Divorced Moms Community Guidelines
(For an abbreviated version of community guidelines scroll to the bottom of the page)
Welcome to the Divorced Moms Community! We hope you visit and post often! And feel free to express yourself.
The Divorced Moms Community is made up of intelligent, charismatic, funny and stressed out people. Every person brings a different perspective and voice to the subject of divorce. Variety’s the spice of life, as they say. We cherish diversity and variety here at Divorced Moms, but with so many voices, there may not always be harmony.
There are many avenues on DivorcedMoms.com for sharing your thoughts. This community is just one of them and we hope you will take into consideration that it is a common area you share with all of us.
If you choose to express your ideas here, you must follow a few guidelines.
We reserve the right to hide, delete or ban what we feel isn’t appropriate. This might include, but it’s not limited to, posts that are:
- sarcastic and mean spirited and negative for the sake of negativity,
- disrespectful,
- promotion of products other than Divorced Moms products, unless you are a Divorced Moms resource writer or blogger. (Please see more below)
- critical without being constructive,
- posted from a sock puppet account (if you aren’t “real” we will get rid of you.),
- detrimental comments based on race, ethnicity, nationality, religion, gender, gender identity, disability, or sexual orientations,
- referring to moderator actions or matters between a member and Divorced Moms.
Every member is responsible for what they post in the Community, and we don’t hide content by request. In other words, think before posting. Divorce is a sensitive subject; please do not post anything that can reflect negatively upon you in your personal or professional life. AND especially do not post anything that could be used against you in a legal proceeding.
Positivity and Pride
There is already plenty of negativity in the world. The Divorced Moms Community is a positive force. Be part of that power.
Does your post add value? Is it kind? Does it come from a good place?
What you say represents you as a person. Be proud of what you post. Once you post, everyone, not just Divorced Moms Community members, can see it.
Two weeks from now, two years from now, will you be proud of what you said? Hold yourself to high standards when taking part in discussions here.
Respect
You deserve respect. So does everyone else. You wouldn’t tolerate someone being disrespectful to you. We don’t tolerate it either.
Insulting someone else doesn’t make them look bad. If you bully, harass, or insult another member, you’re disrespecting not only them but the space we all share here.
We are a global community, and we are proud of that. Members come from a myriad of backgrounds, and readers can’t hear your tone of voice. Pause. Take time to read over and revise your post. This might help you get your point across more clearly and respectfully.
- Never promote or glorify hatred, violence, or illegal activities.
- Detrimental comments based on race, ethnicity, nationality, religion, gender, gender identity, disability, or sexual orientations are not OK and will not be tolerated.
- Don’t be sarcastic and mean. Don’t bully, harass, or bait other members into breaking Divorced Moms guidelines.
- Don’t threaten anyone or anything. For example, don’t say that you’re going to damage a person or property, virtually or in the real world. If you are just being facetious, make sure it’s abundantly clear that you are not, in the slightest way serious.
Getting Personal
When someone offers an opinion or advice, you may disagree. Debate is healthy and makes for good discussion, and it often leads to the discovery of new ideas.
Don’t make it personal. Separate the idea from the person behind the idea. In other words, critique but don’t criticize. Give feedback about a Divorced Moms feature, but don't criticize the folks who built it, wrote it or, posted it.
Avoid posting when...
- You’re getting angry.
- You’re typing with that “now I’m going to tell them” feeling.
- You will feel vindicated after posting.
- You’re using sarcasm or snark to deliver your message.
Seeking and Giving Advice
Most are here seeking advice, some are here giving advice. The longer you are a member of this Community the more likely you are to play both roles.
If you share advice with someone who asked for help, be…
- Patient. There’s a lot to learn depending on what stage of divorce they are in!
- Compassionate. We all make mistakes!
- Understanding. When you started out on the road to divorce did you feel a little overwhelmed or lost? Others may feel that way, too!
- Constructive. Every point is a chance to learn and grow!
- Sensitive. Some suggestions are easier to hear if they're delivered with kindness!
By doing this, you’re taking part in a truly special aspect of the Divorced Moms Community--using what you’ve learned during your divorced experience to help others navigate their way through their own. Thank you!
Helping new members understand their situation and emotions is a nice thing to do. Make them feel thankful for your help, and not ashamed about their post or their situation. Don’t be rude to someone who broke a community policy, even if you think they did it on purpose! You can always simply flag the post, and a moderator will review it.
If you are seeking advice, don’t strike back angrily at someone who says something you don’t want to hear. The truth can hurt at times. Just because you don’t like what is said in response to your question doesn’t mean it didn’t need to be said.
Take advice you are given, sift through it and use what you know to be pertinent to your situation.
Promotion of Products
The Divorced Moms Community is not a channel for promotional content. If you are not affiliated with Divorced Moms as a resource writer or blogger your promotional content will be immediately removed from the community.
Don’t use this Community as an opportunity just to talk yourself and your product up! We encourage our affiliated experts to promote their products but the first priority should be to help those who come to the community seeking help, support and advice.
A moderator may close any thread, whether or not it contains links, at their own discretion and without notice, as needed to keep the Community organized and relevant content easily accessible to all.
Sock Puppetry
An account that serves to hide your identity is a sock puppet account.
Don’t be a sock! If you are an ex-husband stalking this community, you aren’t welcome here.
Moderator Actions
Moderators ensure the Community is a welcoming place for all. They help keep the Community organized and constructive, while encouraging great conversation. They ensure that members understand and follow our policies and guidelines.
Moderators may take certain actions like ending a discussion thread, or even suspending someone from the community. They may move, hide, or consolidate content without notice, at their own discretion, as needed to keep the community organized and helpful for everyone.
Actions taken by moderators are not up for public discussion; if you have questions, disagree with, or want to discuss moderation actions, we’ll be happy to do that via email. Write to us at editor@divorcedmoms.com.
Please be aware of this fact, just because you don’t agree with a moderator’s actions doesn’t mean we are going to spend time arguing and defending the moderator’s position. Moderators have the last word!
Forums Policies
1. Above all: treat one another with respect. Remember, there is a real person behind each name.
2. Don’t disparage a specific member with unconstructive, negative posts.
3. Offering helpful, constructive criticism or voicing a dissenting opinion is okay, but don’t be mean or disrespectful when delivering your message.
4. Harassing, insulting, bullying, or abusing other members is not allowed. No trolling or baiting.
5. The community spaces are public. Use discretion when discussing legal aspects of your divorce. Especially if you are still going through the divorce process. And don't disclose private details such as usernames, real names, email addresses, etc.
6. Don't publicly post another person's private information without their explicit consent (for example: phone numbers, addresses, full names, or the content of private email, conversations or letters).
7. Don't use the Community to facilitate or arrange any sort of legal or contract transaction.
8. Solicitation for direct donations or fundraising is not allowed in the Community unless express permission is given by admin.
9. You may not use an undisclosed alternate account (also called a "sock puppet") in the community spaces.
10. Content posted in community spaces must not promote, support or glorify hatred toward or otherwise demean people based upon: race, ethnicity, religion, gender, gender identity, disability, or sexual orientation. You must not promote or encourage others to engage in violence or illegal activity.
11. Community spaces on Divorced Moms are not intended for people under the age of 18. If your account involves a person under the age of 18, your account may not utilize the community features.
12. Unsolicited promotion or advertisement from representatives or affiliates of outside services, websites or other products is not allowed.
13. Promotional content isn't appropriate for the Community. Don’t post to promote your own or others' coaching practice, divorce product blog, social media channels, etc.
14. Consider carefully what information you post in the Community. In general, the Community serves as a public record.
15. The actions of Forum Moderators are not up for public discussion. If you have a question or concern about a Moderator action, please email, editor@divorcedmoms.com.
Divorced Moms reserves the right to remove or archive Community threads for any reason. Threads may be moved to a more appropriate section without notice. Violating Community Guidelines may result in temporary or permanent suspension of community privileges and/or account termination.
Edited by moderator Wednesday, May 28, 2014 1:53:29 AM(UTC)
| Reason: Not specified