Fitting in on the Warrior Forum

This is a very nice post, good work !

It's hard to detect herd mentality when you're actively involved in the herd.

This is a prime example "We are just as likely to turn on each other as we are an outsider.." It's a very large contradiction in your simple premise.

Instead of telling us how it is from the pack perspective, why not ask people what they think as relative newcomers?

But nice post anyway, it was very readable even though I don't agree with it.

I disagree with this. Instead, I see two other - rather different - things.

1. Your group is the special group, no matter what anyone else thinks. Those people are stupid, and must be educated as to why your group is clearly superior to others.

2. There are other groups here which are evil and must be destroyed. You can easily identify these groups, because they will inevitably express a belief that your group is not as special as theirs.

Your experience is largely driven by how well you understand that everyone thinks these same two things and what that means.

This is clearly right, because it's precisely what I think, and I'm in the special group which is clearly superior to all those other groups. And obviously you all agree with me, unless of course you're part of that evil group which must be destroyed.

(The "us and them" mentality is so fundamental and basic to our psychology, wherever we do not see it... we manufacture it.)

I think this is just a case of one person, not liking what they were told and is now in the angst of a tantrum, lol, but great post!

"The pack" exists, no doubt, based on the rules of the forum. For instance (included here NOT to try to violate rules, but to illustrate them and contribute to the discussion): the rules say 'no religion'. Well, the depth of my faith and my reading of the Bible suggest that God's ways are not restricted to Sunday and what's in my little head. In fact, every moment and area of my life is guided (or isn't but should be) by who I am as a Christian. But I can't talk about biblical ethics here, and will get beat up or banned if I do. So the forum is self-selecting for folks who choose to conduct themselves without obvious reference to Scripture. Not to say they're unethical, just that they don't see a need to quote chapter and verse.

But... IT'S THE WARRIOR FORUM SANDBOX and the rules were posted when I first arrived! These are the rules I've agreed to and I'm here and profiting greatly from everyone's input. I understand authority, and the authority here says, "No discussions of religion" - so I bite my tongue. But gag orders do not mean that the issues aren't there: this rule really does creates a pack, like it or not.

But I also kinda happen to like this pack. Thanks, all! I've already made about $400 following some advice I got here, and I'm about to release an eBook on my own website.

[Note to readers and moderators: I considered posting this with reference to child molesters or pornography, but I figured I might just as well call it straight - please accept my apologies if I've overstepped myself, and toss this post if appropriate.]

We're all warriors. Yes.

Here's how I see this place. There are people here who have been around business a while. I'm one of them. I certainly don't know everything but I've had my share of success and failure. There are many others here that understand business and have applied it to making money online. The sad thing is, there have been fewer and fewer of these folks around here lately.

Then there are people who want to make money online. Believe it or not, many of them don't even realize doing so is a business. They may buy into one of many easy-money pitches they see here and other places and come away with the idea they can actually pull in $5000 by Friday with no experience. That occasionally happens but it's very rare. These poor people believe there are magical techniques and secret strategies that will have them plucking Benjamins off the low branches of every little tree online. And for the record, without my age and experience, I would probably be one of them because I was one of them. But that was before the Internet came along.

Then there are people that come here and actually COMPLAIN that other marketers here are marketing, making money. They don't seem to be comfortable with others making money while they might be struggling. And instead of simply ignoring stuff they don't like and getting on with their own business, they get all caught up in jealousy and envy, which is a sure guarantee that they'll never make a dime.

Then there are people who, for lack of a better term, want to work the system. And to work the system you usually need to have enough gray matter to actually do things right. These are the people who will push rules and ethics to the limit until the "authority" players in the online game are forced to clamp down on everyone. This always hurts the legit players while the gamers simply find a new crack in the system to exploit.

And finally, there are people here in love with the idea of making it big but will never do it for a variety of reasons. The main reason is that they have no real direction. These people often get gratification by posting nebulous questions that have little to do with marketing or the real issues around business. Threads like, who's your favorite guru? Gimme a break. And these threads are answered by other people without direction. Lately these posts, along with posts complaining about how unfair everything is have been dominating this forum. That's why many of the senior members are bugging out.

There are also crossover folks. I consider myself serious about what I'm doing and still I will sometimes indulge in one or the other distractions I've mentioned above. This is a long post so many won't read it all. And the nugget is right here. The goal of any warrior should be to build a business using sound business techniques and providing value. Everything else is Crap. I've tried every other way and have been a part of every group I've mentioned above. It's too bad folks don't learn from the experiences of others. So it goes...

Dapple,

I'd actually say the rule you are referring to protects your beliefs. The alternative is to let others trash each other about it all day. Go look at what that has done to an entire section of a site like Yahoo! Answers, or the /r/athiesm section on Reddit. You'll lose faith in humanity pretty darn fast.

No one is saying "no religion", just no discussions on religion. I see people make mention or reference to God all the time, especially in the Mind Warriors section.

There are special sections in the Warrior Forum, like off-topic, where a "lesson with a comedic twist" fits in better.

The main forum is where we talk about making money.

It's easy to say there's no good 'ol boy's club when you're in it.

During my year on WF, I've noticed the pack mentality and a defined hierarchy. Once the leader strikes, the pack converges quickly to pick over the wounded prey. It can get Nasty.

I remember a question I asked last year about the religion niche and some folks jumped all over me as if I'd urinated on a cross. So I don't agree with it being all rosy and welcoming, it all depends on who's online when you are.

However, the idiosyncrasies of the WF community don't require justification. As with organic things, the WF evolved in such as way as to ensure its survival.

IMHO there are only 3 ways to deal with this.
1. You jump in and learn to run with the WF wolves.
2. You whine like a wounded animal and let the pack eat you.
3. You stay away from this neck of the woods.

Well, the thread in question has been deleted and I didn't see it, so I'm just winging it based on what I've read in this thread.

What those who feel beat down by the pack often don't realize is that the packs are dynamic. They change, depending on the topic and individual positions. A lot of established members may converge, but it could be a different group each time, with a few of the regulars in on most of the discussions. There are plenty of people here I've argued with in one thread and clicked their thanks button in another.

With the number of people at this place on any given day, it's almost guaranteed some won't agree with you.

Another thing to consider is, when the pack is against you, maybe, just maybe, you're wrong!

Lol. I remember when I use to think there was a WF good ole boys club ... I think there is a coming of age that people recognize but not necessarily a good ole boys club. As far as JV's go, people connect because the conversion ratio's and commission structures make sense mostly...the demand... Thats more a money making matter than a fitting in one. If you are a good marketer people want to work with you.

I use to have that "good ole boys club" paranoia, now I understand why it seems that way. You have to earn your keep by being a good citizen over a period of time to be recognized as anything more than a passing tourist here.

After years of seeing em come as fast as they go... I understand the mentality around here much more.

i guess i carry my own pack