I'm a big believer in playing fantasy football the way you want to play it. If you like IDP, or PPR, or 2QB, go for it. If you play in an eight-team league for fun, great. If you book an annual trip to Vegas to participate in a high-stakes draft, awesome. You can even draft all the players from your favorite NFL franchise. It's your team, after all.

But there's one thing you can't do: You can't use league drafts to practice for the ones that matter more to you.

I'm not saying you've done this personally, but I know it happens. Your "main league" draft is a big deal. Lots of money and pride at stake, with plenty of pressure to get each pick right. So what better way to practice than joining a few leagues that draft earlier, and practice how things shake out? It's like a mock draft, only better. This is a for-real draft, and the owners are really trying. You're not wasting time in an exercise everybody knows won't count. This one counts and if it helps you out later, what's the big deal about practicing in a lesser league?

Well, here's the thing: To the other owners, it's not a lesser league. For some of them it might even be their "main league." They wait all year for the draft, and it's not supposed to be a place for you to test out your "TE-QB-QB" theory. It's not a playground to see what happens if you load up on the very best handcuffs at the expense of not having any startable depth. It's a real league, and you should treat it that way.

Okay, so maybe the league isn't all that fun, and you only stay due to old friendships, work ties or convenience. And that might be true. But ask yourself this: Do you treat it casually because it's not fun, or is it not fun because you treat it casually? Maybe if you treated it like an important league, it would gain importance in your eyes. Maybe the other owners can sense you're not that into it. Maybe it's really a great league, and you've taken yourself out of the camaraderie with your apathetic attitude.

Or maybe you're right, and the league is boring. If that's the case, leave the league. Simply fielding a lineup each week doesn't make you a good owner, especially if your attention is elsewhere during the year. If you're not really into it, let them find someone who will be.

We've all dealt with owners who brag about how well they're doing in their main league, even while they're in a different league with you. Maybe they're not trying to be insulting, but it's clear that their attention isn't where you are. I'm not saying that every league has to be equally-important in your eyes. But I am saying that each league you join has to be worth your full effort, and that includes participation and enthusiasm. Be honest with yourself, and if it's practice for a more-important league, it should be removed from your schedule.

I purposely wrote this column to run this week, because you might face another circumstance very soon: The last-minute league you're asked to join. And the big selling point might be its draft occurs before your main league. Or maybe you've simply caught the draft bug and want that feeling again, so you join a league just for the fun of drafting one more team.

No matter how desperate that league is, you're better off declining. They can find a warm body to fill a spot. If you're not offering real enthusiasm to be a part of it, it does everybody a disservice to join leagues that don't matter to you.

I'm not the fantasy police, of course. Like I said earlier, play how you want. If you want to join 10 leagues in the next few days, nobody can stop you. I just think it makes your fantasy season less fun and less interesting. You're watering down your experience, and for what? More draft prep, or the fleeting feeling you get from forming a new team? It's not worth it.

Whether you're in four leagues or just one, the fun you'll have in 2017 isn't related to how many drafts your get to join, or how many lineups you have to field each week. It always depends on the quality of your leagues and how much energy you devote to them. Win or lose, if you stick to leagues you really want to be in, I think you'll have a better experience. Even if you say no to a friend or co-worker, or go into your draft without any practice, participating in fewer leagues (that you really enjoy) is usually a better way to go.

Do you like joining a bunch of leagues? Are you the owner people call when there's an opening? have you ever joined a league just to practice for a more-important one? Share your thoughts below.