Advisory Board

[wingchun100]

What does one have to do to be a member of the advisory board? I am a huge fan of the site and would like to be as involved in it as I can. (Once I can get some more income, I plan on being a supporting member. Just hard right now since they cut OT and I have four kids...and I earn CRAP without the extra hours!)

 

[Bob Hubbard]

In the past I sought out people who were heavily involved with MT or who I knew in real life or who I saw as having major positive influence in the arts that I could basically pick up a phone and talk to about how MT could better help the arts and those interested in them. It was invitation only. With the ownership change the criteria may also change as we move forward.

 

[Chris Parker]

What does one have to do to be a member of the advisory board? I am a huge fan of the site and would like to be as involved in it as I can. (Once I can get some more income, I plan on being a supporting member. Just hard right now since they cut OT and I have four kids...and I earn CRAP without the extra hours!)

The other thing to remember, and Bob can correct me if I'm wrong here, is that the Advisory Board was originally envisioned to be made up of highly knowledgeable martial artists in different areas/disciplines, to answer specific questions about specific arts that might go beyond the "regular" readership. It seems to have been taken as an Advisory Board for the details of the MT forum, rather than a martial arts advisory board, though, which isn't the way the area reads… but, in either case, it's a position that reflects acknowledged expertise in particular fields. Safe to say, and, at the same time, sad to say, many who may consider themselves such "experts", well… aren't. As a result, it is, as Bob said, an invitation only type of position.

So that leaves us with how to be as involved as you can? Well, luckily, that's quite simple… and doesn't require you to be picked out above all others, and elevated to the lofty levels of Advisor… all you need to do is to engage in the threads. Post questions, start topics, welcome new members, contribute to the discussion… being a Supporting Member is, of course, highly appreciated as well… of course, individual circumstances play a part in that, which is understandable, but if/when you can, great! If you are seen as a positive, valuable member of the forum, you might be invited to become a Mentor… which, I feel, is more in line with what you're thinking of… and from there, who knows? Maybe even President!!! Or, you know, just a fun guy. The sky's the limit!

 

[wingchun100]

The other thing to remember, and Bob can correct me if I'm wrong here, is that the Advisory Board was originally envisioned to be made up of highly knowledgeable martial artists in different areas/disciplines, to answer specific questions about specific arts that might go beyond the "regular" readership. It seems to have been taken as an Advisory Board for the details of the MT forum, rather than a martial arts advisory board, though, which isn't the way the area reads… but, in either case, it's a position that reflects acknowledged expertise in particular fields. Safe to say, and, at the same time, sad to say, many who may consider themselves such "experts", well… aren't. As a result, it is, as Bob said, an invitation only type of position.

So that leaves us with how to be as involved as you can? Well, luckily, that's quite simple… and doesn't require you to be picked out above all others, and elevated to the lofty levels of Advisor… all you need to do is to engage in the threads. Post questions, start topics, welcome new members, contribute to the discussion… being a Supporting Member is, of course, highly appreciated as well… of course, individual circumstances play a part in that, which is understandable, but if/when you can, great! If you are seen as a positive, valuable member of the forum, you might be invited to become a Mentor… which, I feel, is more in line with what you're thinking of… and from there, who knows? Maybe even President!!! Or, you know, just a fun guy. The sky's the limit!

I certainly don't think of myself as a wing chun expert, so that wasn't a case of me being egotistical. (I just wanted to say that in case it came off that way.) As for contribute to threads and so on, as you can see my post count is at 889. My "thanks" and "likes" are also pretty good. And no, that isn't 889 posts of me simply saying "welcome to the boards!" on the Meet and Greet forum.

You're right. Mentor is probably what I was shooting for since I am no wing chun master. However, I hate to say that I don't know what "Mentor" entails then!

 

[Chris Parker]

Nah, I didn't think you thought of yourself in that fashion… exactly what the Advisory Board is meant to be seems to be a confusing issue, so it's not surprising that you had a slightly inaccurate idea about it, many do (just by looking through the threads posted in that section). Realistically, you're already doing the right thing to support the board… the next step would really be Supporting Membership… which you're already addressing. All cool, really.

In terms of being a Mentor, I had no idea either until I was asked… it's an unofficial/semi-official status, I suppose… not up there with the powers of a Moderator, but someone with some influence on the board… there's more, but I'll leave that to Bob to describe, or for a Moderator/Admin to explain if/when they tap you on the shoulder for a shiny new red tag in your name… but, as Bob said, with the new ownership, that might all change… we might keep the Mentors, their role might change, or it might be discontinued altogether, replaced with something else, or nothing. No telling right now… it's a matter of wait and see. At this point, everything is running as it was, by and large.

 

[wingchun100]

Nah, I didn't think you thought of yourself in that fashion… exactly what the Advisory Board is meant to be seems to be a confusing issue, so it's not surprising that you had a slightly inaccurate idea about it, many do (just by looking through the threads posted in that section). Realistically, you're already doing the right thing to support the board… the next step would really be Supporting Membership… which you're already addressing. All cool, really.

In terms of being a Mentor, I had no idea either until I was asked… it's an unofficial/semi-official status, I suppose… not up there with the powers of a Moderator, but someone with some influence on the board… there's more, but I'll leave that to Bob to describe, or for a Moderator/Admin to explain if/when they tap you on the shoulder for a shiny new red tag in your name… but, as Bob said, with the new ownership, that might all change… we might keep the Mentors, their role might change, or it might be discontinued altogether, replaced with something else, or nothing. No telling right now… it's a matter of wait and see. At this point, everything is running as it was, by and large.

It wasn't until recently that I even knew it was free to join the "MT Fan" group.

 

[Dirty Dog]

It wasn't until recently that I even knew it was free to join the "MT Fan" group.

Free??? What the hell???
Didn't you get the bill? You're supposed to send the money to me. Cash. Small bills.