Lots going on here and I'm sure I'll have more and more articulate opinions once I have a change to mull things over, but for now let me just say this: In my experience, it is never the job of the leadership to get involved in interpersonal disputes. Trying to mother members of a linkshell only encourages them to behave like children. The only time interpersonal disputes should be stepped into is when they grow to the point of disrupting the smooth functioning of the larger community. Otherwise, the best policy tends to be to tell them "Have fun, kids."
I saw this in an OOC HNMLS I used to be head of, Ancients Awakened. Our previous shell-holder wanted to encourage a "family" atmosphere, so I was sacked on the basis of my attempts at conflict resolution and reconciliation among the members. When she took off unexpectedly, after the dust settled I found myself head of the whole shebang. I tried to continue in my capacity as conflict resolution guy, but after a while I began to realize... If you give people a target for their frustrations, they will aim for it. Members began to behave like spoiled children, bawling long and loud to whatever sack was in range over the most ridiculous and simple petty slights instead of trying to fix it themselves. Things improved dramatically after I switched policy to "Keep your personal issues out of /l and don't bother me about them. If it's that much of an issue, talk to THEM about it and try to work things out. Think of them as a coworker you have to get along with if you must."
People are different. Due to this, some people don't get along. To my mind, the job of the RPC is not to make sure everyone gets along. It's to ensure the success of RP in the community. These are two different, albeit related, goals. One we can tackle with gusto. The other is a hornet's nest you don't want to poke.
I saw this in an OOC HNMLS I used to be head of, Ancients Awakened. Our previous shell-holder wanted to encourage a "family" atmosphere, so I was sacked on the basis of my attempts at conflict resolution and reconciliation among the members. When she took off unexpectedly, after the dust settled I found myself head of the whole shebang. I tried to continue in my capacity as conflict resolution guy, but after a while I began to realize... If you give people a target for their frustrations, they will aim for it. Members began to behave like spoiled children, bawling long and loud to whatever sack was in range over the most ridiculous and simple petty slights instead of trying to fix it themselves. Things improved dramatically after I switched policy to "Keep your personal issues out of /l and don't bother me about them. If it's that much of an issue, talk to THEM about it and try to work things out. Think of them as a coworker you have to get along with if you must."
People are different. Due to this, some people don't get along. To my mind, the job of the RPC is not to make sure everyone gets along. It's to ensure the success of RP in the community. These are two different, albeit related, goals. One we can tackle with gusto. The other is a hornet's nest you don't want to poke.
