Welcome back, Judges! Since the Magic community is currently busy reliving it’s favorite memories of Ravnica, we thought it would be the perfect time to wind back the clock and take a look at the past answers to some of our favorite questions. This week’s question: what is one tip you have for other Judges?
No question is silly enough to not be asked, and no feedback is pointless enough not to be given.
Use every opportunity you have to be better and help others be better. Give more feedback to the most experienced judges in your community, they surely aren’t being reviewed enough. Don’t worry if you haven’t been selected to THAT EVENT you wanted so bad, there will be others. Ask Carlos Ho to go for a beer if you see him around. He is a really cool guy to hang out with, and he won’t say no to a beer.
Gerard Trpin
Treat every fellow judge as… a fellow judge. You never feel as much as part of a community as when people treat you like the person you are, not as some number, random interchangeable judge, or cannon fodder. I would recommend a lot of people to talk to Kevin Desprez or Riccardo Tessitori to see how they genuinely care about players and judges. I learned a lot from simple interactions with these two gentlemen. This seems a simple tip, but I’ll assure it can be the grounds for a lot of things, from mutual trust in your team, to long-lasting friendships instead of simple working relations.
Oh, and SMILE. Please! I can understand everyone can’t do that 100 % of the time, but try to settle for half the time at least. Good service for players, and judges will come and interact with you more often.
The judge community is so important and gives so many possibilities to do so many things, take advantage of this! You can build something here. The only limitation is your voluntary commitment and desire of self-involvement in the community.
Bruna Chiochetta
Don’t be afraid to ask for help. More experienced judges are always willing to help you out on whatever you need. You have a lot to learn with them. Also, it’s OK to make mistakes as long as you learn with them and use them in your favor to become a better judge. Don’t put yourself down because you gave an incorrect ruling. Learn with it, say you’re sorry and move on! Finally, don’t get discouraged if no one notices immediately you’re doing awesome stuff. Eventually they will.
Be humble: there will always be someone who does that thing better than you and who will be willing to share his or her secrets with you. Just ask them!
Be proud: recognize what you are doing great and help other judges reach your skill level.
Be serious: you will have to maintain the event’s integrity and command the respect of players.
Be happy: wear your best smile out by smiling to all players and judges you interact with at your events. A single smile can do more wonders than a thousand words!
Julien Laronde
Get more confidence, believe in yourself! You are probably more competent than you think. Also, seize every opportunity you think is interesting for you.
When you do something good, don’t brag about it, but do make sure others know about it. You will get more opportunities to succeed if your victories are visible.
Nikita Tarima
1) Don’t be afraid to admit your mistakes.
2) Continue learning new things although you might already have achieved what you craved for.
3) Communicate with other Judges – they are nice guys.
Build on your soft skills! While rules and policy knowledge are important, most players remember the judge, not ruling, even if the ruling goes poorly. The way you conduct yourself is huge, not only for building judge/player relations, but also for building your brand with local and large TOs. At the end of the day, this game and this program are about people and the experiences you leave behind. A little kindness goes a long way to making sure that person has a great time.
CJ Crooks
Find out what makes Magic fun for you and pursue that. The program is gigantic and there is a facet for everyone who wants to contribute.