It's difficult to word this without making it seem as if winning the Championship and believing in the virtue of the Chairman's Award are mutually exclusive. I recognize that they're not.
But, in any individual, there has to be some focus upon which they expend the majority (or plurality, perhaps) of their energy. So, it seems that approximately half of the people in FIRST are worried more about winning than they are about inspiring others.
So -- if winning is more important than further inspiration of others in certain people, I'm really interested in learning more about the qualities they admire in people like Dean, Woodie, Dave and everyone else that's typically held in such high regard. I understand that it's entirely possible to admire someone while still disagreeing with them -- I disagree with John all the time
But, with comments from Dean that have repeatedly reiterated that this is not a "robot contest" and the like, what about him do people find appealing that helps to justify their competitive drive?
I've, in the past, also been party to saying things like, "whatever inspires people is good," and I don't entirely disagree with that sentiment. I just think it's become something of a cop out among FIRST participants who haven't examined their motivations in useful ways -- so that people may continue to be inspired by them and their actions. If a strong desire for winning a Championship has been what you're inspired to pursue, that's fine, but how is that desire to win actively inspiring other people to, well, inspire other people?
The Championship indirectly inspires people to learn more, try harder and perform better. The Chairman's Award inspires people to actively promote learning, effort, and excellent performance -- not only be example, but by direct interaction and mentorship. One effort is one-dimensional, while the other is multi-faceted and comprehensive.
Again, I'm not trying to silence anyone's opinion or render it invalid -- only encourage more discussion and examination about the unconventional ways people have been inspired and find methods of integrating those methods into a more comprehensive ideology that can do as much good as possible.