Introduction

Every server's unique, and each of them is run by a wonderful group of staff. Or at least, this is the Utopian version of it. Some servers. however, aren't quite as good as this. They have power hungry admins, abusive mods and just a general Dystopian feel.

Dos

Be helpful!

Yes, sometimes new players can get annoying. And yes, sometimes you can get bored of the countless questions that are asked, but however annoying it gets, you've just got to bare it. Imagine you were the lost newbie wondering what to do; if you were told by one of the admins to "shut up you annoying brat" then they're not going to want to play on your server.

The same applies to people asking questions. They're asking them because they want to know the answer, not because they want to be annoying. Sure, if they're spamming then kick them, but if they're just asking then let them know the answer! That five seconds of your time could be what keeps that player playing.

Punish people when they deserve it

It's not the nicest thing ever to have to do, but it's a must. If someone gets away with something, then others will copy them and madness will arise. Then again,don't punish people for the sake of punishing them or make the punishments incredibly harsh (such as a permaban for accidently breaking a torch.

Remember the ranks

Admins monitoring moderators and other lower level ranks will mean catching anyone abusing their power can happen. Honestly, don't be afraid to demote or even ban members of your staff team for power abuse.

Listen to your community

If nearly every player hates an update you've done, or says that something needs to be added, then take their feedback on board. They're the ones that the server is for, so they're the ones you should be listening to.

Staff will always have opinions on what should and shouldn't happen, it's completely natural. However, staff are staff, they don't know what it's like as a player from the moment they turn into staff. I can guarantee that there'll be occasions where the owners and moderators will think something is amazing, but the community hates it (or visa-versa).

Dont's

Become a power hungry evil tyrant

Just because you're in-charge doesn't give you the right to act like a complete and utter idiot. Remember those words, and follow each and every one of them. Admins have power, that can't change. Do not abuse that power. Do not overuse it. And do not ever even think about overdoing it.

Punish people without evidence

How would you feel if you were banned for griefing, just because you happened to be walking past an area that was being griefed at the time? Get a plugin like logblock to track griefings, something to log chat to catch spammers. Just don't ban someone because you think they did something - evidence is crucial.

Give people staff ranks for reasons that don't match their strengths

For example, don't give an amazing builder chatmod. Chatmods need to be good at moderating, not building. Then again, don't give an amazing moderator "head builder", for all you know they could be the worlds worst builder.

Don't take peoples words for things then they're becoming staff anyway. Make them prove themselves, and if they
can't, then don't give them the rank.

Have too many/not enough staff

It just won't end well... Too many staff will just cause splits in what should be a unified team, and too little will let the "criminals" come out on top.

Ending Off [Conclusion]

There's just so many different types of servers, and I can't speak for them all here. My best tip is to use common sense, and if something doesn't seem quite right, then do not do it.

Also, never be afraid to ask what people think, and what you could improve on. Everyone saying that one of your current moderators are abusing their powers means that they probably are.