Zwielicht
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- Joined
- Nov 10, 2024
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I wanted to share my philosophy on building an account on forums as I believe it will help others.
I was taught a very long time ago that before you go out saving the world, that you need to be an example of what you represent, and that starts with your body.
You need to set an example by taking care of yourself and ensuring that you're presenting yourself the way you want to be perceived.
How does this apply to a forum account, you ask?
Well, it all starts with your avatar.
Your Avatar
Your avatar is your face: it should be a representation of who you, your intentions, and what you're trying to convey to the community.
I originally created my avatar using a picture of myself with my 1860 Colt Army. I gave it film noir aesthetic and made sure my face was obscured to give it a more enigmatic look. This is because when I created it all those years ago, I preferred keeping my identity a secret.
Admittedly, I wanted people to feel a little put off and uncertain of me. Basically, I did not want to be approachable.
Despite this, I wanted to be judged based on my actions rather than my avatar, so I was very happy with this being my intention. I felt that if a user could not read me as well through my avatar, that they would be more likely to judge me based on what I post.
These days, I use this avatar not only because it's recognisable to the community, but it is still who I am even though I've been a lot more personal with the community over the last year.
Your About Section
Treat your about section as your body and what you post there as your clothes or tattoos.
For example, you could fill your about page with information on your company and what you sell. But before you do something like that, I want you to think about something: this would be like getting tattoos of ads. Sure, you can do this (and some have), but why would you?
Now, if your intention is to sell on Office Outlaw, there's nothing wrong with that, but consider how plastering ads all of your profile looks to the community. Through my own experience, the community is a lot more willing to accept you if you're just being yourself.
I was once told by another moderator on the other forum that people do business with people, not companies. Be a person here and a member of the community, and it will help your sales.
On the other hand, if you're not here to sell, my advice remains the same: just be yourself.
Posting
Your posts are your and your actions. As I mentioned when I was going over avatars, I wanted to be judged based on my actions around the forum. I went around helping other members both publicly and privately because I wanted to show people who I really am. I shared stories about myself and my experience in life because I wanted to connect with the community. I wanted to convey these intentions through my posts and be judged on this.
The thing is, in my experience, you will always be judged most based on what you post. You can have a friendly face and be well dressed, but if you go around yelling and arguing with everyone who has a slightly different opinion than you, the community will take notice of this and see this as the real you.
I was taught a very long time ago that before you go out saving the world, that you need to be an example of what you represent, and that starts with your body.
You need to set an example by taking care of yourself and ensuring that you're presenting yourself the way you want to be perceived.
How does this apply to a forum account, you ask?
Well, it all starts with your avatar.
Your Avatar
Your avatar is your face: it should be a representation of who you, your intentions, and what you're trying to convey to the community.
I originally created my avatar using a picture of myself with my 1860 Colt Army. I gave it film noir aesthetic and made sure my face was obscured to give it a more enigmatic look. This is because when I created it all those years ago, I preferred keeping my identity a secret.
Admittedly, I wanted people to feel a little put off and uncertain of me. Basically, I did not want to be approachable.
Despite this, I wanted to be judged based on my actions rather than my avatar, so I was very happy with this being my intention. I felt that if a user could not read me as well through my avatar, that they would be more likely to judge me based on what I post.
These days, I use this avatar not only because it's recognisable to the community, but it is still who I am even though I've been a lot more personal with the community over the last year.
Your About Section
Treat your about section as your body and what you post there as your clothes or tattoos.
For example, you could fill your about page with information on your company and what you sell. But before you do something like that, I want you to think about something: this would be like getting tattoos of ads. Sure, you can do this (and some have), but why would you?
Now, if your intention is to sell on Office Outlaw, there's nothing wrong with that, but consider how plastering ads all of your profile looks to the community. Through my own experience, the community is a lot more willing to accept you if you're just being yourself.
I was once told by another moderator on the other forum that people do business with people, not companies. Be a person here and a member of the community, and it will help your sales.
On the other hand, if you're not here to sell, my advice remains the same: just be yourself.
Posting
Your posts are your and your actions. As I mentioned when I was going over avatars, I wanted to be judged based on my actions around the forum. I went around helping other members both publicly and privately because I wanted to show people who I really am. I shared stories about myself and my experience in life because I wanted to connect with the community. I wanted to convey these intentions through my posts and be judged on this.
The thing is, in my experience, you will always be judged most based on what you post. You can have a friendly face and be well dressed, but if you go around yelling and arguing with everyone who has a slightly different opinion than you, the community will take notice of this and see this as the real you.
