Jaques clears his throat before addressing his topic at hand.

What are peoples thoughts on this?

When you send up a donation to your crew leader and they don't thank you personally in a mail for this does it bother you?

Do you think it's to be expected that your crew leader should personally thank you for all donations regardless of the amount?

What happens if your crew leader doesn't acknowledge your donation, do you still send them or send less or send more?

I appreciate that with taxes it's probably different as you are expected to pay them.

Certainly the last few experiences my line has had in families there has been a distinct lack of appreciation from my leader when I've sent up donations, not even a simple thanks.

This isn't to bash any crew leaders but just wondering what the community thinks about simple and easy actions like this that a leader can be doing to actually make a family member feel valued.

Sits back and waits for input from others. 

It shouldn't be expected but I think all should show their gratitude. Not only will it encourage members to continue donating, it shows them that they're appreciated.

I recall Pine used to mail everyone who donated when I was in his crew, that seemed to get the best out of everyone I always felt. Those few words and a matter of seconds to speak them should never be underestimated.

green tends to whip everyone until we're dry, which is also a great way to get all you can out of your minions!

You bring a good topic up today Jaquesgreen.

Personally, I don't require much of any thanks to continue being productive for my CL, knowing they have to handle multiple mails from multiple people on a daily basis. As a matter of fact, I look at most donations as a thank you in themselves, thank you for offering me a home to stay safe in, working endlessly to ensure the protection of your members.

Then I'd also have to consider the amount of money being kicked up. If member A only sends up what he's contractually obligated to send up, should they receive thanks for simply doing the bare minimum to stay alive? Especially while member B may sending up an abundance of cash. In this scenario, do you think its right to simply thank both of them even though their effort clearly differs? (I realize this can branch off into a whole other topic on rewarding your top members in every category)

I do agree with FitzChivarly, simply sending a thank you message to everyone, regardless of amount or participation within the crew, will have a huge impact on the overall morale of your crew, therefor increasing the earnings. However, I don't think its right. We're members of the mafia, gangs, or various motorcycle clubs. You should not require thanks to be effective. Should they be appreciated? Sure. A necessity? No, that's why they should be appreciated to begin with. 

What are peoples thoughts on this?

When you send up a donation to your crew leader and they don't thank you personally in a mail for this does it bother you?

It doesn't, however, it would be better to have a thank you.

Do you think it's to be expected that your crew leader should personally thank you for all donations regardless of the amount?

Not really, if it happens once or two. If it's ignored though, then there's a problem.

What happens if your crew leader doesn't acknowledge your donation, do you still send them or send less or send more?

I prefer to talk to him/her and solve the issue through dialog.

In my opinion donation is something you are doing out of goodwill. If you expect a thank you in return or aknowledgement I don't think you can call it a donation but rather an exchange. You are giving money in order to receive something in return. On the other hand I guess a CL could be creative and try to come up with ideas to encourage his/her members to participate financially in the development of the crew. Not only with a thank you but maybe with rewards. I think that would make things more interesting.

As BaconSandwich was bumping down the streets after his good friend HoboJoe threw him away once again. He landed right infront of a small gathering discussing donations and gratitude. BaconSandwich knew what this was about, and had some thoughts himself to voice.

As the sandwich started to talk, small bits of bacon and dressing fell everywhere.

"I believe a thank you is never something that should be demanded, but still expected. I disagree with the woman comparing it to exchange. I am sure it depends. Some people donate in order to get gratitude, but I for instance, donate in order to help the leader out, to help the family out. If he chooses to thank me, then that gives me some extra motivation. If a leader never thanks me, how can I know the money is really needed? I can understand the leader being busy, but one of my ancestors now deceased leader, used to wait until the end of the day, and thank for all the donations throughout the day. In that way, he or she, wouldn't have to spend too much time writing thank you for the 10.th time on one day. 

A thank you makes it feel like my money actually made a difference, that for me is more than motivation enough to keep helping"

BaconSandwich was left confused as to how he managed to speak, but was thankful for the opportunity.

I personally hate when leaders do not say thank you or show some sort of appreciation when you give them money and if I have a leader who doesn't I wont send them another dime.

I am a rich man but a man with morals and certain rules which I govern everyday of my life.

A good leader will communicate with their troops, in both good and bad and if they do that right they can earn a respect for their family they cannot buy.

A leader should not be expected to thank anyone of his members for anything.

In the same way a member should not be expected to thank their leader every time they keep them alive.

What the above is, in my eyes, is how this world works. A member is there to support their leader in everything they do. Anything from submitting a shot report on a new day to 'donating' up 50% of takings. These are the rules of the family. These are what you accepted when you placed their name upon yourself.

In return the leader places his neck on the line to protect those who wear their name. They have to face some very sticky situations in which it is very conceivable that they could be shot dead.

You likely do not directly hear of these moments. Unless you are a massive dick in which case you'll likely be hearing how much of a dick you've been and how much effort it is going to take to save your sorry arse. At this point you better hope you had been donating or, that contract you had, where you support each other, might not be honoured. That'd be a bitch, wouldn't it?

So before demanding or expecting a thank you for ensuring your family is well protected, Bodyguards and fortifications cost dough you know, perhaps you should be thinking where you'll end up if you don't donate. Two things in life are guaranteed. Death and Taxes. If you don't pay those taxes then death will come a damn sight quicker than you'd expect.

Luna cleared her throat and said, "I love hearing all of the thoughts about this. There's so many questions that could come from just this one topic but I will of course answer the one that was presented. I think that crew leaders should definitely thank their members for sending up donations. Even for tributing! Like.. "Thank you so much for helping me with this donation" or anything of the sort would be appropriate. I know in the past, my family has been in some rather lackluster crews where they never even heard a peep from their crew leader, let alone a thank you for the donation mail. It is just one of the many ways a crew leader can make their members feel appreciated and respected. I think it builds up a good rep when you are nice and communicative with your members, for sure. It's something I value, I know that much."

When it comes to a question like this there's no one size fits all answer. It really does depend on the leader in question and how they handle it in a way that fits them and their character. 

Some will throw members a note on each and every donation, some will do a weekly note letting everyone as a group know how things are going, some will give a kick in the ass and say "Is that all? You've been gambling again haven't you, you lazy sod". None are any more right or wrong than others, they each just come from a different place but can be right for a given leader. Communication styles will vary, some will use mob mails for most correspondence while others will rely on chats or coffee shop banter, leadership styles will vary and leaders will vary, as long as they're getting the end result they want there's no one right way to do it.

In the same way, leaders can't simply treat all members the same and expect to get the best results. Some will react to a soft quiet word, some to a playful joke and others might just need a good bollicking from time to time. Our world is evolving and we're starting to see a lot more organisation in organised crime. Handling the various personality differences, be it for leaders or for members, is just one step along that road.

Wraak steps forward and addresses the crowd. "Ask a question like this to a 1000 people and you will get a 1000 different answers. A lot of good points were raised above but I do agree with TsuDhoNimh that it really does depend on the leader in question and how they handle it in a way that fits them and their character."

"In my opinion action means more than words, a great CL will show you through their hard work and dedication that each member of their crew is appreciated."

"I do appreciate it when my CL thanks me for a donation, but the bottom line for me is that when I donate to my CL I do not do it with an expectation of a thank you, I do it because I want to."

She clears her throat again and says, "As you said you don't expect it. I hope what I said didn't come across as me EXPECTING it. I guess what I was trying to say is basically what you said, Wraak. Every crew leader is different .Not one does the same thing as the other, etc. I, however, do like to be in the crews where the crew leader says a quick thank you at least for it. I know my Grandmother was the type that always thanked her members, and the money also trickled back down through the crew. Not every crew leader is that way and not every member expects to be thanked, like you said. I know some that do just like to see that their crew leader is actually doing something important with the money given. Not just like.. Gambling it.. Like some do."

I don't expect 'thank yous' for doing what I'm supposed to do. If I am earning at a good rate, then I'm simply doing what I am supposed to be doing as a good level. Do we thank our crew leaders for protecting us every day?
Do we thank them daily for access to IA lists?
I don't think regular expectations warrant a thanks. If anything, I'd rather not get a thank you, but instead, maybe a conversation here and there to strengthen the bond between us. Knowing that my efforts are being noticed and not forgotten is good for me.

BaconSandwich heard someone raise a good point and decided to contribute to the conversation

"That's a good point. We do not always thank our leader for the protection and their hard work. Perhaps it should go both ways, I am sure many would appreciate that aswell. I also do believe leaders, aswell as members have different ways to show their gratitude. Some simply say thanks, while others work extra hard to show their gratitude. Heck, some people starts conversations because they believe a specific member might be trustworthy, or worth the time spent chatting. It's important to remember, and if a leader get to know their members, or the other way around, then it would likely be easier how to express said gratitude. People are different, and that point was already mentioned a couple of times, but I agree nontheless."

I've listened to all the many views on this and some have said there is not a wrong or right way to do it. I personally like to Contribute to our family and don't expect to receive a 'Thank you' for it, but when I do, I feel all warm and bubbly inside because they, the busy CL has taking time out of what they are doing and have taken note of what I have done for the family.

I have learnt something from these discussions though that I will now be putting into practice and that is that the Crew Leaders are busy paying the city taxes, organising Targets, bribing the Cops for a Jail break or two and of course keeping us safe. So from this day forward I will now be saying a 'Thank You' to my Crew Leader, for all that they have done.

Evelyn comes upon a conversation in the streets, one the catches her attention. She listens as others express themselves before stepping up and tossing in her two cents.

"Now as we all know, money makes the world go round. It's a crucial part of this world we live in, donations to crew leaders can and are most times the lifeline of the crews. So with the importance for the donation, I do believe it is also important for a crew leader to somehow acknowledge the person sending it. A simple thank you goes a long long way. Though I will also say even though I believe the crew leader should say a little something to the person sending their hard earned cash, I don't believe the person sending it should always expect it."

Evelyn clears her throat as she looks around, all eyes still on her.

"So yeah, a thank you goes a long way."

I always say thank you, not because I feel I must but just as a decent gesture to make sure that person knows I have seen their contribution, to acknowledge it and well manners cost nothing and I do think a thank you goes a long way. Sometimes that gratitude is not always in the tidy lumps from those you know know how to go hustle and earn a decent wad of cash, it is from the humble contributions to those new to this world, that have yet to make the big bucks yet they still send up what they can from what they have. Any amount deserves to be acknowledge in my view.

I read my family before me have been in families where nothing is said of donations - the silence as someone here referred to it as and whilst there can be no expectation of this from a crew leader they write of a feeling of not really belonging to a collective - like their hard earned money had gone into a quiet abyss somehow. It did not prevent them donating just that the process and the resulting feeling were different than when donations were acknowledged and or thanked.

Money is what makes the world go round and therefor a very important subject to any family.

If there are people out there that wonder if and for what a family needs money, I recommend them to just ask their crewleaders about that. Just ask what the costs are to get a full bodyguard detail. Just ask what the benefit is for you when your boss and others are getting the cash benefit, instead of you. Just ask what the exact benefits are for fortifications for your headquarters. Also, don't hesitate to ask what the average amount of donations is that a member donates to the operation in their lifetime. After that calculate the need for money vs. the amount of members and average amount of donations and ask yourself whether you personally contribute a fair share in that equation.

And if you don't, don't worry. Because with you, many don't. But the top dogs still get their act together, because they pull more weight. But after considering the hard facts, do really wonder whether you contribute as much to your family as it needs or whether you're lacking. And than again, don't think you're lacking, because having this insight already puts you ahead of many others. You do a good job already if you even donate and be proud of that. But do realise that you need to do a better job to meet what's needed and ask your boss or sponsor for help how to improve. Chances are that they didn't properly teach you the tricks they are using to become extremely rich. If they want you to do you part, don't hesitate to ask them to do their part and teach you properly.

So that's about the need for cash. After considering everything, it also allows for some insight in whether a "thank you" is appropriate.
And it is appropriate. It's a small moment where a feel of appreciation and family can emerge beyond following the daily boring patterns of this life. I've heard stories about a leader who used to walk into the common room of the headquarters whenever he got an envelope with a contribution. He would then call out the specific person and thank them for their donation. This gave the idea of public appreciation, but it also had an extra goal, namely to make the others in the room aware that others are donating and that there is a constant need and appreciation of donations. It often resulted in a wave of donations coming in shortly after that. The continued public appreciation in turn gave a sense of "We're building this family together!". The small and the big mattered and interacted - right there for everyone to see in the common room. And if more people are aware of the need for money and working to fulfill that need, then everyone in the operation will do better faster.