Are You A Contributor Or Contaminator?
Lurking beneath the dark recesses of the online world there are many contaminators. These would be the spam-artists, the con-artists, the "dare-I-say-it" cancel culture artists, and all too often the downright angry and nasty. Sadly, these "artists" exist within Wealthy Affiliate too. If we are to be effective members of WA perhaps we should all ask ourselves this question "Are You A Contributor Or Contaminator?"
Coined By One Dr. Phil McGraw
I am an unashamed Dr. Phil fan. He is not likely to be perfect (none of us are) but I do believe he is extremely wise and is a very big contributor to the world at large.
As far as I know, Dr. Phil coined the phrase "Are you a contributor or contaminator". His approach is simple, you have one of two routes to take and the choice is yours.
When it comes to Wealthy Affiliate, you can choose to be a contributor or a contaminator too. Let's have a look at some choices we have under each approach.
Contributor
This is how contributors conduct themselves, (please feel free to add any I have missed in the comments below):
- Answer questions asked by fellow members in Live Chat and Help (with actual solutions - answers or ideas that help solve the problem, not comment to help you gain top ranking traction)
- Ask questions within the community - we all learn from these, there is no such thing as a stupid question
- Guide newbies in the areas you found tough by creating training for them
- Report spam (yes, this is the contentious issue that has landed me in hot water. If we do not protect the environment we run our businesses in, we are doing ourselves, Kyle, Carson, and their incredible team a big disservice. Try not to be bullied by those who name-call because you reported them, they need to "Put Their Big Girl or Boy Brookies On" and take it on the chin. If they do bully you, it says way more about them than you).
- Pay it forward by offering Site Comments
- Pay it forward by offering Site Feedback
- Thank others for help
- Use constructive and kind language when assisting a fellow member
- Follow and support fellow WA members on their social media profiles - simple follows, likes, loves, wows and comments cost us nothing
- Celebrate the success of other members
- Shares newly learned information that will help others
- Apologize when in the wrong (a great book called the 5 Languages of Apology can be bought at Amazon - yes, that is a link to Amazon but is not an affiliate link)
- Get to know fellow WA members and take them at face value until they prove otherwise. Then just give them a wide berth - same as social media, just scroll on by.
- Understand they are business owners of their websites, not WA, Kyle and Carson own the business called WA.
- Operate with humility (no one knows everything)
- Patient & respectful with others
Contaminator
I have recently been accused of being a contaminator, in far more colourful language than that, sadly.
It was a very interesting and hurtful experience. Clearly, that individual believes I am a contaminator, though, after considerable introspection, I am happy to agree to disagree.
These are the type of things a contaminator would do (again, please feel free to add in any I've missed by leaving a comment below):
- Contravene the rules of the platform (these are in place for all of us to follow and all of our protection, not only the supposed "elite few") here are a few I see frequently:
- Spam
- Sneaking site names or URLs in WA blogs for personal gain
- Affiliate link in WA blogs
- Expect the worst of their fellow WA members
- Make assumptions about others - we truly cannot know one another unless we have a relationship with them, and a relationship is not formed with the odd interaction
- Become aggressive with fellow WA members
- Send hurtful and insulting private messages
- Make hurtful and insulting comments in public
- Conduct themselves as know-it-alls
- Not open to learning from others
- Use bad language
- Criticize and insult others
- Have unrealistic expectations of fellow WAers (we are all members and whenever anyone offers assistance it is on a pay-it-forward basis)
A Question To Ask Yourself
Another Dr Phil-ism "How Is That Working For Ya?".
When you find that your road within the WA community is bumpy, this question is invaluable. So, just ask yourself "how is this working for me"?
Introspection is good for all of us - though it can be tough, it's worth giving it a try.
Life Lessons Courtesy of WA
The Wealthy Affiliate setup truly is quite ingenious, everything we do within the platform from the training to the community prepares us for the real world out there. Yes, even the "scam, con, and spam-artists" and the downright nasty lurking in the shadows train us in what to expect when we venture out of the safe confines of this platform.
Having said "safe confines" we all know that this is not entirely true. We have individuals who come into WA with bad intent.
Be alert my fellow WAers, they do indeed move among us, that is the nature of human beings. Some people truly are great people with honourable intentions; others are consumed by pain and take their pain and frustrations out on others.
I am sure you've heard the expression "hurt people, hurt people". Right?
It helps when we remember that angry people often are just that - people who have been hurt and they in turn often hurt others (it's also not unusual for them to lack the awareness of what they are doing).
A Final Word
"We do better when we know better" - yes another quote, sorry for those of you who do not appreciate quotes.
I would like to encourage everyone, myself included, to let's do better when we know better. Remain teachable, have gratitude for and contribute to the incredible community we have found within Wealthy Affiliate.
The starting point is to ask the question of ourselves: Are you a contributor or a contaminator?
Thank you for taking the time to read this blog. I hope you have benefited from it and look forward to reading your responses and comments.
Blessings as always
Recent Comments
46
Unfortunate some of these experiences are; Though I have come to accept that whatever you do, however careful, and wherever you are one will always meet these two types- ie if you stay long enough. I believe you are a contributor and will always be, so if you ever encounter such a thing again just move on and turn it into something good (like you have done in this blog) 💪🤞
Hi Chris
Acceptance is key, thank you for reminding me of that. "God grant me the serenity to accept the things I cannot change" comes to mind. I could have summed this whole blog up with the Serenity Prayer :-)
Thank you for your positive contribution to these comments, I really appreciate it.
Blessings always
Louise
I must say, Louise, I am learning a lot about being a contributor or a contaminator. It can be tricky sometimes, though. In an effort to be truthful, someone might view what you say as being hurtful even if it is done respectfully. But truth is better than fake every time, imo.
Do you think it is better to confront someone privately before reporting them if you see a rule is being broken?
Lynn
Hi Lynn
Agreed, the truth is important - it can and should always be shared with kindness and respect.
When it comes to reporting someone, keep in mind that the WA system is set up in such a way that numerous reports have to be made before something like a "write ban" is imposed. So your one report cannot do any harm on its own.
If you think they may not know the rules of the community, it is worth a kind and respectful comment with a link as follows: Spam is a NO NO! Hope that helps you.
Blessings
Louise
Thank you, Louise. I have not wanted to report anyone yet, but I will keep what you said in mind. And I am doing my best to understand and follow all the rules.
Hey Lynn
Sorry if I stressed you by sharing the rules of the community, I promise that wasn't my intent. The title of the blog by Kyle (Spam is a NO NO!) must have been written on a day when he had enough of the spam artists :-)
We are all likely to do something we probably shouldn't, I pray that when you and I next do, we will be met with kindness.
Blessings as always
Louise
Hi Louise,
Thank you for this post. It’s an eye opener. Although 1 member spammed me before, I threatened to report them to Kyle and they stopped.
It wasn’t a nice experience for me as a starter here. However, that false accusation on you must have been harder and painful.
But, your post here shows you have overcome it and now moved on. And I know by God’s Grace you are free and justified.
I have one of Dr Phil McGraw’s books collecting dusts on the shelf. Thank you for citing him. I will try to read it this time.
God bless you.
Israel
Hi Israel
Thank you for sharing and I am glad to see you sorted your spammer out quickly. Well done!
I am on the other side of it now, writing this piece was cathartic too. It's great that we can share our experiences to help one another in WA.
Ooooh, which one of Dr Phil's books have you got and been ignoring? I'd love to hear what you think once you've read it.
Thank you for the blessing and right back at ya! :-)
Louise
Hi Louise,
Family First. I think I used it before in one of our marriage group discussions.
But it’s worth reading again. It’s been a while.
Thank you.
Israel
Thank you, Israel, that sounds like a goodie, I shall look out for it.
Have a super day!
Louise
Thanks for reminding me that we can be cordial, and respectful to our fellow members.
When I read a suggestion that I consider my words and the message they deliver, I realize that for a minute, I can come out of my bubble and see what is happening in our world.
Now, back to my world. Hopefully, the brief interlude will remind me that we are works in progress.
Sami
Hi Sami
Absolutely, we are all works in progress, that is a valuable piece to remember. Thank you for your reminder.
Blessings always
Louise
See more comments
Congratulations on addressing the elephant in the room.
An important lesson I've learned early on as a junior manager is that words are containers filled with power. Our words can either build a person up or strike them down.
I'm a firm believer in constructive feedback but battled with the application thereof initially while running a team of highly intelligent, diverse, and creative people.
Humans are quick to point a finger at what is wrong, but we have a hard time acknowledging the good in others. And the way to overcome this is to make use of sandwiched feedback. Wrap the negative feedback in positive feedback. That way, you address the problem and not the person.
Always remember, feedback and critique are like gifts. By definition, unasked for, unsolicited. Contrary to popular belief, gifts may be refused. And this is an important key in part of the solution.
Before you go and throw yourself under a bus; ask yourself; who is giving the feedback, are they qualified to take the high moral ground and how can you as a person benefit off of it.
I am not saying that you should go and bury your head in the ground, or be so arrogant thinking that you can not learn from others. By no means! What I am saying is this; don't let other people determine your value. You are not livestock! Life is not an auction. Refuse to be sold off for less than your market value.
When we say nothing in return, that's when we speak loudest.
Excellent advice offered there, Johan. Thank you very much.