Breakfast Topic: What's your motivation to perform?
by Jake Evers 
Nov 11th 2011 at 8:00AM
The raid is falling apart. You're on a boss you've downed before, but now it seems impossible to make it out of phase 1 because people keep failing on mechanics they should already have mastered. Ranged DPSers are standing in fire. Healers aren't popping CDs when the boss smacks the tank with its hard-hitting ability. Melee DPSers aren't switching to the adds in time, so they wipe the raid. Tanks can't seem to position the boss correctly. The raid is falling apart.
So what is it that will motivate your group to pick up the pieces, stop failing, and win?
Some group or raid leaders seem to think anger is the best motivator. They get stern, raise their voices, and threaten to kick the next person who fails, hoping their severity will prod everyone to victory. Some take a sarcastic tone, mocking group members until they clean up their act. "Wow, what a pro-mage move -- you Blinked right into that explosion. You should really think about doing this for a living." Others seek to break the tension and frustration by giving everyone a short break. Perhaps a reminder of the rewards works best, since shiny new loot is a great incentive for most. Sometimes even humor does the trick; it's just a matter of getting people to LOL at how pathetic that last attempt was or how ridiculous their character looks while riding Magmaw.
Since people are different, though. Sometimes one method of motivation doesn't work for everyone in the group. The angry lecture approach can backfire when group members get so worried about failing that they freeze up and stand still instead of doing their jobs. Taking a break or laughing for a few minutes can have the unintended result of breaking the raiders' concentration, at which point their loss of focus causes even more fail.
So what is the best motivation for you to overcome obstacles, perform at the highest level, and succeed?
Filed under: Breakfast Topics, Guest Posts
Reader Comments (Page 1 of 2)
Hal Nov 11th 2011 8:11AM
As a raid leader, anger is pretty much the last thing I'll respond with (barring any jack-assery to deliberately mess things up).
Failure is frustrating enough in a game that is played for fun; yelling at somebody isn't going to improve that at all. Instead, I go the tactical route: Why did we wipe? So-and-so was the first to die, what caused that? Healers, were you out of mana? DPS, on the right targets? Tank, did you hit your cooldowns and position the boss correctly?
This isn't a flawless method, of course. Some people won't volunteer that they stood in the fire, especially if they don't know that they did. Others will be quick to accept the blame, since they can be self-critical and just want to move forward rather than standing around pointing fingers.
But I think it works better than throwing a tantrum. And you know what? Sometimes it's just better to go try something else if things aren't working. Having trouble with Rhyolith? Let's go do Alysrazor instead. Hm, we're not having luck here, let's go run Throne of the Four Winds for fun instead.
Revnah Nov 11th 2011 8:12AM
Wipe-nights happen. They just do, and I'm fortuntate in that my guild is mature enough to live through them. We might be a little tired and snappy by the end of a frustrating run, but then we'll take to our guild forum and analyse the crap out of the logs, then come up with a plan of what exactly we're going to do differently next time.
This approach has always worked so far :-) I guess people have different needs, but if a raid leader yelled at me or made fun of me in anything but a good-natured way, I'd stop raiding with a group. I *know* when I make a mistake, and I beat myself up for it enough, there's no need to rub it in!
Jere Hunter Nov 11th 2011 8:17AM
um... were you watching my raid last night?
Helston Nov 11th 2011 8:19AM
Apologies that this is somewhat off topic, but you reminded me of something one of our mages did on Magmaw once - we tended to have the raid stack in melds range while a hunter or frost DK did all the work with the adds. You know how you mentioned mages blinking? Well let's just say this mate, who only needed to move if that half of the room lit up, soon discovered just what that Magmaw spends all his time in feels like.
We mocked him about it for months on end.
Helston Nov 11th 2011 8:21AM
*melee range - stupid smartphone. WTB edit button.
Helston Nov 11th 2011 8:32AM
GAAAAH, I JUST REALISED THERE'S MORE MISTAKES!
WHY MUST YOU DO THIS TO ME? SOMEWHERE OUT THERE AN EDIT BUTTON IS SITTING IN A RECLINER, SIPPING TEA, WATCHING LIVE SURVEILLANCE OF ME RAGING BECAUSE THERE IS NO WAY I CAN CHANGE WHAT I'VE WRITTEN!
(Could someone PRETTY PRETTY PLEASE ask Joystiq to hurry up and fix the comment system? I've been able to un-send and edit emails (thanks to the the brilliant minds behind Gmail) for probably a year now (provided I hit undo within 20 seconds of sending the email), yet I can't edit a comment on a blog that lives through its community. A community which exists entirely within the commenting system.)
rockychristine Nov 11th 2011 10:22AM
As a mage, I've definitely Blinked into unfortunate things. Off of platforms, into horrible green goo, into fire, into the Lich King's crotch... It happens. And it's fun to laugh about later on.
dany.erunamo Nov 11th 2011 8:25AM
I'm not a kid. I do not tolerate anyone raising his/her voice at me due to a game. So I do not do it. Respect is the basis. Should you lose that, you are nothing.
DarkWalker Nov 11th 2011 10:26AM
I (almost) never lead raids. I don't like to be in the spotlight (even though I mostly play as a tank).
But, as a raid member, if I feel like the raid leader is abusing other raid members, I will just leave. No in-game reward is worth putting up with a rude leader.
(For the record, kicking, or threatening to kick, someone is not always abusing. If the player can't seem to perform and is holding the raid back, a kick might be needed and, perhaps, even deserved. I also completely agree with kicking someone who is undermining discipline, verbally abusing other players, etc, as long as the player is warned beforehand and given a chance to mend his ways before being kicked.)
Mortenebra Nov 11th 2011 8:44AM
My guild/raid group constantly reminds one another that we're here for fun and there should always be a mutual respect amongst ourselves. If it means dredging up the "List of Infamous (but Hilarious) Raid Moments" for a good laugh, then we'll do it! Stuff like that reminds us that we've been through worse, that we've seen each other at our virtual best and worst, and, at the end, we're still here fighting the good fight. If it means all nine other raiders-- including my husband-- ganging up on me so I'll finally stop making puns about something, we'll do it! We agreed that anything said seriously should be constructive in some way, even if it's just pointing out what killed whom and the sort. There's a serious level of group-thinking that goes on sometimes where we're all thinking out loud over Vent and/or raid chat.
And yeah, there are some nights where someone has had a bad day at work or whatnot and raiding just isn't viable because the right attitude isn't there. One person can affect the whole group and, so long as it's not consistently happening, everyone's entitled to their occasional "bad day." Some members of the team have been raiding together since BC; the current team as a whole has been together, largely, since Wrath. I think a lot of it comes with putting the people behind the characters first, and everything else second.
Krz Nov 11th 2011 9:04AM
I've been an officer of a few guilds - and been a raid leader many times. One of the things that irks me is when raid leaders use the anger approach while I'm trying to keep things positive. It has caused me to quit the game before - more specifically being unable to reconcile my positive approach to raiding with the hard-raging raid leader. Raging raid leaders tend to cause people to quit guilds.
Fortunately, my current raid leader and guild leader usually prefers the humour/analytical approach with positivity thrown in. Sometimes it leads to anger, and while I can understand where the guy is coming from, I always cringe whenever it leads to that.
As a raid leader myself I never resort to anger. I'm playing this game for fun, so is everyone else. There's no need for anger. I won't tolerate people who pay no attention, though. If you're not going to put in any effort, I simply will replace you. But - I'll do it nicely, unlike many other raid leaders.
Goins2754 Nov 11th 2011 9:25AM
Well, I'm not a raid leader &, as a player, I'm very quiet and reserved when I play. I think that I'd rather just sit in silence & let the raid leader speak than to chime in with anything. But that's just my personality.
As such, what really, truly motivates me is being better than other people. I know that might be misinterpreted, but I feel that these games are, in fact, very competitive & what pushes me to "position the boss correctly" or to pop my CDs when I need them, or to try and push DPS classes as a tank, is to be better than everyone else.
It all starts with that first dungeon that you get hazed with "you know, the last tank didn't such as much as you." I look inward and wonder, "how should I fix this?" I watch videos online, I queue as DPS so I can see how other tanks perform. I read strategies, etc.
Ideally, when anyone on any server needs a tank, I want them to say, "Well, I wish Athanatos could tank for us." That's not realistic, so I have to settle for on raid night when my guild raids, I want to think that if I'm not there they have a very hard time finding someone as good as I am.
MattKrotzer Nov 11th 2011 9:30AM
It really depends on the reasons for the failure. If its the core folks from my regular run, a bit of frustrated "C'mon guys, we're better than this," can get us back on track. If we've got some fill-ins who are less familiar with the fight and/or undergeared, we try to tough it out, but sometimes we just ask them to sit out so we can bring in people who can get the job done.
It really depends on the situation, though. Availability, level of content, and amount of time spent wiping to the encounter.
I'm in the top progression guild on my server, but my group is not the progression team, so we're far more relaxed. We try hard, and we find success, but we aren't the driven, results-first team that runs the guild. Many of us were passed over for that team, or simply dislike the way that team is run, so we made an environment that works for us. Our progression team has no problem with verbally dressing down those who make consistent mistakes, replacing them, or even the occasional personal jab. It works for them, but its obviously not the right fit for everyone. You'd never hear the random movie quotes that pervade our raids in theirs. But you'd get the kills, one way or the other.
Wayne Nov 11th 2011 9:31AM
Being a raid leader...there are times where frustration sets in...especially on things that are "on farm". And sometimes my frustration does slip through, but I do not point out stupid mistakes that one individual is doing...I will make it a group thing (Stop getting rageface caught in the prison traps, Be sure to hit Rhyolith's right leg instead of cleaving, etc)
Usually things like that help, because regardless of how good someone is, everyone gets tunnel vision from time to time...
ravyncat Nov 11th 2011 9:37AM
My guild is very casual. When we do raid, we do it to have fun.
Pretty much when people start getting grumpy, we call the raid. There is no point in yelling--that is demotivating as hell.
We have tried the other methods and all they do (in our guild anyway) is make people feel hurt and sad and not want to raid. That isn't good for guild morale.
Our raid leaders are very good at gauging when we have had enough. When we hit that multiple wipe wall, they will call a ten minute break so people can walk away. We might come back and do something silly like have everyone pull out a lucky minipet before the next pull. Then we will try again and if it is still off we stop for the night.
Sometimes we go on to do something else and sometimes we just make plans for the next raid.
Killik Nov 11th 2011 9:59AM
My guild is quite casual and a while back we had to 'retire' a raidleader because his cutting remarks were really upsetting people. The guy we replaced him with was even-handed and fair. His approach was analytical and he'd put in extra hours to work one-on-one with people to help them improve. He lasted about 6 months, then quit the game because the stress of biting his tongue made him actually want to strangle some of the dps players.
shomechely Nov 11th 2011 10:08AM
A couple of methods seem to work with our group of casual raiders who have raided together for a long time. We take content at a slow and steady pace. In my years with this group (nearly 4) there has never been any yelling, blame or drama on vent. We may never get a realm first - heck, we are closer to realm last - but we get it done.
Method one is Relax. Firelands isn't going anywhere. It will be here tomorrow and next week and the week after that. We can come back and do it again. No one kills a kitten if we don't finish tonight.
Method two is LAST ATTEMPT. I don't know if I would call this a method or a coincidence, but when trying new content (and sometimes old content with new characters) once the raid leader says "Okay guys, this is our last attempt at this tonight and then we are going to call it", things just sort of magically come together and boom! the boss goes down.
Redielin Nov 11th 2011 10:04AM
A little bit of respectful voice raising never hurt anyone.
Rufin Nov 11th 2011 10:11AM
My tactic when leading raids is to simply explain the fight and then jump it. No long analysise or videos to show the group; my thought is the best way to learn is through experience.
If we wiped the first time (which is expected tbh, my guild isn't the best in the world lol) I just explain what went wrong, comfort the people who feel they screwed up big (calm down Tracey, it isn't your fault) and then just tell the group "that was close, we got this. Next attempt we have this for sure."
Next time, we normally win. Weird, but it works.
tibbelkrunk Nov 11th 2011 10:11AM
When we're wiping on fights that we've killed multiple times before, when we all know the strategy and our specific duties, but for whatever reason we are making repeated mistakes, I like to re-simplify things.
I'll say something like, "This time, let's all make sure we take no damage at all from Engulfing Flames."
Now, when everyone is concentrating on that one specific aspect, we forget about all the other failing we've been doing throughout the fight, and our muscle memory takes over.
"Engulfing Flames in 3... 2... Oh, it's over."