- Forum

[wolfpack37]

Soooo ... I mean I don't know how many of you have ever played this game or will have any idea what I'm talking about ..

Anyways, I think that my best example of leadership capacity is that I ran a (relatively) successful WoW guild a few years back. For people who have never played the game, the best guilds had ~30-50 active members, and raids required 25 members. So basically there were a lot of egos and drama etc. It's pretty difficult to coordinate a minimum of 25 people 3+ times a week for 4+ hours, as well as prepare for/understand the different encounters (bosses) from multiple points of view (each of 9 classes has a different job, as guild leader I had to understand all of them). I honestly believe that it was one of the most difficult and character-building experiences that I've had (certainly more so than a part time job or college class), and it required intelligence, time, commitment, good mediation skills, etc.

My basic question is, do you think it would be a good idea to use this as a backbone for a PS? Conversely, would it be better to just incorporate it in some way? Or will it just be completely over adcomm's heads/dismissed as ludicrous/irrelevant?

Thanks!

[kwais]

I pray this is serious. please be serious

[d34d9823]

Anything you can do while sitting on your ass does not count as leadership.

[AP-375]

This thread makes me happy.
Definitely use it. I think that if you add in the dimension that the leadership occurred in a different realm, that will make you seem even more well-rounded.

[wolfpack37]

I pray this is serious. please be serious

It's serious.

also, http://blogs.hbr.org/hbr/hbreditors/200 ... lopme.html

(can't find the actual article, this just talks about the article being in the next HBR)

HBR had an article about this a while back. Obviously it's just one article, but at least one respectable source has suggested that what I've said isn't nonsensical.

[TaipeiMort]

Have you seen the movie Trekkies? If so, how'd you feel about the people in that film?

[09042014]

Anything you can do while sitting on your ass does not count as leadership.

That's racists against wheel chair people. Reported.

[wolfpack37]

Also, considering it's serious, and considering that this is supposed (?) to be a constructive forum, if anyone would care to seriously answer the question, that would be very much appreciated. I understand that most idiots will scoff at the idea of any useful life skills being developed over a video game, and I understand the stigma associated with video games in general, however I'm curious as to whether I can hope that adcomms will be more open-minded than most idiots.

I have not seen Trekkies, so I can't comment, sorry.

[bruss]

As 2nd in command of a successful guild a couple years back I can say without a doubt you have to be a special person to be head of a guild. The different personalities that you have to deal, getting type A to leave type B alone, is a difficult task. Coordinating raid schedules, keeping ventrilo silent until the perfect time, shows that you have control over yourself and others. But I don't think this should be used on a ps. You could probably use it for a school that you won't have a chance in hell with. Ie Yale. (dont know if you are Yale competitive or not just used as an example)

[d34d9823]

I understand that most idiots everyone with any business world experience will scoff at the idea of any useful life skills being developed over a video game

FTFY

[kwais]

Adcomms are generally not more open-minded than the general public. They are less likely to have any familiarity with the world of video games. I do not recommend this.

[wolfpack37]

As 2nd in command of a successful guild a couple years back I can say without a doubt you have to be a special person to be head of a guild. The different personalities that you have to deal, getting type A to leave type B alone, is a difficult task. Coordinating raid schedules, keeping ventrilo silent until the perfect time, shows that you have control over yourself and others. But I don't think this should be used on a ps. You could probably use it for a school that you won't have a chance in hell with. Ie Yale. (dont know if you are Yale competitive or not just used as an example)

Thanks for the input. I'm 3.5/174, so maybe I could incorporate it into my Columbia and Boalt PS (Boalt bc of their affinity for high GPAs), I wasn't really planning on applying to HYS.

[bruss]

deadluck obviously to 733t for us. He Is so cool in his T30 gear and gs of 1million !!!!!11one

[bruss]

Lol apply to hys maybe u can have deadluck to beg u to say no so he can get off waiting list

[d34d9823]

Lol apply to hys maybe u can have deadluck to beg u to say no so he can get off waiting list

If you can get me off the Harvard waitlist this year, I'll say whatever you want me to say about your little game.

[DoubleChecks]

haha okay, i wont be hard on you like everyone else is....because i know exactly where you're coming from. ive been in a number of guilds, and in some fps games (my genre), i was very, very good back in the day.

having always been a part of an online community, ive spent years leading or help leading clans/guilds, and i honestly do believe it teaches a person a lot about interpersonal relationships. management, placating certain people in certain situations, recruiting, organization of the community/raids/matches, etc. i mean the list really does go on. i think it has aided me as, on some level, dealing with people online is not completely different than dealing with people irl. a fair substitute? probably not; real life work experience or whatnot is vastly superior to online experience lol...but i mean, if you dont have the former but you do have the latter......

that being said, i considered it, asked around a bit, and decided that i would DEFINITELY not mention it during interviews or in my PS or apps. i think it would hurt more than help. most of the people reading the apps will not have grown up in a video game culture; it is a different technological era. heck, even people in our generation are pretty split on understanding (and subsequently being more accepting) of the 1337 online world. so i definitely do not recommend it.

but eh, i thought it was a fair question.

[northwood]

if you want good feedback- write a draft and ask for help. Until then- its pretty hard. Some topics are not good for statements, but others if written well, can put you in a good light. Right now, its hard to say anything about it. other than peoples opinions abour gaming and gamers

[wolfpack37]

if you want good feedback- write a draft and ask for help. Until then- its pretty hard. Some topics are not good for statements, but others if written well, can put you in a good light. Right now, its hard to say anything about it. other than peoples opinions abour gaming and gamers

Ya, I was just trying to get people's opinions in regards to using it as a topic for a reach/risky PS before I wasted time going through the process of creating a draft. I suppose I'll leave it on the table for that, and if I decide to write it, I can choose to keep/toss it depending how it reads.

Thanks for the input everyone.

[WhoIsDonDraper]

There are generally two schools of thought when it comes to nerds and nerd activities, and they can be illustrated by comparing them to a main difference between Leninist Communism and Stalinist Communism.

I fall into the second school: I do not try to convert anyone to my interests nor do I assume anyone will understand why in the world (of warcraft) I do the things I do, e.g. watch Battlestar Galactica/Lord of the Rings Extended Editions/Star Wars, play video games such as Mass Effect (another RPG, even though I have never personally gotten into WOW) and Call of Duty, or why I read comic books as a college graduate. All I do is go about my business and try to expand my well being while understanding that not many people adhere to my set of values.

A roommate of mine can be described as a devotee of nerdom akin to Leninist Communism. He tried to convince everyone that they would LOVE Battlestar Galactica and that they should watch it! Until everyone understood how awesome BSG was, and until everyone could sit together in the same room, watch the newest episodes, and then log on to a BSG forum and discuss, he could not enjoy Battlestar Galactica to its fullest potential. This is what can be described as "Leninist Nerdocracy." However respectable their lofty goals may be, in the end Leninist nerds simply serve to alienate themselves from the rest of the world.

I would warn against trying to not only promote your leadership skills but to also convince the adcomm that your leadership experience is legitimate. It is hard enough to just do the first. No one here, who is nice enough, would want to undercut the value of what you have learned by playing WoW. Just don't take this gamble with your PS.

[DreamsInDigital]

Am I the only one who is picturing Jeff Lewis as Vork?

And on a more serious note OP, I agree with the poster that said that the only way we can really tell if it is an appropriate topic is for you to write a draft and have people take a look at it.

[Bildungsroman]

deadluck obviously to 733t for us. He Is so cool in his T30 gear and gs of 1million !!!!!11one

Lol apply to hys maybe u can have deadluck to beg u to say no so he can get off waiting list

I refuse to believe that these posts are written in English.

[094320]

..

[mcdoc]

I was the raid leader/de facto guild leader of a fairly successful guild (e.g., M'uru pre-patch, for fellow WoW geeks) a few years back. Having gained some distance from and perspective on it, I would absolutely not use it to market myself.

Yes, I learned a few things about leadership. Doing research, devising and executing strategies, giving orders, hiring and firing, and dealing with clashes between some fairly dysfunctional personalities--many of these experiences will probably serve me at least a little in the long run.

But looking back, I think my time as a raid leader demonstrates my seriously misplaced priorities more than my leadership abilities. There are so many better ways I could have spent my time and energy than helping a bunch of anonymous weirdos in their quest for prestige amongst a larger group of anonymous weirdos. There are so many more valuable, "real," experiences I could have had instead.

I think an adcomm familiar only with stereotypes will think that an applicant touting WoW experience is probably a socially inept basement dweller with an addictive personality who never took the time to have "real" experiences about which to write. I think an adcomm who knows the game well might think the same thing. You're probably not all of those things--don't leave them thinking you are.

[kwais]

I was the raid leader/de facto guild leader of a fairly successful guild (e.g., M'uru pre-patch, for fellow WoW geeks) a few years back. Having gained some distance from and perspective on it, I would absolutely not use it to market myself.

Yes, I learned a few things about leadership. Doing research, devising and executing strategies, giving orders, hiring and firing, and dealing with clashes between some fairly dysfunctional personalities--many of these experiences will probably serve me at least a little in the long run.

But looking back, I think my time as a raid leader demonstrates my seriously misplaced priorities more than my leadership abilities. There are so many better ways I could have spent my time and energy than helping a bunch of anonymous weirdos in their quest for prestige amongst a larger group of anonymous weirdos. There are so many more valuable, "real," experiences I could have had instead.

I think an adcomm familiar only with stereotypes will think that an applicant touting WoW experience is probably a socially inept basement dweller with an addictive personality who never took the time to have "real" experiences about which to write. I think an adcomm who knows the game well might think the same thing. You're probably not all of those things--don't leave them thinking you are.

agreed. Remember that they are going to be reading TFA and Peace Corps and overcoming great adversity personal statements. They are likely to think, in that context, that given the chance to go out in the world and do something, you chose otherwise. Not saying I think that's true, but its a fair position, especially for a 45-65 year old.

[Total Litigator]

I know a kid who's top 5% and law review at a T2. During interviews he always manages to casually inject talk about his experiences as a medieval renessaince fair performer. Shit law won't even touch him.