Care Bears get a lot of grief. They’ve been accused of being less aggressive than most players, they don’t like team sports or they just keep to themselves. And that’s totally cool. It’s a conscious decision and we’re down with that. However, if you come off sounding like an amateur, not hearing calls or directions, or not hearing an opponent creep up on you, you might get lumped into the Care Bear camp. Is that what you want? Here are four ways to sound like a pro, get some respect, and stay out of the line of fire.

Grab the Mic

This is 101, the basic, the first piece of equipment you need to own (after your PC). Don’t just use any microphone but one that actually works. You know that guy who you can barely hear? He’s using a bad mic. Don’t be like him. If no one can hear you, or you sound like you’re whispering through a tunnel with rush hour traffic, you’re marked. You could be the best player on the block, but you’re going to get less respect. May we suggest the ModMic? It’s a high-quality microphone that you can easily attach to any pair of headphones, including yours.

Have a Decent Pair of Headphones

Which leads us to your headphones. If you have a solid mic but crummy headphones, you’re only halfway there. The only thing worse than someone online not hearing you, is the ability to not hear someone else when they’re talking. Care Bear, aiming for pro, or just having fun, at some point you’ll misunderstand a conversation, not hear a direction or not hear your opponent. Why use low-budget headphones or worse, a gamer headset? Do you want people to be annoyed every time you talk? Get a good pair of headphones, and a ModMic so your audio helps you, instead of hurts.

Improve your Callouts

Now that we have the two basic but important technical components out of the way, let’s talk about how that tech can help you be better player and one that friends will want to play with, without judgment. The key here are callouts. With the right equipment and strategy you can improve your callouts during a live competition and communicate clearly and strongly. If you know where an opponent is, call it out. See something off? Call out. It’s probably the most important part of the game. You’ll need to keep the lines of communication wide open during play. We can’t stress it enough: You might have the strategy down, but you’re toast if you can’t hear or be heard. Check out more tips on communicating like a pro here.

Respect your place, respect your fellow gamers

No one likes a jerk, whether that’s a co-worker, family member, or someone you interact with online. The same goes for gaming. By having the proper equipment, knowing your game, knowing the plan, you gain respect and keep the communication clear. But, it goes deeper than that. Don’t be a sore loser, don’t drop verbal bombs, and know how to react to negativity (hint: try to diffuse it, not escalate it). Respect yourself, too. In a situation that’s not working out? Step away. You don’t have to go Care Bear, but you don’t have to take abuse. You’re here to have fun.

The big takeaway here is that you might be pro level in your game, you might know every crevice, every street, and every shortcut, but if you don’t have the equipment, you’ll not only start losing games, you might start losing people to play with. Be heard and listen on a deeper level. And buy the right mic and headphones to accomplish this.

Feel like you have a good handle on the game? Ready to start streaming? Check out these tips for building a positive community as a streamer.