Your Companions WANT to Help you, so TASK THEM!

[mysticat]

Woohoo! I am so happy with the responses! Thank you guys for chiming in.

I'm happy to see I'm not the only who has felt like they didn't want to "boss" around their companions or felt like they needed to handle all the things themselves. I agree with you on all counts Hitthuginn and Mr. Amnesia.

The one thing my spirits have always been really good with is getting me information. Things I'm interested in or want to know always manage to fall into my lap.

I've noticed an instance where some companions can hear me telepathically just fine, but others need me to say things aloud.

I'm super curious though, for those of you who task your companions regularly, how often do you task them? I'm dealing a quirky situation where there are some things I need to ask for daily.

It really depends. Some of them ask to be tasked daily. Some of them prefer to take breaks in between.

I have agreements with a lot of them who hang around daily that they do some stuff when they're around in exchange for the offerings I give. It's a win-win situation for both of us; if they're hanging around anyway and taking my offerings while here, might as well give back a little.

[Bjorg]

I tend to get to know my spirit family, then I divvy up tasks according to their likes and strengths. We are a team, we move tasks accordingly and are all pretty flexible, but we also communicate. If someone would be better in a certain task I will talk it over and we adjust, the same if they would like to do something different, or be tasked with something new that comes up.

[stargazerjournal]

I’m still figuring this out, even after five years. As my keep grows, my methods need to change. I’ve got a Master Spirit now to try to help keep things organized, but she and I are still kind of dancing around each other. I’m hesitant to hand over the reigns too fast.

Currently, I am picking 3-5 major goals each month, and assigning groups based on spirit skill sets. Sometimes spirits disagree with me, and I move them to the group they would prefer to be in. The group “leads” are the spirits that are most able to complete the tasks needed, so it’s not really an authoritarian position.

I’m still beta testing this keep design. I hope to come up with something that is effective, flexible, and respects my spirits’ autonomy.

[chemtrailchild]

How have your views of Spirit Tasking changed with experience? Do you still feel guilty or have a hard time? It's a work in progress for me, but I feel worlds of difference compared to where I was before.

This post single-handedly opened me up to a better view and understanding of tasking. Thank you so much for sharing this!
I’ve always struggled with this as well as with uninhibitedly thanking my spirits. Particularly djinn which allegedly do not take well to direct spoken gratitude because of the nature of the relationship dynamic (?). (I can’t help but beam with such love and adoration for my spirits even after a small interaction, no requests going on, that I thank them 10x lol).
With this perspective in mind, I feel more encouraged to task and work with my spirits instead of feeling like I have to reserve the most grand efforts for my work with them. I guess our quality of life daily is what adds up the most in the end, and not just certain plot points on our timeline. Thank you

[Crossover93]

My keep is usually chilling I don't have any issues with them usually hanging out but if I need to have something done I then ask and I don't feel guilty because it's a privilege to have a keep in the first place