I wanted to throw in an opinion I've had for a long time about "gracious professionalism" and how its viewed on here by many as "a way to live by" and other 'fluffy' things like that. It bothers me when people criticize others for not being "gp" about something based on how they view what "gp" is.
I don't view gracious professionalism itself as something to live by or to consider in everyday life. I believe in friendly competition, yes, but I find it amusing when another person is judged by his/her peers for what they are doing. Funny thing is who I'll be quoting on this.
Quote:
Originally Posted by Andrew Schreiber
I would have to say that GP is a measurement that can only apply to yourself. To apply it to another is unfair to that person/group. I would like to submit as an example a war, particularly the Crusades. Both sides felt they were acting for the best, so which side was GP and which side wasn't? Apply this to any modern day conflict. In Iraq is America being GP? GP can only be judged by the party themselves.
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I preferred the days before I joined FIRST because I didn't know the muddled, eschewed, and obfuscated meanings and perceptions of this concept people call Gracious Professionalism. I like being gracious, I like being professional, but when it comes to how I act in the real world, I prefer to just consider myself an ethical and moral person. These two words, same as gracious professionalism, have their own and different meaning for me than others may perceive them.
So one thing I would like to ask of the posters on here: Do you find yourself judging the ethics or morals of another person or peer? If so, I view that as you judging someone's "level" of gracious professionalism.
And Mr. Rizzo, I respectfully disagree. I do not believe FIRST is growing apart from its roots. I do believe it is growing though, its growing in a way that's accepted by the mindsets of OUR generation. The way I perceive FIRST to be is a great organization that is successfully completing the IRST part of its name; however, nowhere in that name are the letters G and P. Perhaps when we teach our students about GP, we should help them understand what it is by using simple, well known, and well lived terms such as moral fiber, respect, ethics, and sportsmanship. I don't see a need for students to try to understand the term GP because it gets convoluted and changed by every person who hears about it, thus, there's nothing definitive to teach them.
(This is all my view, not my teams)