Rags
5 days ago, I reached out...
I found Jamie in my wanderings around the farming community.
“I do have connection issues with this game and only this game, but they pale in comparison to me not wanting to play this game anymore. I honestly do not know how else to say that I am burnt out. It is obviously written on my face. You read it lol”
After a short conversation, I asked them to try a method for a week and see how it worked for them. I then had a chance to further explore their frustrations, playing style and goals.
“I usually make little to no money during I[ndy] Tourney. Honestly, if I even break even I'm thrilled. That's how much I have been buying to stay afloat. And that is precisely why i gave up and decided to just drop if I had to“
So we made some further tweaks to balance competitive power and money making potential. They were smart tweaks that would get me hate mail from the more avid farmers among us, so I was happy for Jamie's blind faith.
You have to line up logic with goals.
“I am absolutely not doing it right. I have asked several people for guidance and all I get is 'do what makes you happy'...well none of it has been making me happy, sooooo....lol”
“I want to learn how to play without feeling stressed. This game isnt my life. I used to enjoy playing it, but now I feel like it sucks the life out of me. Connection issues aside, if I could get on and stay on, i still wouldnt want to play. I miss being hooked and not wanting to miss a single project. Now, i just don't care. I care about the people, not about our success. Emerald means nothing to me anymore. Us being happy and having fun would make me feel a lot better. I want that back. Not flying through projects and worrying about the points and who is posting. It is just too much anymore”
to Riches
And they tried my suggestions...
“I am also up another million. So around 24 hours and I have made 3.5 million with minimal effort at all”*
“500 k to 5 mil in a little over a day. And my orchards are still mostly full while I wait on contracts. This has never happened lol“*
"I went from spending millions to making them. And I didnt spend a dime."
The Problem
There are too many Jamies out there!
"That's what I struggle with. I don't know what goals to set“
There is mechanics and techniques, but there is also goals, happiness, co-ops, success, enjoyment. Jamie is making some money, but are they happy? Its not a simple fix.
"You've been more help to me than anyone else tried to be"
All I did was change some perspective and then ask some basic questions followed by some soul searching questions. Is that going far enough? I think there are better ways to farm, better ways to build co-ops and better ways to help people 'fit'. Yes, to some it's just a game. To most, on a deeper level, it helps fulfill the basic human needs for love, esteem and self-actualization.
Solutions (modified from the original Facebook post)
It took a bit, but here we are - a real fan site. It is going to take some time to build, but now we have a spot to explore this game on a deeper level and keep all the resources collected in one place.
I'll be honest. I'm not going to spoon feed you. I am not going to make any decisions for you. I can give you facts, show you the misconceptions, show you different perspectives, and give you examples. I can share wisdom. I can share other's wisdom. I can give you the resources to make smart decision and choose your own path to be happy and fulfill your personal needs and be an encouragement to the community around you.
Jamie is a real farmer that goes by a different name. Jamie may need to make further changes in the future, but they have started, and I know they are slowly finding their joy back.
[Update August 2nd - Jamie not only found their joy back, but they did some orchard upgrades and have an expansion and upgrade plan in place. They enjoyed laughing so hard they concerned a 2yo and are now in the process of revamping their co-op. More of that story to follow.]
Happy Farming
SF
* The numbers are skewed because of when we entered this process. They should be around 2.5 million/day. (This would make a good late night infomercial)
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