Post by Admin on Jan 18, 2016 17:32:49 GMT
Welcome to the Be One Step Ahead Forum. I am really glad that you are here and want you to enjoy the amazing community that this is. Please read our "Constitution" before posting:
The Be One Step Ahead Forum’s Constitution
Our Forum is designed to be a resource and community for all current and prospective entrepreneurs, leaders, parents, and people with goals. The rules on the forum are not my rules, they are not the rules of any individual moderator, they are in fact the community’s rules or what we call the Be One Step Ahead Forum Constitution, or BOSAFC.
The BOSAFC is really more than a list of rules, it is in effect our community constitution. To be a good member of the community it would be a great idea to read our BOSAFC for the forum before making your first post. They are not long, not written in legal jargon, and anyone posting is expected to have read them before joining in on the community discussions. Understand the ground rules and you will have a great experience in the forums.
Getting Along in Forums in General
Our forum is extremely welcoming and made up of a great group of people. Many have/will become great friends and even connect off line and work together on mentoring, business ideas, fitness, parenting or just hang out and drink a beer or grab a bite to eat together on occasion. Like any community there are existing relationships and existing etiquette that the group has come to expect. Our members want to live by the Six Pillars of BOSA and exude that in the forum. Below are some simple guidelines for forum communication:
Please do not:
• Come into the forum and ram-rod your questions into unrelated discussion or make 5 different posts on sub -boards.
• Post links to your webpage as a first post (this is seen as spam)
• Try to sell things on your first post
• Ask for people’s time, advice, services on your first post (get to know everyone first)
• Act rude to the moderators
• Use profanity, slander, dirty jokes, or any other inappropriate language
• Use all caps when communicating
Think about it this way, if you walked into a meeting or a business mixer or a PTA meeting for the first time, would you start off by shoving business cards in people’s faces or telling everyone the way you think everything should be run at the event? Of course not, if you did you would probably be unwelcome and sent packing, trust me it works exactly the same way on any well run forum.
What people tend to do in social meetings offline like a business mixer or a PTA meeting is listen more than talk at least a bit at first. Then, they introduce themselves, they add to existing conversations, they ask questions, etc. This can be a very short process as the point is simply to learn the feel of the group, what they are all about and where you have common ground. Along with that you also get a feel for basic etiquette and that allows you to fit into the group as you contribute to it.
Most people would never show up at a business mixer and say to everyone they see, “hey go to my website and buy my stuff” or show up and pick a fight about religion or politics with folks they just met. Those same people though sometimes do exactly those types of things online in a forum as if basic courtesy doesn't apply simply because the group is “virtual”. Please remember our virtual group is made up of real people. I promise you that if you approach our forum with the same attitude you would when you go to a first meeting of a church group, business mixer or social club with, you will have a wonderful experience with the BOSA forum.
Rules are Rules – What About Free Speech?
We believe in freedom of speech; we just don’t believe you have a right to your free speech via the private property of another person. The forums are not a public resource, I pay for them and their upkeep, your free speech doesn’t give you the right to break the community’s rules. No you can’t just say anything you want, if you are in doubt of the rules, again just read the BOSAFC. Let me explain this in an easy to understand analogy if you find this an oppressive attitude.
I believe in your free speech and if you wanted to spray paint something in big red letters (even something that highly offends me) on the side of your house I would defend your right to do so. Why? It is your house, it is your property, you can use it as you see fit. However, should I be required to allow you to spay that message on my house as part of supporting your free speech? Very few people with an IQ higher than 14 would ever expect that. So why should you expect the right to use my site or my community’s forum free of our rules under the auspices of “free speech”?
Your free speech applies with your right to speak and be heard via public resources and your private property. You can say anything you want on your website or your blog. You can say anything you want that complies with our BOSAFC on ours.
Fighting the Moderators and the Rules is a Bad Idea
On occasion we get a person joining the forum with their own ideas of how our community should be run and what the rules should be. Most of the time these folks are swiftly warned by a moderator that they are in violation of the BOSAFC and asked to refrain from such behavior in the future. Many understand that rules are rules and either comply or find a community more in tune with their particular agenda.
Then we have the occasional person that insists on trying to tell the moderator staff the way things should be. They disrespect others, break the BOSA forum constitution, use profanity and inappropriate language; such users get banned permanently and swiftly.
Simply put if you are advised that a post of yours is a BOSAFC violation, it is a BOSAFC violation. Arguing the point is not advised. If you state that you will continue to post similar posts, we will believe you at your word and ban you.
We Are Friendly People
The above sounds strict but only for the benefit of the community. The forum and our moderators are very friendly and generous people. There are boards on many subjects and odds are no matter what part of self-improvement you are most engaged in is discussed in the forums in one of the boards.
Don’t let the tone of the above put you off, 99% of the people who join the forum probably don’t even need to read this page. I put it up for the 1%. This 1% is the group that takes up 90% of the moderator staffs time, energy and resources. To provide the best forum we can for the 99% that understand basic courtesy and rules we have decided that the 1% need a cut and dry explanation and therefore get a very short rope as it pertains to the community’s rules.
In other words, the rules don’t exist to oppress the majority, they exist to prevent the minority from ruining the community for everyone. In essence, we are a constitutional republic where the rights of all are protected. We are all bound by the rules; even me. That is true equality in a community.
Heres To Your Victory,
CJ Hamlin & The BOSA Mod Team
The Be One Step Ahead Forum’s Constitution
Our Forum is designed to be a resource and community for all current and prospective entrepreneurs, leaders, parents, and people with goals. The rules on the forum are not my rules, they are not the rules of any individual moderator, they are in fact the community’s rules or what we call the Be One Step Ahead Forum Constitution, or BOSAFC.
The BOSAFC is really more than a list of rules, it is in effect our community constitution. To be a good member of the community it would be a great idea to read our BOSAFC for the forum before making your first post. They are not long, not written in legal jargon, and anyone posting is expected to have read them before joining in on the community discussions. Understand the ground rules and you will have a great experience in the forums.
Getting Along in Forums in General
Our forum is extremely welcoming and made up of a great group of people. Many have/will become great friends and even connect off line and work together on mentoring, business ideas, fitness, parenting or just hang out and drink a beer or grab a bite to eat together on occasion. Like any community there are existing relationships and existing etiquette that the group has come to expect. Our members want to live by the Six Pillars of BOSA and exude that in the forum. Below are some simple guidelines for forum communication:
Please do not:
• Come into the forum and ram-rod your questions into unrelated discussion or make 5 different posts on sub -boards.
• Post links to your webpage as a first post (this is seen as spam)
• Try to sell things on your first post
• Ask for people’s time, advice, services on your first post (get to know everyone first)
• Act rude to the moderators
• Use profanity, slander, dirty jokes, or any other inappropriate language
• Use all caps when communicating
Think about it this way, if you walked into a meeting or a business mixer or a PTA meeting for the first time, would you start off by shoving business cards in people’s faces or telling everyone the way you think everything should be run at the event? Of course not, if you did you would probably be unwelcome and sent packing, trust me it works exactly the same way on any well run forum.
What people tend to do in social meetings offline like a business mixer or a PTA meeting is listen more than talk at least a bit at first. Then, they introduce themselves, they add to existing conversations, they ask questions, etc. This can be a very short process as the point is simply to learn the feel of the group, what they are all about and where you have common ground. Along with that you also get a feel for basic etiquette and that allows you to fit into the group as you contribute to it.
Most people would never show up at a business mixer and say to everyone they see, “hey go to my website and buy my stuff” or show up and pick a fight about religion or politics with folks they just met. Those same people though sometimes do exactly those types of things online in a forum as if basic courtesy doesn't apply simply because the group is “virtual”. Please remember our virtual group is made up of real people. I promise you that if you approach our forum with the same attitude you would when you go to a first meeting of a church group, business mixer or social club with, you will have a wonderful experience with the BOSA forum.
Rules are Rules – What About Free Speech?
We believe in freedom of speech; we just don’t believe you have a right to your free speech via the private property of another person. The forums are not a public resource, I pay for them and their upkeep, your free speech doesn’t give you the right to break the community’s rules. No you can’t just say anything you want, if you are in doubt of the rules, again just read the BOSAFC. Let me explain this in an easy to understand analogy if you find this an oppressive attitude.
I believe in your free speech and if you wanted to spray paint something in big red letters (even something that highly offends me) on the side of your house I would defend your right to do so. Why? It is your house, it is your property, you can use it as you see fit. However, should I be required to allow you to spay that message on my house as part of supporting your free speech? Very few people with an IQ higher than 14 would ever expect that. So why should you expect the right to use my site or my community’s forum free of our rules under the auspices of “free speech”?
Your free speech applies with your right to speak and be heard via public resources and your private property. You can say anything you want on your website or your blog. You can say anything you want that complies with our BOSAFC on ours.
Fighting the Moderators and the Rules is a Bad Idea
On occasion we get a person joining the forum with their own ideas of how our community should be run and what the rules should be. Most of the time these folks are swiftly warned by a moderator that they are in violation of the BOSAFC and asked to refrain from such behavior in the future. Many understand that rules are rules and either comply or find a community more in tune with their particular agenda.
Then we have the occasional person that insists on trying to tell the moderator staff the way things should be. They disrespect others, break the BOSA forum constitution, use profanity and inappropriate language; such users get banned permanently and swiftly.
Simply put if you are advised that a post of yours is a BOSAFC violation, it is a BOSAFC violation. Arguing the point is not advised. If you state that you will continue to post similar posts, we will believe you at your word and ban you.
We Are Friendly People
The above sounds strict but only for the benefit of the community. The forum and our moderators are very friendly and generous people. There are boards on many subjects and odds are no matter what part of self-improvement you are most engaged in is discussed in the forums in one of the boards.
Don’t let the tone of the above put you off, 99% of the people who join the forum probably don’t even need to read this page. I put it up for the 1%. This 1% is the group that takes up 90% of the moderator staffs time, energy and resources. To provide the best forum we can for the 99% that understand basic courtesy and rules we have decided that the 1% need a cut and dry explanation and therefore get a very short rope as it pertains to the community’s rules.
In other words, the rules don’t exist to oppress the majority, they exist to prevent the minority from ruining the community for everyone. In essence, we are a constitutional republic where the rights of all are protected. We are all bound by the rules; even me. That is true equality in a community.
Heres To Your Victory,
CJ Hamlin & The BOSA Mod Team