How Control Freaks Poison Your Forum

As a long time forum owner, player, manager, and currently running my forum I've gained way more experience with control freaks than I ever wanted to. I only wish I didn't have more than one story about these Jekyll-and-Hyde members and just how destructive they are to your forum in a way far worse than forum trolls or even hackers. You can ban trolls, and fortify your server and make backups against hackers. But if you don't keep a very sharp eye out for these sneaky pests it could spell ruin for your community. And by the time you realise it, it could even be too late. You'll not just feel like a failure, you'll feel downright stupid. How could you not have seen this happening?

Here's hoping this helps YOU head off these predators.

Already established boards are where control freaks are the most deadly. A true control freak starting out as owner and building a forum from the ground up does not usually get very far, especially if the forum is set up for its own sake and not as an auxiliary part of a bigger website. People on standalone boards join for the board itself, and people don't like being micromanaged and nitpicked to death--assuming they don't get banned outright. These enemies of forum well-being also often, but not always, join with a burning desire right from the beginning to own that bustling community and exert complete control. The bigger the better. It's irresistible.

The member in this first example did not join with any intent to become a corrupt ruler. They demonstrated good writing skills and intelligence early on, and even did well for a while when they were promoted to be a moderator. It was not that large a community but busy enough to give a control freak that sense of power over the masses that they crave. During this time, however, it became apparent that when they enforced any rules they did so ruthlessly, without regards to whether the person was new or not, whether they were breaking a small rule or large, and often did so with little to no regard for that member's dignity. Instant outrage that anyone would dare defy their authority. {Rule breaks DO need to be dealt with, but there are right and wrong ways to do it.} During this time these issues went largely unnoticed due to a neglectful owner, even when at least one member left on account of it. They were enforcing the rules and they were active on the boards; what more could you want in one of your moderators?

When the owner left and gave ownership of the boards to this person, the worst suddenly came out.

Mistake number one: Restricting all of the other existing moderators' powers without warning or bending on it later, and requiring them to report to the owner before going ahead with any plot developments{this was an RPG and previously, permission was not usually needed except for major storylines}.

Mistake number two: Imposing increasingly restrictive rules that were also so complex that even the other staff members did not fully understand them. Refusing to bend on any of them, even when the game began to collapse largely due to a failure to further develop under these restrictions.

Mistake number three: Blaming everyone else but themselves for the forum's problems. This owner displayed paranoia, as though they suspected everyone was trying to pull the rug out from under them. This was probably most clearly demonstrated when a member created a promotional website for the forum and the owner reacted with a vicious response, claiming they were "trying to undermine my authority."

The outcome? This message board was at its height of popularity and activity when this owner took hold of it. Two years later it crumbled into infighting and members leaving in a huff, one by one, clearly stating they disliked the policies and felt it was going nowhere. The few new people who bothered joining were perplexed by the rules and usually gave up early. The forum limped through its last year and finally closed when virtually nobody was actually left playing the game.

Example number two came along in another forum {also unnamed} already popular and busy. A nice place to set up rulership. They started out the first few weeks being a model member: helpful, sweet, intelligent and masterful at the RPG itself. They helped newer members, helped promotional efforts, made helpful suggestions and otherwise got in everyone's good graces. They had made friends in no time and the owner promoted them to a low level staff position quite quickly. They were perfect...

...Until scant weeks later when they were demoted in disgrace, with the entire staff disliking them...at best. This person had wrecked a good opportunity by showing increasing selfishness, control freak tendencies, blowing small matters up into big ones, having a drama fest every single day.

The owner hoped it was all just a phase. It wasn't a phase. It didn't get better. It only got worse.

The member had started out by criticising the system's lack of enough staff on board. Things were busy, so the owner and other staff took that suggestion and promoted a few more. But still the person stressed that their own needs were not being met. Then came the lashing out at the owner's suggestions for improving their own behaviour. Then they changed their tactics, criticising the staff and the system, claiming they couldn't stand it--when only a month ago they had loved it.

Attacking the owner is not a good way to rise up in the ranks. Attacking other members and staff, even worse. They were removed from power and left shortly thereafter, on the suggestion of the staff--if you hate it that much, just go somewhere else.

All of this could have been avoided by not promoting such a person in the first place, but how can you spot the signs of a decent moderator that would make a monstrous owner, or the person who gets in your good graces then reveals their ugly side? From what I have seen, the warnings signs are often these: being extremely defensive and intolerant of criticism all while being highly critical of others; paranoia, rigidity and this sense that they are always right. A tendency to flip out at the littlest thing. Watch your mods and your members and crack down on these things. Rudeness should never be tolerated from anyone--even if they are doing wonderful things for your forum in all other ways. Doing favours for your board does not entitle them to become staff and it does not entitle them to mistreat you and your community. They could be the best webmaster or roleplayer in the world and still make a horrible manager and yes a horrible member.

Most of all: listen to your other staff. You promoted them for their good judgment above anything else. Let them do their job. Don't promote on a whim--get their opinion, hear what they have to say. Chances are, if you missed those bad signs, at least some of them didn't. If someone on your staff expresses serious misgivings about promoting a person, pass on them and look into another member if you need staff. If you need another staff member chances are it is because your board is busy, therefore you have many people to draw from. And don't prematurely promote a new mod, not even a low level mod. People are usually on their best behaviour for the first few weeks.

This advice so far is for fellow forum owners. I'd give advice on how you as a member can spot a forum that has a control freak in the ranks or at the top of the ladder, but I don't believe I need to. When you join such a forum, it is obvious. Don't walk away, run. There are many other message boards out there for you to enjoy. And to you the owner, I hope this has helped you make sure your forum never becomes one that the masses flee from in terror of that fire-breathing message board menace: the control freak.

My name is Wynn and I run a large Warrior Cats RPG forum. I learned most of what I know from running that forum and hope that my articles help you the forum/RPG game owner.