Gracious Professionalism
What is it?
This is something you do not learn. This value is in all of us and some bring it out gradually, some hide it and most it's always apparent. Parents encourage it, Faculty advisors request it and mentors have a means to provide it and inspire it. It is not just how you talk to somebody, it is how you listen to them, and it’s not just how you treat them and its how you like to be treated at the worst time of your life. In my team, I expect it! Team’s talk to each other negatively about another and talk to other’s who are friendly with that team positively, this is not gracious. When you hear things and you allow others to do this, this is not gracious. Just because they cannot hear, what you have said; does not mean that you are gracious. If you speak negatively about another or some team and it is about facts. Would this be a violation of Gracious Professionalism? I do not think it would be if it only about the facts, it is only when you add innuendos and opinions, then this becomes un-gracious
I have witness teams speak negatively about themselves and other teams while they were in the shadows. What they stated had been un-Gracious. In these events I try to speak up you never know who is watching or listening. Some of the teams speaking negatively who were doing the talking have won the most prestigious awards in FIRST and they were not acting in the spirit of Gracious Professionalism. This just tells me that FIRST is losing its roots.
I remember the days when all teams were gracious and we all help each other.