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Obviously you should follow your own advice and qualify better...

Jason, I almost always read your insightful, helpful posts.

Maybe you need a break or maybe you need to make some adjustments in how you do things or deal with folks here. But whatever it is, I hope you don't leave. In just the last couple days we've already lost several other folks that have helped out here for years.

The decline of things here is really sad but it won't survive at all without folks like you willing to help out.

Regardless, thanks for your contributions over the years.

Mark

Jason, please don't go. I agree that this forum has gone downhill but if the good people such as yourself disappear, then it won't be worthwhile me staying either. Most job inquiries I receive are from people wanting urgent work done and are "willing" to pay money I wouldn't even get out of bed for.

Animal makes a good point (I saw it when I was logged out, where I'm going back to and continue to write for a corporate client).

The deal is this: I make my money from corporate clients. That way I can knock the price down for my help for people here, since I'm not desperate to pay my bills with these sales. The people here can't afford to pay thousands of dollars, but with some expertise on their side they can start to grow their businesses if they are committed.

I was here because I wanted to help people, and my Thanks count is a reflection of that. Next time you get 50+ or 100+ Thanks for a post, you let me know.

99 out of 100 people wanting to get in touch with me here go through my posts, go through my marketing content, and know exactly why they want to work with me. They know the value. And I'm happy to help them. But there's always that 1 out of 100.

This particular person got pretty far down the line in discussions with me, and he is an established member not a "just fell into the forum" newbie. That's what really makes it so upsetting. And it's simply not worth jarring my emotions for $200 or whatever when I can go make $1500 or more for doing exactly the same thing with somebody with a real business who appreciates it.

I'm appreciative of the comments. This was not a "Oh please beg me to stay" thread, though. It was an outburst, definitely, because I'm dead tired of experiences like this. They're indicative of the scaredy-cat level of current members, and as Animal pointed out it's not good qualifying for me to stay.

Mark, I've taken a break before and come back after about 6 months. The slide is bad, though...when you look at the statistics and the demographics and most importantly the personal effect of interacting here, it's just not worth it.

Jason and other readers, There's a bad vibe here, and some of it
has been directed at me.

2 well established members have asked me privately for help,
gave it to them and thanked me, are now
showing a lack of respect for me by their actions in public.

Recently I started writing a quite a long and value added post
then I took a break to read some comments on a post.

Those comments trashed the possibility of others learning.

I deleted the value added post I was going to post.

It ain't worth contributing here anymore.

Best,
Ewen

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its def. gone south thats for sure... thats why many of us "old timers" have stopped posting here... :-(

WF is not what it used to be, that's for sure. Paid forums however seem to be holding better.

some people cant be professional, thats doesn't mean that most people also have to suffer now? But your point s valid.

What convinced you of "helping them" until now? I guess there was something you were gaining too by helping them.

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We are sorry. I would love to learn from you.

I think the internet needs good people like you.

Sad to see this Jason yet completely understand. I used to be on WF several times a week to share and learn and it has just taken a downturn. I've been in marketing for 30 years and even so, have learned a lot from you (and Ewen who has similar comments too) and others who share insights, scripts and your own "test results." Appreciate and respect the contributions you've made here and completely understand where you're coming from. Cheers.

Hey Jason,

Did you get a chance to report this?

One member doesn't make the entire community.

As you say: 1 out of 100. There's 99 more to help.

Dan

P.s. I do understand the post came in frustration, been there done that

Go.

Seriously, what's the big deal? If the WF isn't fun anymore, why bother coming back?

I'm not saying I don't enjoy or value your posts -- I do. But it's just a website -- and despite your history with this site and all your contributions to it, it's really not your website. It's Freelancer's website. They ponied up the bucks for it so like it or not it's theirs to make better or to run into the ground as they see fit. And though I'm sure Matt Barrie would say differently in public, my guess is that they only value the community so far as it increases their bottom line. But can you blame them? That's business.

Honestly, I agree with most of the complaints you and others have raised about WF. Even though I'm relatively new here, I do think it's going downhill. Still, I just don't understand why people are putting so much time and energy into griping, bitching and moaning. As I see it, it's not worth fretting about, certainly not worth ranting about or making grand declarations about "being done". No need for drama. If you don't like it here anymore, just go. My guess is you'll miss it less than you think.

As for me, I'll continue to show up once in a while as time permits. Sometimes I'll contribute; usually I won't bother. And if one day I get bored seeing the same posts over and over again, seeing post after post devoted more to advertising through their signature than actually discussing business and marketing, if too many of the good contributors -- like you -- leave, then I'll leave too. Quietly. I've got enough on my mind without having to worry about some silly website I have no control over.

Yes, sounds familiar, why keep offering help, at a reduced price, or free advise, when this can occasionally happen.

Or in my case update a free thread, and have the trolls, report and b**** about it, since it makes them want to grab their teddy's in the middle of the night.


The newbies obviously don't get that the overall professionalism of this forum has deteriorated.

:0.

You are correct, If you do not want to get kicked in the guts, be abused, get put down, used, cussed, sworn at, and every other variable, then you should not be in the business of trying to help people, as it all comes with the package.

Maybe you are just not cut out for the helping bit, so a good call from you, saves you the pain that comes with helping others, because if you do above is what you get with out fail, so you need to be strong and have your own life in balance or it will get you down, at least you tried which is more than most..

Jason, you're right. This place has gone down, and the powers that be, seemed to be deaf to those like IamNameless, who offered valuable suggestions to them, on keeping the forum lively and relevant.


Just so you, and a few others know, I am extremely grateful for the valuable content/posts you have shared here. Heck, you along with Ewen, IamNameless, PeterLessard, DaniMac, Claude Whitacre, KenMichaels and a few others have your own folders on my computer, where I file your pearls of wisdom. Let's face it, the search feature on WF really sucks, and if I don't store them as I see them, chances of finding them again is slim. I value the contributions all of you have made.


I like BarbaraP, I've had years of experience in sales/marketing, but continued to learn from all of those I have listed.


I hope you, Ewen and the others don't take too long of a break from here.


I wonder if the new owners realize, if they had worked to keep the Offline section of the forum lively, it would have contributed to even greater revenue for Freelancer. I outsource a lot, but I don't use Freelancer. Just sayin'...


Forever Grateful to You All.

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I don't really get the point of this thread- if you are going to leave why not just do it?

Yeah, I get that to some extent. But still, what's the point? Freelancer is gonna do what it's gonna do. The Warrior Forum as you knew it is no more. Perhaps that sucks, but sometimes reality sucks.

Let's face it, forums are a dying breed. Certainly not extinct -- but dying. What people used to find at forums, they know find with social media and and answer at sites. Case in point: I'm sure that's why Freelancer invested so much into the new "Feed" interface for the site. If you're like me and have gotten used to the look and feel of the old Warrior Forum, you probably find the Feed interface annoying. But whether we like the new interface or not is beside the point: Freelancer is going to do what they feel is best for the future of the site, not what's best to keep a couple dozen old timers on the site happy.

I don't know how to say this nicely, but the truth is that Freelancer doesn't care about you. It cares about its shareholders. Moreover, in the grand scheme of things the WF is probably one of Freelancer's smaller investments -- so I'm guessing that the folks in Freelancer's corporate office don't think much about the WF at all. If it succeeds, great. But if not, it's a tax write-off. No big deal.

So to my way of thinking you have several choices:

1. Adapt to the new WF, knowing it's not going to be like old times. Maybe like me that means coming around less and less. Or maybe you discover you actually like the new direction the forum is taken. (Hey! Stranger things have happened!)
   
   
2. Leave.
   
   
3. Don't adapt to the new WF, but keep coming back anyway. You can continue to be sad and disappointed about something you're not gonna change. And you'll be able to actively contribute to the WF's decline by turning off potential new members by constantly complaining about how crappy this place is compared to what it once was.

I'm not gonna tell you which option you should choose. Maybe you enjoy complaining about the WF -- or maybe you want to "punish" Freelancer for ruining your beloved forum by dragging it down. In that case by all means continue to do so. But to me life is too short to invest so much time in a place I actively dislike so much. It's just like business really. If a traffic method or monetization strategy isn't working anymore, you stop wasting time doing it -- even if once it brought you in gobs of money. Far better to cut your losses and find something that is working than to keep banging your head trying to squeeze blood from a stone.

Thankfully, my feelings for the WF are not -- and have never been -- that strong one way or the other. So for me the changes are annoying, but not a big deal. I don't do MMO stuff, so I have no financial interest here. I do like helping people and I do like being a smart-ass know-it-all, so I'll continue to show up from time to time. I've chosen "Option One" above. What are you going to do?



Four potential reasons come to mind:

1. It's a way of "grieving" for the loss of the "old" WF.
2. It's a way to say goodbye to old "friends".
3. It's a plea for attention. (If you want 10 "Thanks" quickly, bash Freelancer and watch them roll in!)
4. It's a way to "punish" Freelancer by talking about how bad it is publicly.

But that aside, I agree with you. If you're going to leave, just leave already.

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I don't think he's leaving "the internet."

Cya. No reason to even mention you're leaving if you're leaving lol. Just fade off into the distance. I left for a few years and returned. It happens.

Wow! It appears that they removed my post from yesterday. That's odd. I didn't think I said anything out of line.

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Jason I feel your pain. I think every seller who has worked both high paying clients and low paying clients knows it. Its nothing new. If you go back to WSOs of 3 or 4 years ago you will see the same questions asked in public.

there are other real things you can point to for the decline of this forum but thats not one of them. I don't think I have ever talked to a business person that has not concurred that the lowest paying clients are the most demanding, difficult and at times unreasonable customers they have. Thats not unique to WF thats just how the world is.

I used to feel this way.

But in this particular circumstance I think it is ok.

Should someone actually be looking for him to send a PM or interact they now can refer to his latest posts and realize he likely won't be responding to them here.

He also may change his mind months from now should his circumstances change.

I personally like to know if someone is sick or has just moved for a bit. If he just stopped posting out of the blue I might conjure up awful thoughts of what happened to him. I'm glad he didn't leave me guessing.

Are we doing this again guys?

Sorry, that might have been misunderstood.

I was referring to Jonathan 2.0 and BigFrank, not at all the rest of the thread.

successful people do what unsuccesful people are not willing to do. success is a mindset my friend always remember that.

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If all these posters think the forum has gone downhill, here's a suggestion:

1. Leave.
2. Post something useful.

A forum is only as good as the people who participate...

Ironic the biggest thread in the forum is a whinge thread...!

Hey Jase sorry to see you go man , you gave some great advice better than the so called Experts we have on here !

BTW what I miss ?

Jason

:

You must use that a lot in class

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