On Frustration and Loyalty

I had a bit of a meltdown last night. As usual, I started browsing the forums, but rather than learning things and laughing at Etc section antics, I just got more and more disgusted and fed up. I ended up in a very dark mood. It seemed like all I was seeing were threads bitching and moaning about every little thing that wasn't going right, and a lot attacking Etsy for either not doing enough for users or even accusing them of knowingly, deliberately doing things to make sellers fail. That was really the last straw for me because it's just stupid... if we fail, so will Etsy as a whole.

This is not the Etsy I fell in love with. Yes, I know those kind of threads and those kind of people always have been and always will be present on Etsy and any other site, but last night and for a few nights previously, it seemed like they had taken over the joint. No more helpful, informative threads to help me learn new techniques or new aspects of being a small business owner, no more random odes to grilled cheese (or macaroni and cheese, or any other incarnation of cheese, thank you danamiller).

I wound up so frustrated that I decided to ban myself from the forums indefinitely. They have been a spectacular resource and promotional tool for me, but I just cannot stand them right now. I even got so fed up that I was considering moving some of my business to the new Artfire site. But then, with a gentle nudge from a good friend, I realized that moving my business was not the way to support the site I love. If I want to defend and support Etsy, I need to keep all of my business there rather than support their competitors.

So that's what I'm going to do. All of my items will remain on Etsy. I will continue to thank them for everything they do for us (and that's a hell of a lot), and I will continue to have patience with them regarding the things that are still in need of improvement (which is also a lot, but that's true of any site, in my experience). What I won't do is listen to all of the fighting and complaining and recriminations some users are spewing. They're entitled to their opinions, but I'm entitled to disagree and walk away, too.

For the few people who might notice my absence in the forums, I will be back eventually, I'm sure. As others have in the past, I just need a break.