KLONDIKE, CP Army Headquarters – “Seize the day, then let it go.” Retirement is a very popular topic of discussion in the community. Most people, especially leaders, often leave their army after some time. However, there are cases when people simply refuse to move on from their rank. This comes despite them having moved on from armies. Let’s delve deeper into this topic.
Disclaimer: This post contains the writer’s own thoughts and views that may not align with CP Army Headquarters’ stance on the topic.
When you first join an army, you show enthusiasm to perform well and explore everything. Obviously, this energy wanes after a while. Eventually, you find a niche, an area you are incredible in. You contribute more to the army in that area rather than other things. With some more time, you even manage to climb up the ranks, until you reach the highest place you can be. It is worth noting that this place may not be a leader rank. But from that point onwards, the things that armies do slowly start getting boring for you. This disinterest in armies can vary. Some people lose interest in just a few things, while others start hating armies entirely. And yet, these people stay put in their ranks.
Retirement is when someone steps down from their job and their responsibilities because they cannot do it any longer. Of course, there is nothing more hilarious than a troop-ranked member giving a speech about their “retirement”. Retirement usually happens when the person realizes that they do not want to hold their rank anymore, due to various reasons. However, some people just do not seem to grasp this concept. They stay put in their place and end up causing a hindrance to their army.
The most important aspect is that you hold up other people’s promotions, who could be doing a better job. Armies are a sublime example of change being constant. Staff members are not supposed to serve their army forever. When someone better is ready to be at the forefront, ideally they should get that chance. There is a big difference between giving someone their chance while they are at their peak and giving it after they start slacking. Let us take an example where the army has a leader who has lost all interest in armies but has not retired yet. This hinders the future leaders who could be helping the army grow in their own way. It may even demoralize them to the point of losing hope since there are no rewards for their success.
A natural follow-up to that example is that high rankers are role models for other members. It is important that you exhibit a healthy attitude towards army life. Thus, if your disinterest in armies is publicly visible, it will affect the army environment. Situations, where high rankers neglect their duty to do something entirely different like streaming games slowly, pull the staff’s attention away from the army as well. Eventually, this leads to a slump in inactivity and a possible downfall.
Usually, a lack of interest also means that you are inactive in the army. Inactivity is certainly a dangerous thing, even if you are not a high ranker. Overlooking the inactivity of one teammate while the rest of the team is pushed to produce results causes resentment. It might even demoralize the team, as their veteran teammate isn’t contributing enough.
But we have yet not addressed a huge aspect of this topic. There are situations where real life gets in the way even if you are interested in armies. Going on a break could be better in this situation. However, it is worth noting that if your break lasts more than a month, it is retirement but in the name. With a break like that, you retired and at the same time are holding up the advent of future staff. Some argue that retiring just because you are not free now doesn’t make sense. This is presuming that you will be free for armies later. But, this sort of thought process arises from a personal perspective. If you think from the perspective of what would be the best for the army, making way for the new generation is definitely the better thing to do.
Time is a created thing. To say “I do not have time” is to say “I do not want to” – Lao Tzu
Coups and firings aren’t exactly unheard of in this community. There are several infamous coup stories that we often exchange with each other. In most cases, a coup is involved negativity in the air that doesn’t get cleared until a strong effort is made to clear it. Usually, coups and firings stem from inactivity and incompetence. Staying for too long in the same army could result in a narrow-minded vision. This could lead to more and more mistakes, which eventually leads to your enemies getting a chance to fire you for incompetence.
At the end of the day, it’s really hard to know when it’s time to let go. I don’t believe it’s sensible to define a certain period of time. On average, most leaders serve for one year before retiring. There is a more practical way of determining if it is time to retire. If it feels like you are just tired of literally everything, you are starting to resent your friends over penguin politics, you do not really even care about Club Penguin, then it is time to step down and step aside for the new generation.