Control is an Illusion

People say "control is an illusion" all the time. I don't think many people actually believe it. Most people see control as people forcing them to do things. Things outside of their own sphere of influence. Things they can not ... control.

Realizing that control is an illusion will help you control people. In other words, knowing you can't force people to do what you want will help you get people to do what you want. I know it sounds like I'm just rambling on about some kind of mind game, but there is something to it. It's all protocol and social skills that allow people to get what they want. Don't confuse this with telling lies or deceiving people, that's not required at all. Often, being direct and open about your intentions and how it can work out to others advantage is more than enough to get someone to do things they might not do on their own. Many people, like myself, are good at spotting lies and seeing through people. I know that trying to pull the wool over people's eyes will often backfire and end up with someone actively trying to NOT do what you think is right. Getting someone to hand over their trust and accomplish a larger goal is work and I think it's one of the most powerful aspects of modern society.

When you have a large group of people who want to accomplish the same overall goal, there are bound to be different ideas and opinions about how to reach that goal. If the goal requires a unified strategy, there will most likely need to be a single person who is making decisions about which strategy to use. As the goal becomes more complex and requires more unity, the benefits of a single person in control grows. At a certain point, it is more efficient to follow a single leader with an occasional poor plan than to never follow a single plan as people fight and argue over what to do. It can be really hard for people to accept this concept.

Writing

Sometimes I start writing for this blog, and I don't finish my thought completely. Then I don't have time for a few days. When I come back, my idea seems weird and most likely I am now tainted with new information. It can ruin a good post.

People do not change

... in World of Warcraft.

I have seen some people change in my lifetime. Usually confronted with some huge issue such as a chronic health problems, or a change in where they live, and sometimes I have seen people change for no reason other than they wanted to. But, in my time playing World of Warcraft, I have not seen someone change how they acted towards other people.

Most of the time, people put on a front. A fake outward impression of changing, but underneath, they are the same. I have seen guild members in my guild who stopped doing something when people said they were being annoying. The behavior always came back. I have confronted people about breaking rules, and they broke them again. Often times trying even harder to justify why they did it.

Currently I feel that if someone were to make a change in their life with respect to World of Warcraft, their first change would be to leave the guild or quit playing before altering their behavior. People don't change because a disembodied voice or some text in a video game tells them to.