Every now and then, GMs get overwhelmed and burnt out, worrying so much about players and rules and games that it all spirals downword into desperation. We all end up there. A while back I wrote a brief note to one such GM, who was fighting character deaths and table chaos, and I thought I would share it for those days when we all need it.
We are our own worst enemies, piling on all these expectations. I think we all need to learn to do more of what we enjoy and less of what we don't. Make players be responsible so we don't get hit with everything. It helps a lot with burnout.
Make players enforce rules. Find a rules lawyer who isn't doing it to min-max and let them loose on it.
Let the characters die. Remind that some fights will be too hard for them, so they should always consider fleeing an option.
Use more premade content. Rip stuff out of premade adventures and reuse it.
Ban anything at the table that makes your life harder. If they need to check their cell phones, schedule regular breaks and ban them in game. If the want to pageflip to argue your rulings, ban pageflipping in game. If a ruling needs made from the book, make a player look it up and read the appropriate section aloud.
Embrace the players as allies and celebrate with them when they do cool stuff. Mourn with them when their characters die.
Arrive each week to take it up a notch. Break all the normal rules and focus on the cool parts.
When you get frustrated, let the players know what you are feeling. Tell them when you feel unappreciated. When they know how it makes you feel, they can alter their behavior.
Try something new when you need to. Pick a new genre or rule system. A session now and then of "Everyone is John" (or better yet, "Everyone is Deadpool") can work wonders.
Get the players to help run the game. If there is a big decision point coming up, make them tell you in advance what they're going to do so you can prepare for next week.
Most of all, know that you are a good GM, because you care.
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