User:Bramble/Making a Difference

Foreword: I tried to make this very much my own, though t'was hard as Sandy and Insane had already done a very good job on their own essays and had good ideas. However, I think I can say I succeeded to make an essay most people can understand. Please leave any feedback on the talk page. Thanks, Bramble  -sama  03:34, January 19, 2010 (UTC)

Making a Difference
A part of human nature, something that makes us who we are, is the want to be noticed. We all want to make a difference, and leave our mark upon the places we live and work; speaking in this case, Warriors Wiki. This essay’s purpose is to explain what the term “making a difference” really means and should mean to the users here, and everyone else in the world as well. Each user who enters the wiki willing to be a part of the communtiy wants to make a good impression, be respected, and all in all be noticed for what they are doing. However, there are people who go about it the wrong way. They expect attention and recognition given them after they have done so much and want it given to them in titles and status. Sometimes just regular people with good intentions will think they are not important, or “making a difference”, since they are not given what they crave most: attention.

So how to really “make a difference”? As always in the world the people who are respectful, helpful, and kind-hearted generally live a good life and go far in the world. Other people like them and respect them, and that in itself is making a difference in their lives. You influence the people around you every day; by how you act, talk, and generally behave. Here, users who help each other, work together, act patiently with less experienced users, and have one of the most important qualities; humility, will make a difference among their fellows and gain trust. How does it feel to know you’re influencing the people around you by the way you act? The fact that the people around you may make better decisions because they want to be like you, act the way you do, and that they may even grow to be a better person than they were because of their respect for you? Making a difference doesn’t always have to be huge; you can do it in little things among the people you interact with every day.

Additionally, as well as making a difference by the way you act, what about the way you work? Good, hard work is always appreciated, especially here. There are nearly always pages to edit, cliffnotes to add, another image to edit. Each user who edits contributively is making a difference. What does it matter if you are given a title to match your work? Yes, it gives one satisfaction. However, you should feel satisfaction in the work you have accomplished, that you did. Often times, the users who work the hardest and contribute the most and care nothing for titles or status are the ones who make the wiki great. Making a difference to them is not getting a specific name or status quo. It’s the fact that others benefit from their work, and that their time and effort has made something no one else made; they did. That is what counts, and what should count, to users who want to be something special. A similar situation is that of a young child coloring a picture for his mom. When he shows it to her, she may give him a lollipop for his good work. However, the things that matters most to the child is the fact that his mother smiled and gave him a hug, and that he made her happy by drawing the picture. There is little difference to a user editing an article; you may get some status for it, but the thing that may truly make a user happy is the fact they did it. That was the article he worked on. A sense of accomplishment and satisfaction is the true reward for “making a difference”. Some users feel that they aren’t making a difference if they don’t get rewarded with something they can see. Not so. As was said before, making a difference can be tiny or big, noticed or unnoticed, but it is still a difference, and it was one you made.

Above all, a user must not adopt the notion that making a difference is power-grabbing, being arrogant, or believe that they must have a title/status before they are important enough to have been noticed or worthy of other people’s attention. This is the wrong way of making a difference. In fact, a vandal may vandalise, not to be mean, but because they want people to notice them. However, this is the wrong way to get any attention. No one sees them as cool; they are noticed, but they are looked upon with scorn and their edits are erased. What satisfaction does that give anyone? And the users who grab for power, willing to do anything just to gain a title and be noticed, to be someone important; they’re missing the point. Making a difference isn’t about you. It’s about the people who work around you! They notice the difference you’ve made, and appreciate you for it. They notice how much you care about others, and love you for it! The user who wants a title is wrong; a wiki, the Warriors Wiki, is about how much you give, not how much you get. Humility + Hard Work = Making a Difference.

In conclusion, the term “making a difference” is not used as synonym for “get fame and be noticed”. Be humble and helpful, work hard, and that counts as making a difference in my book. So what are you still sitting here reading for? Get out there, and let’s kick some serious blank page butt!

Other Notable Essays
Sandy's Why We Joined the Wiki Insane's How to Gain Respect