The quality of my nodes decreases as I approach the next XP level

Once a new level comes within about 20 XP, I usually get determined to reach the new level before that day is over. Therefore, I force myself to node and pump out mostly boring facts or other mindless nodes. Not that these nodes are bad; they're merely bland and don't reflect my personality as well as my proper nodes do. Because they are so unexciting, no one ever votes on them. This decreases my experience to nodes ratio and forces me to claw and scratch for XP at the time I need it the most.

Today, my nodes are exceedingly bland, because this phenomena is combined with insomnia, procrastination and a general lack of creativity. I have a Java program due in 12 hours that I have not yet started. I'm really in quite a sorry state for noding. So I'm looking all around my room for things to node quickly and blandly. I'm noding chemistry formulas and flipping through Random Nodes for writeups to respond to. Bleh. Damn Everything addiction.

That level 4 C! button better be worth it . ;)

Once you get past level 3, your XP tends to be way over the level 4/5 limit. If you've then got maybe 10/20 nodes to write for the next level, you have got less incentive to write good and/or interesting nodes. You've got XP to burn, so you stop caring. (even subconsciously)

This is where I really feel the need for some good graphing capabilities built into E2. You could plot a bar graph showing XP per node, then see if your node quality really does decrease as you near the next level.

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Ironic that I now need 2 more nodes until level 4

10/07/00
You have 4 cools left today. You have 71 votes left today. You gained experience! You have 139 writeups until level 8.

Ever since I started noding, I have never gotten close to the next level without it taking me a really long time. Even when I was eager to get to whatever level gives me a homenode image, it still took me several weeks to get there. Part of this is because I do not use a computer as part of my job and so when I do use it, it's very clear that I'm goofing on the job. Since I like and appreciate my boss, I don't like goofing on the job and/or getting caught.

This may also be due to the nature of most of my noding. I'm not very good at finding facts, noding lyrics or poems (at least since my daily poems have been regularly downvoted so I've stopped), or even noding short paragraphs. My nodes are generally long drawn out commentaries about my life or the observations from my life, few of which can quickly be clattered out and none of which can really be rushed in an effort to gain XP.

I don't node to get XP. I node because it's a cool place to display my writing. I node for me, to get the thoughts out. While I don't care about gaining XP, I do care about writing well and with focus and accuracy. So I take my time. I choose my words. I am always going to be 100 or more write ups to the next level, and that's fine with me. I'm in no hurry, and it gives me something to shoot for by default instead of it being my focus.