Being a Cool Kid: Key Steps to Getting “In” With Your Community, Part Two

So, you’re probably as giddy as a varsity cheerleader to continue on the arduous and socially challenging path of gaining a place among the “in” crowd in your community. Like your best friend from high school, I’m here to help you through the transition. Today we’ll discuss how being empathetic and entertaining can not only help you to gain popularity, but to parlay your rockstar status into developing a thriving and supportive community for all to enjoy.

Be Empathetic: Some people can remember the person they wished they were most like in high school, but everyone remembers the one person that was there to help them through the scholastic social jungle. If you really want to soar to the top of the social stratosphere, make sure you’re empathetic to your board members’ needs and feelings. It’s easy to drop the ban hammer and give the boot to an inappropriate member, but what sets a drum major apart from the fourth seat bass drum player is an ability to understand that uncharacteristic lashing out can be a call for help. Be the listening ear that your best friend from high school was when you were dumped; chances are, the person that causes you the most trouble in your community may have something hard going on in their personal lives, that causes them to in turn give you a hard time. Exercising patience and empathy can not only boost your social credibility and status, but helps to foster a supportive community.

Be Entertaining: While being a forum or community moderator does have its share of class clowns, evil bullies, and groups that are “too cool to talk to you,” you’ll fare well by letting your personality shine. Perhaps you weren’t the prom queen or star quarterback, but chances are you have charisma to spare and a flair for finessing the English (or other) language in a way that both delights and entertains your community. Parlay this experience into entertainment; if permitted, feel free to let your hair down a bit and joke with your users! Have a laugh, share a smile or give virtual hug. Perform as the lead cheerleader would for a rowdy football audience, taking care not to do too many back flips; no one likes a show-off, but being yourself and being excited about the product or service you represent aids a new mod’s social acceptance amongst permanent board or community members.

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As a forum or community moderator, you’re like the kid from out of town that everyone’s heard about; use this buzz to delight your users with your knowledge of the product or service you represent, your acutely tuned listening ear, your love of sharing engaging content and your awesome personality. If you were previously dubbed the “Most Likely To Scrub Toilets” or the “Class Nerd”, this is your chance for vindication; after following these steps you’ll be prepared to be the community or forum moderation rockstar that you’re born to be! Make sure a space is cleared off at the cool kids table for you, because soon you’ll have permanent residence with the social elite.

– Lyn Muldrow