User blog comment:Sannse/The Zen Admin/@comment-452-20140930003259

Thanks Sannse, I couldn't have said it better myself! In fact, there are several points in this blog which hadn't even occurred to me, particularly the part about "even if you think they 'deserve' it, it makes the wiki look bad".

Obviously, cases of clear vandalism must be stopped ASAP, but for other issues, leave them a message about it, and use a temporary block to halt their edits if they continue without replying, but don't block access to their talk page.
 * Some extra advice :

If the problem user is communicative, I think it's important not to block or close discussions too soon. Admins should always be willing to discuss issues, consider different viewpoints, clarify the reasons behind rules which others may not understand, and generally give people a chance - even if you don't particularly "like" what the other user is doing. Especially if they have questions, as I think that admins should always answer questions which relate to the wiki, or their behaviour. (edit: In fact, this is generally true of all users, when asked about something which applies to them.)
 * I recently made the mistake of blocking someone for an hour and also blocking their talk page replies, after that hour was up, the user was quite vocal about not being able to communicate with me during that time, and it would have saved me an additional hour of drama if I hadn't done that.

Everyone gets frustrated sometimes, but you can always walk away for a while. It's important to remember that there's no need to reply straight away if things get heated. You can always just go play with your pets or watch TV for a while and come back to the conversation later. Personally, I cook something, then come back on a full stomach in a better mood.

Regarding being insulted: If someone is using curse words indirectly, I simply pretend those words aren't there. But if they direct them at myself or other users, I'll give them one warning to watch their language before enforcing a "time-out".

One extra piece of advice for admins, or any user, who might one day want to become admins elsewhere: Even if everyone on your current wiki thinks that "swearing at vandals" is okay, other wikis might not agree, and your behaviour with vandals might stop you gaining admin rights elsewhere in future.