User:ThadeusOfNazereth/RFA Criteria

Given that I've started participating in these things more often, I thought it would be worthwhile to sit down and actually articulate my RfA criteria. I recognize that there are many areas in Wikipedia that I am unfamiliar with - WP:ITN, WP:COPY, and WP:SOCK to name a few. As such, I think that having a rubric or hard set of criteria is generally unhelpful. My criteria are solely "suggestions" - A lack of any of these things does not automatically mean I'll oppose but does mean I'll look more closely through contributions/noticeboards than I might otherwise. I think admins should:


 * Be representative of the Wikipedia community in their editing. Most Wikipedians do not spend all their time in drama boards or talk pages - Those places are necessary for the betterment of the encyclopedia but are not the only space you should be. I like to see at least 60% of a admin's edits be made in the mainspace at the time of their RfA.
 * Actively create content. I agree with Ritchie333's excellent essay WP:WRITE where he outlines this view and with GregJackP that the purpose of admins should be to keep the riff-raff away from the content creators. I like to see at least one featured article/list, good article, or DYK credit.
 * Use edit summaries (duh). They're the least you can do to keep your fellow editors in the loop about what's going on. I like to see at least 98% edit summary usage.
 * Have some experience on Wikipedia. WP:NOTNOW only really applies to obvious children, but it's good to have a year or two of editing to integrate yourself into the community and learn all the relevant policies. I'd like you to be at least 16-years-old and have at least 1.5 years on the site.
 * Be respectful of your fellow editors. The reason this isn't a hard criterion is that I'm autistic, and it took me a long time to figure out how to navigate neurotypical spaces and express myself in a way that people generally view as kind - That's my goal in all my interactions, but I'm aware that it's not always easy, and I suspect that a higher percentage of Wikipedians are neurodivergent than the general population. I'd like you to be kind in all that you do and acknowledge when you fall short of that mark.

Other than that, try and have fun! RfA can be a brutal process, as evidenced by several recent examples (at the time I'm writing this essay). We're here to build an encyclopedia first-and-foremost - All the rest is just icing on the cake.