy be negative (hopefully unlikely) I would accept this as a community decision. The role is moderator, not dictator and I must abide by community consensus. Similarly while discussing the policy I would keep my moderation of comments and answer on the post impartial, if I couldn't do that I would refrain from moderating on the topic.
- We have a problem here, occasionally, when a new user will ask a question that doesn't quite fit our format, and thus gets put on hold very quickly. This often leads to the new user feeling unfairly targeted and leaving the stack soon after. As a mod, what would you do to help improve these new users' questions while still encouraging them to stay on the site?
I often see this as an issue when new users get insufficient information about why their questions are closed. Currently I try to prevent this by actively checking the first post queue whenever I am on the site. As a mod I would also have the ability to remove disparaging comments, single-handedly reopen questions instantly once the required changes have been made.
Another situation where I see this is, users having their question closed while they are offline, coming back the next day expecting answers and only having a closed question. As I am in a different timezone to the many users I regularly see questions that should be closed/reopened waiting for votes. With a moderator in our timezone we would be able to resolve the issues for these users more quickly and improve their quality of life on the site.
Otherwise I would continue with the welcoming comments I already try to leave on the site for any new contributor I come across. Even if their question needs work I try to find at least one part of the post to give encouragement for, it is rare that an entire post is a write off. When changes are required, I try to be clear and specific, providing justification and examples where I can. I don't see moderator status changing this significantly.
- A diamond will be attached to everything you say and have said in the past, including questions, answers and comments. Everything you will do will be seen under a different light. How do you feel about that?
We all have undead skeletons lurking in our cupboards. Are there things that I have said in the past that I wish I could have handled differently? Of course. However I have several times gone through my past posts and made edits/reparations where I can. I have used these mistakes as a learning experience and find that I have far fewer instances of them now.
With the addition of moderator status I recognize that not everything can be fixed by an edit. Therefore I would take extra care in what I say and how I say it, particularly in handling sensitive situations. I feel I am ready for additional responsibility that comes with the moderators diamond.
- Becoming a new moderator can be daunting, but is also a big opportunity.
What are you worried or fearful about in your transition to becoming a moderator, and is there anything you're looking forward to? Is there anything we can do to help support you in those areas should you be elected as a new moderator?
I am most worried that I will overdo it with my commitment to the site. I have previously used RPGSE as an escape from real life and it took time to find the right balance. Right now I have the right combination so I hope I can serve the community without over committing myself.
The best help for this, would be for our other moderators to continue to be the amazing people they are. By sharing the load and supporting our users and each other I feel confident I can be a valuable member of the team without burning out.