If you're more active on the discord side of the community, then you might be aware of the amount of plagiarism going on. A lot of people, including me, have had their concepts or informational posts taken and reposted elsewhere without credits. I feel like we as a community are beginning to lose the plot. Plagiarism is not and never will be okay. You should always, no matter what, ask permission from someone before using their work in any capacity and give proper credit to them afterwards. You are literally taught in school that plagiarism is very serious, and it's for a reason. Plagiarism is literally stealing, and right now people don't seem to be taking this seriously.
Me and many others have had their concepts and information stolen without credit and without permission. It's really frustrating and I cannot reiterate enough that plagiarism is serious. You can literally get kicked out of universities for it. Just because this is in the magic community does not make it any better. Plagiarism is never okay, and if you had your hard work stolen and claimed by someone else you'd be pissed as well. I'm struggling to even write this post properly without coming off as mean, but after having my stuff stolen multiple times and seeing my friends have their stuff stolen it hits a boiling point.
to everyone in the community, no matter your experience level or how long you've been in it, learn to write your own things and information. stealing is lazy and rude, and if you're asked to take it down, listen. don't fight and get snappy, take it down. you don't have the right to keep it up when it isn't your work. do better.
How my time as a magi changed me, and why you should keep going
In my time as a magi, I've learned and grown a lot. I've only been one for a year and a few months now, but honestly it feels like it's been longer. When I talk to newer or aspiring magi's or magic users, I explain to them the reality of it all. It isn't like the shows and it isn't always going to be a fun and exhilarating experience. There are going to be times you're too burnt out to do anything, where you're exhausted, where the tax of fighting affects your daily life. I don't ever want those things to be omitted when explaining what it's like, but I also want people to know magi work will change you.
I don't want the challenges and harsh times to make people doubt themselves or be scared to be a magi. I want people to know that those times are necessary to help you grow and chance. There will be the times where you don't think you can go on, and it's important you listen to that feeling. Learning to listen to yourself is something you'll come to learn, sometimes you'll accept it, sometimes it'll have to be done by force. Being a magi is hard work and it's okay to get burnt out or exhausted, what matters is how you get back up and recover from it.
Being a chunni/magi has changed me, and I've learned so much about myself and my life. Through the hard times of being a magi, I've learned how to pick myself back up and keep going. Magi work is like most things in life, you'll get beat up, exhausted, you won't have the desire to keep going, but these are perfect times to let yourself learn and adapt. Being a magic user is an individual journey for a reason.
When I first became a magi, I was excited to fulfill a childhood dream, I was happy I'd be able to do something I always wanted to, something I thought was impossible, but now, after all this time, my goals and aims have changed. I don't get all my happiness and excitement from fighting and winning, most of it comes from the smaller things. Flying over my city and enjoying the view, messing around in my pocket dimension, and most of all, spending time with my girlfriend. I've learned so much during my time as a chunni/magic user, and it's changed me even to my day to day.
For all the beginners out there, I want you to know that being a magi is a huge learning experience and will change you. There'll be hurdles to jump over, things to overcome, but you shouldn't let that get the best of you. Keep going, keep in mind your goals, your aspirations, everything that drives you. If you ever have any doubts about how things are going, if you're doubting your worth, remember what you're fighting for, why you're doing this. Maybe take a break, maybe think deeper about your path and what you're doing, or sometimes let someone push you back onto your feet.
This post is more of a rant and worded very unseriously and such, but the point still stands. This post is NOT targeted.
When I first entered the community, I remember there being a post about respect and stuff. It's old now, and I don't remember the original poster, but I feel like it's necessary for it to be said again. A lot of people, new and experienced, sometimes forget basic respect and proper decency. The community has always had its ups and downs with this type of thing, but it's important to reiterate it often. It shouldn't be normalized.
I'm hesitant to even like post this since it might come off rude or immature, but someone has to say it. It's frustrating to most people, and there are people who've just up and left because of how bad it gets 😿. Some people seriously need to get it together, especially when people ask for help only to dismiss it or get rude about it when it isn't what they might want to hear. You can't ask for advice and help only to dismiss it and get hella defensive. That makes people less likely to want to help you. Some people might think since the community is about magic that they can get away with anything and shit, but thats not the case.
Respect is a huge thing basically anywhere. People need to remember that your behavior and shit reflects onto you as a person. You're allowed to speak up for yourself and speak your mind, but theres a point where it's just disrespectful and sometimes ignorant. If anyone remembers this summer, you know EXACTLY what I mean by this. Shit like this is irritating for everyone involved and even people who have nothing to do with it. Not everyone is interested in your arguments, your drama, etc.
One of the main reasons I even thought to make this post was because of people who will ask others to do shit for them. I say this all the time, but you can't and shouldn't expect everyone to do all the work for you. It's YOUR path, you're allowed to ask for help but you can't have everyone do the work for you. It's also just rude to ask someone to do shit like contracting for you imo. Like I said, you can ask for help, but asking/telling people to do it for you is a different story. Your contract and shit is your responsibility. If that person messes up, then that falls back on you since you let them do it.
Another thing is the abundance of misinformation that you can find basically anywhere. There are times where it's a genuine mistake and you correct yourself or someone else does, but doubling down on that shit and preaching it like its gospel is different. ESPECIALLY if you don't have experience in the area or what you're talking about. The misinformation problem has existed since the community began, but as the community grows, it gets worse. You can't hand out advice and tell other people things like they're facts without knowledge on that subject or having your own experience. Again, mistakes happen, and correcting yourself or allowing others to correct you is fine, it happens. But whole entire arguments over things because you want to be right and you think it's fact despite the other things other practitioners say especially when they have more understanding of it is a completely different story.
It's tiring to be in the community sometimes when people lack respect like this. I will reiterate this isn't targeted to anyone, and it's just a rant on how things can be and have been for a while. It's frustrating when people act like they're hot shit and are always right and forget how to talk with respect the minute they enter the community or are greeted with an opposite view point. Some of you guys really need to get it together. When people up and leave the community because of how bad toxicity has gotten, that should be a sign to evaluate your own behavior.
Everyone, please think about your actions, how you word things, etc. Respect is important. This community has had drama and disrespect since like the dawn of time but normalizing it and accepting it as just "a part of the community" doesn't do anything to help the problem. Some people just need to do better and understand they're being disrespectful. Not everyone's gonna change or accept they're being rude, and theres nothing you can do about that, but just accepting it as a normality imo encourages the behavior.
Thanks for tuning into this long ass rant, but I've been wanted to say this for a while. As the community grows, the disrespect issue grows with it.
okay but anyways i kinda wanna make guide posts/helpful posts for people but not word it super fancy or like sprinkle dumbass humor in there since i know some people can get bored to death reading information guys what do we think
the concept of slowly changing the label you use to define your magic work as you grow on your journey... i went from calling myself a magi and solely that, to a concept related label, chunnibyo, and then magic user💀
