[dlavery]

It is a reality that, as FIRST grows and more teams and more participants join, the number of opportunities to both display and deny the tenets of gracious professionalism increase.

No team is immune to this. In just this past week I have seen some of the most amazingly professional behavior exhibited by a rookie team that obviously “gets it.” Simultaneously, I saw acts by a long-term veteran team that would have made Billy Martin and George Steinbrenner cringe in embarrassment.

The intent here is not to point fingers, but to reinforce the idea that ALL participants in FIRST need to be aware of our behavior and how we act. This is not limited to just the things that happen at the Championship. This is true whether we are at a competition, in school, at work, at home, on a internet forum or chat room, or out in public. We may or may not be wearing a FIRST team shirt or be identified as a FIRST participant. But that shouldn’t matter. The principles of gracious professionalism are not to be taken off when the team t-shirt is removed. Our representation of our respective teams may come and go. But we always represent ourselves. It is how we each behave as a person – not as a team member – that matters.

You can disagree with a referee’s call. You can be upset with a “silly rule” being enforced by an event employee. You can disagree with the policies of a school or sponsor. You can be angered by decisions made by FIRST or any other organization. There is nothing in the principles of gracious professionalism that dictates that you should simply roll over and accept any of these situations. The important part is HOW you decide you are going to react to them.

You can scream and yell invectives at a referee, or you can present a logical, reasoned, supported argument for why you disagree with a call, and then elevate an appeal if a satisfactory solution is not found. You can verbally assault someone that is doing the job they were directed to do, or you can recognize that they have instructions that probably stem from a set of goals and concerns that are different than yours, and understand that the restrictions may source from a person different than the one standing in front of you. You can throw a tantrum over school board restrictions that prevent you from attending a certain competition, or you can become determined to do something about it and work within the system to enact a change to what you view as restrictive policies. You can post a series of vituperative missives on Chief Delphi about “dumb decisions” by FIRST, or you can find a way to make your displeasure known in a strong and unmistakable way that is also calm, respectful, not insulting, and acknowledging that there may be other factors associated with the decision of which you are not aware. Then you can volunteer to jump in and help find a solution.

Our behavior – both good and bad – is contagious. Set a good example, behave in a mature, reasoned, professional manner and we will find that others around us will too. Throw tantrums, scream at officials, abuse those lower on the corporate food chain, and others may follow suit. We lead by example – the only choice is what type of example do we want to set?

Remember, as the reports of the unfortunate incidents listed above indicate, your grandmother - and everyone else - is watching.

-dave


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