Football University - Building cred at MHR / Part 2

Here's a list of ten things things that are worth keeping in mind for building a good rep at MHR.  Feel free to add a few things yourself in the comments section!

1. Be humble.  There are a lot of sharp folks here with a lot of expertise in areas ranging from coaching to law to salary cap rules to combine evaluations.  There are also a lot of wise experts, those who realize that they don't know everything.  The best experts are the humble ones.
2. Ask as many questions as you answer.  I get a lot of questions in some of the stories I write up for MHR.  It makes me feel good to be able to answer questions for folks (if I know the answer).  But I also realize that there are a lot of things that I want to learn, and I also realize that other people like to be asked questions too.
3. Speak up!  People want to hear from you.  Never be afraid of giving your view, asking a question, or giving an answer.  This is a friendly place, and nobody should feel that what they have to say may be ignorant.
4. If you write a diary, try to respond to comments that you get.  People enjoy the chance to speak to authors (something they can't always do on sports media sites).
5. Don't ever feel that your diary isn't valued becaue it might not get a lot of comments.  Comments are not a grading system.  One of the best front page stories at MHR is "Horse Tracks", where MHR members can get all of their Broncos news.  It doesn't always get a lot of comments, but several people have MHR set as their front page on their home pc because of the Broncos news they get from Horse Tracks.
6. Be quick to thank people, and be quick to say "I don't know" when you don't know.
7. Even if you disagree, do it with respect.  I like to find things I agree with when I write about something I disagree with.  Also, try to know the difference between "fact" and "opinion".  As a coach, I might know that a certain term used in football has a certain meaning, so that is a "fact".  But I'm always careful to realize that even an informed view of play calling or position evaluation is "opinion".  I have a lot of "informed views" on things relating to football, but they are still just opinions and no better than anyone else's.
8. Trash talk is fun, but it can get over the top.  Never make trash talk personal, and try to keep it "on site" (in other words, don't pee on someone elses carpet; AKA don't go to another site to trash talk someone elses team).  It invites flame wars back to this site.  Friendly trash talk is always good stuff though (I personaly refuse to capitalize "oakland" or "raiders", and encourage you to do the same).
9. Have a sense of family.  This site has members from around the world, young and old, men and women, fans who are new to the game and fans who have have studied aspects of the game for years.  We have a class act leader in our editor/radio show host Guru, a great group of editors who share his passion for the Broncos and the MHR family, and the best members of any sports blog going.  Be proud of your site.  It belongs to you, and you are the reason the site is so valuable.  The front page stories bring people in, but the diaries and the comments sections are the true heart and soul of the site.
10. Have fun!  We're glad you're here, and we're dying to hear from you.

Ok, next week we'll get back to football.  Coach Shanahan has made a lot of statements that have surprised some of us about plans for the team in '08.  We have also had some FA moves that have changed some things as well.  How does this impact our draft strategy, how does this affect potential starters, and how does this affect our chances in '08 and beyond?

Will Harris have a shot at LT?  Is Colbert the final answer at #2 WR?  Are Henry, Young, and Hall about to get some competition?  Where does Hamza fit into the future at SAF?  Is K2 for real or not?  We'll look at these questions and try to figure out some of the new curve balls thrown our way with recent revelations.

Have a great weekend!  And don't forget to add any advice you have in the comments section.  (As always, put down any questions you may have that I or other fans can help you out with).