If you’ve been reading The Postgrad from the beginning, you will have noticed a couple times we’ve given people who play World of Warcraft a.k.a WoW a hard time. We only do so because both Sam and I personally understand the nuances of watching multiple aspects of your life come to a standstill because of that cursed game. The appeal of a game like World of Warcraft is that if your real world existence sucks, you can create a fictional character and become the king of a virtual realm. Abuse of the game World of Warcraft can result in an emotional detachment from the real world, a lackluster love life, a general lack of hygiene, carpal tunnel syndrome, tunnel vision and much, much more. So our official stance on World of Warcraft reads thusly: We cannot condone the abuse of a highly addicting game like World of Warcraft.
On the other hand, we have nothing against moderation. Playing a game like World of Warcraft can help you blow off some much needed steam after a long and stressful day at work. Sam and I were friends before, but when we started playing WoW together, we started learning more about one another than ever before. So not everything about the game can be bad, right? Here are a couple of GOOD things I learned that came out of my WoW playing experience:
1. There is no shortcut. Your style of play reflects your personality. If you’re risky, you’ll take on challenging quests to maximize your exp and level accordingly. If you like to play it safe, you can grind it out killing low level creatures until you level high enough to guarantee an easy victory. Whatever you do, you only complete the tasks because of your hard work or your skill level. Nobody begins the game geared out and at the max level, and a lot of the time, leveling with your friends is the most gratifying part.
The same applies to real life. You can’t expect to begin a new job and have an easy time from the get-go. Even if you’re hired in a managerial capacity, you still have to work to prove your credibility with your colleagues. Your reputation may very well precede you but it’s the quality of your work that earns the respect of your peers. Everyone begins at level 1 ,so you need to work hard if you don’t want to stay there.
2. Be aware of your surroundings. I remember the first time I ever played WoW, I was supposed to follow my brother’s character to a certain low-level zone. I was completely new to WoW so I had no idea what the map looked like. I got completely disoriented and ended up in a high-level contested territory. I aggro’d every creature in the area and died multiple times just trying to escape. Bad times.
You need to be aware of your surroundings in real life too. When you’re at work, at the bar, or with a group of friends, you have to understand that there are certain social rules that you have to follow or you may end up upsetting people. This doesn’t mean you have to be walking on eggshells wherever you go. But being careful to stick to certain social rules and expectations will go a long way in ensuring you don’t go through unnecessary crap.
3. Understand your specialization. Don’t try to tank if you wear cloth. Don’t try to DPS if you’re supposed to heal. Don’t roll for cloth items if you wear plate. The classes in WoW all have specific roles and if you don’t like your role, you need to start a new character. Get good at your role and people will like you. Suck at it and people will blacklist you from their raids.
Once you’ve arrived at your chosen career path, start refining it. Get specialized at what you want to do. Become the go-to guy whenever people need help in your given area. Understand your role in the company and hone your craft accordingly and you’ll see how your hard work pay dividends.
4. There are always bigger fish in the pond. You can’t be too cocksure in WoW. There’s always someone bigger, faster, and more geared out than you. If you ever want to be quickly put in your place, go to the stronghold of the enemy faction and you’ll quickly realize how inadequate you are. The unknown level indicator with a skull hovering above their head just means that they’ll wreck faces, especially yours. Blizzard keeps on sending out new patches and releases to keep the millions of WoW users worldwide on their toes so if you’re the best now, you won’t be in a week’s time.
You might feel like you’re somewhat of a big deal, but that sort of attitude isn’t going to get you anywhere, real life or WoW-life. You can’t sit too comfortably. With technology changing as fast as it is and industry standards shifting almost daily, most professionals have to be constantly learning new things to keep up with their better-trained counterparts. Stay humble and be willing to learn and you’ll be good to go!
5. See things through ‘tll the end. This is one of the best and worst aspects of WoW. If you’re in a raid and you’re not contributing, you’ll get kicked out by the raid leader so fast you won’t know what hit you. Raids can sometimes last a couple hours. You already know your specialization and understand how you’re supposed to contribute but if you bail or your internet cuts out, you’ll get the blame for a failed raid and most likely be blacklisted by that group. So you learn to be patient, to stick out long hours of hitting the same series of buttons over and over again so you can maintain your good standing. You might feel like eating, showering or relieving yourself in the restroom, but you’ve put the raid’s priorities above your own and suffer as a result. At least you get that feeling of community and belonging, and maybe a rare epic drop every couple weeks or so.
How focused are you at work? Are you sitting there, dawdling and doodling away on your post-it pad? Are you daydreaming about that WoW raid you have planned after work? Are you spending your time googling the best talent tree for your class? Are you being as proactive as you can be at your workplace? Are you willing to put aside your comforts for the good of the company? You’ve got a reputation to keep in real life, and if you want it to be of good report, you’ve got to see things through ’til the end. You’ve got to make sure you’re working hard, even with the little mundane things that management might never notice, because above all else, they’ll notice your attitude.
I used to play a female bloodelf arcane/frost mage (don’t judge me!). Damn, writing this post makes me want to play. I know I’m not the only (ex-)WoW nerd here. What are some of your favorite classes, races, factions, etc.?
{ 4 comments… read them below or add one }
ahhhhahahahaha
sweet like yam.
I really loved the way you connected wow with IRL, very nicely put. I’m take this with me
sidenote: I loved how the article is about “there’s no shortcuts” yet the sponsored ad to the right advertises lvl 80 in 8 days and 10000 gold for $5. Oh, the irony.. lol
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