Linux-Is-Best

Sure, and done 🙂 

It will take a moment or two to adjust to the new layout. Still, overall anything that people can agree on that improves things is always a benifit. I shall continue to watch the ongoing development and general management from Invision with great interest. Onward and forward, and let's see where the road takes us all together—congratulations on your recent changes.

We have changed this recently,
https://invisioncommunity.com/forums/topic/460587-new-marketplace/?do=findComment&comment=2846304
 

Ah, I'm sorry I didn't make this clearer. The Community Manager's Lounge replaces the Client Lounge, so you need to be logged in with an active client account to contribute.

We merged in the general chat as we felt that a fairly random 'everyone can chat' forum fit with the rest of the community.

I like this a lot! I do think visibility is important as well. We are going to work on a blog series about moderation eventually, and I think this would be great to explore further. Moderating behind-the-curtain and moderating on stage (so to speak). 
Thanks for the comment @Linux-Is-Best

One of the things that I have noticed a lot in people (this is a general observation and not limited to online experiences) is that they tend to react rather than pausing and think through an appropriate and considered response.  That is, instead of taking a step back and taking a longer look at a situation, comment, post, topic (you get the picture) there is the infallibility of people to instantly react.  It's obviously a people issue and one that has become more noticeable over a period of time.  Whether it's the pressures of modern living or something more sociologically ingrained is something that would require a far deeper exploration than a blog topic.  I've seen this 'reaction' from people who bite at the least little thing and literally go over the top without stopping to think.
This is why I'm a great advocate of understanding, compassion, empathy, and education. If we all just reacted rather than employing a little more of those traits, I mentioned, then chaos would rule.  This applies to everyone, everywhere, regardless of who you are, what you do or what you think.  All of those traits I mentioned should be the beating heart of every community, whether online or in the real world and if we all took the time to exercise a little restraint and 'think' rather than 'react' then communities would be the richer for it.
I'm not implying that we search for a utopia or nirvana community - that is a fantasy wish, but it is something we can work towards and something that is worthwhile considering. The alternative is to accept toxicity in people and believe it to be the new norm when it doesn't have to be that way, but it will be that way if we accept it and continue to react.
This article spells it out in a much more erudite way: https://zenhabits.net/respond/
 

Some people just want to see the world burn. Either as a whole right away and if not, then at the very least, one person at a time. Some people sustain themselves and define themselves on coinage and the decimation of others. For those "special people," that is what the ban button is for. It is not the cure-all for all your woes you may face running a community, and for the most determined, it may only act as a temporary relief.  That said, I do not believe there is a "magic bullet" (metaphorically speaking) of a universal nature to address all toxicity unilaterally. The best anyone one person can do is manage each person and situation on a case-by-case basis and hope for the best.  
But I do like your overall belief regarding reaching out to someone personally and trying to make a connection. The only difference I would make is beyond just sending someone a personal message (privately). I would also try to incorporate a fundamental initial olive branch publicly as a means to establish that you're making an effort within your community.  It will not only help define you as a community leader but as a respected peacemaker too.

There is one hole in this line of thought, not that I totally disagree with it, but vulnerability can lead to exploitation, so you would need to measure this with some other form of displaying firmness.  How you would do that will depend on the individual.  Some people don't like to portray vulnerability, because of the issue of potential exploitation. I would replace the word and the meaning with "understanding" and finding out what leads to the toxicity.  It's extremely easy to ignore the root of an issue and react rather than discover.
Some people are just generally nasty, that's in their nature and these kinds of people will swarm on displays of vulnerability and exploit them to the full, which will raise the toxicity levels higher. So, show some understanding, discover why and then decide on how to deal with the issue.  It may be that some people will be toxic to get attention, their rational posts may be ignored whilst their toxic ones attract attention.
I don't believe there is a one-stop-shop-solution to people's behaviour and every case needs to be measured with the right kind of response. Of course, this means that Admins and Moderators need to be more understanding of people's foibles and ways and get to the root of an issue and then sort it from there.  Many Admins and Moderators may not see this as the right approach and deal with issues differently, it's about finding out what works best for them and whether their methodology actually works in turning toxic into enjoyable.

Hi Jordan & thank you for your post.
I am by profession, a psychotherapist, so I understand where you are coming from. I have seen many forums collapse, including a forum for clinical psychologists. John Suler points to something called, "the Disinhibition Effect", where anonymous users hide behind this anonymity & behave in ways they would never behave "in real life".
I don't want to turn this posts into an analysis of behaviours, but sometimes approaching someone can help. I am the Director of a support forum for people with Systemic Lupus Erythematosus & I had one very angry person write a very angry post to something I said. It's often hard to read something unpleasant, but I made contact privately and I offered validation for her feelings. The response was favourable. I did not validate the behaviour but could understand, in her context, why she felt what she did. She responded by saying this was the first time someone had taken the time to try to understand.
There are people, however, who are enraged & want to destroy anything good, including a community. Not everyone is a therapist or wants to engage with very unpleasant people. It's also a matter of time, money & competency. Contacting someone may even make the situation worse & the end result may be that the Moderator will be left with difficult and unwanted feelings.
@Davycreferred to vulnerability & often this is a hidden component which we don't see or understand. The ferocity and rage is a cover for that vulnerability, which often has nothing to do with the current situation, but from the past, which gets triggered in the present. While I have a great deal of time for Mindfulness, when this rage and vulnerability is engrained, it is not possible for that person to stop, think & not react. Compulsion control is difficult for this type of person who has been damaged, usually from a very young age & this leads to an inability to monitor one's feelings. The world is split in good and bad, an either or without a middle way.
Nevertheless, there is merit in thinking about what to do in these situations. Thank you for a thoughtful post.
 

Appreciate that @Linux-Is-Best!! Thank you. Same to you 🙏 

Huzzah!  Congratulations, Jordan, on your newly founded adventure with your employment here at Invision.  I wish you a productive future filled with a bounty of success.

Huzzah!  Congratulations, Jordan, on your newly founded adventure with your employment here at Invision.  I wish you a productive future filled with a bounty of success.

Huzzah!  Congratulations, Jordan, on your newly founded adventure with your employment here at Invision.  I wish you a productive future filled with a bounty of success.