Being in an end-game raiding guild means knowing your class and role inside and out. Your rotation is second nature, you fully understand the mechanics, and you know how to apply your class’s individual skill set to each unique encounter. You know the pattern to follow and, most importantly, you know when to break that pattern.
Being in an end-game raiding guild means being familiar the other nine classes. You know their strengths, so that you can use them in the best place, and you know their weaknesses, so that you can help compensate for them.
Being in an end-game raiding guild means you know how to maximize. Your gear has the best enchants, you have leveled two non-gathering professions, you are the right race, you have the right talents and glyphs. You regularly pre-pot. You are willing to perform the most menial tasks to gain a tiny advantage, because if every person in your 10 or 25 man does minor things, your raid can do great things.
Being in an end-game raiding guild means being humble. You acknowledge you don’t know everything. You engage with the community, because looking at a problem through different eyes often leads to better solutions. You eagerly accept criticism and apply it. You acknowledge your own failure and always find ways to improve.
Being in an end-game raiding guild means you know how to study. You research encounters as soon as information becomes available, watch videos, and look through logs. It means tailoring your gear and spec for every individual encounter. You regularly contribute to strategy discussions. You analyze your own failed attempts.
Being in an end-game raiding guild means putting the goals of the team before your own. Sometimes you have to sit, respec, or play an alt for the team to progress. Sometimes you have to pass on gear. Sometimes you have to kite Lava Parasites instead of tunnel visioning the boss.
Being in an end-game raiding guild means you are reliable. You go out of your way to make raids and maintain near 100% attendance. You organize classes or social events around your raid times. You let your guild know long beforehand if you’re going to be absent. You have a computer that never lags out and an Internet connection that rarely disconnects. When you have a cold, instead of calling in sick you jam some kleenex up your nose and suffer through it.
Being in an end-game raiding guild means you are prepared to share your point of view, but you acknowledge that your leader has the final say. You have to bury your pride and follow orders.
Being in an end-game raiding guild means you are patient. A few days of wipes won’t discourage you. You can go for a few weeks without upgrades or progression because eventually everything will click and the boss will fall and it was all worth it.
Being in an end-game raiding guild means you are consistent. You learn quickly and you never make the same mistake twice. Avoiding fire 9 out of 10 times is not good enough.
Being in an end-game raiding guild means you have fun, but take it seriously. It is possible to do both of these at the same time.