Respect is a factor in how we Communicate as a Community

By Liam Gallagher, Culinary Arts

I believe respect is a concept, a construct that every individual has their own views on. We all remember being taught the golden rule early on in school, “Do unto others as you would have them do unto you”, or maybe you were even taught the platinum rule, “do unto others as they would like done unto them”. Many people have different ways of displaying or observing different instances of what respect is, but when asked what respect means to me, I would say Respect is to treat a person well and with dignity, regardless of their race or creed, or even how they might treat you.

When people come to a disagreement, respect is still an important factor. A calm, respectful argument is a much more reasonable and effective way of settling a disagreement than an argument filled with yelling and disrespect, and can even lead to a solution for both parties. People forget that you don’t have to like a person in order to respect them. There are people that work hard, and break their back to better the world, and you don’t have to like them, but you should respect them. It is not always easy to understand where a person is coming from when they act rudely, nor is it easy to always act courteously towards others. Nobody is perfect, and we all have things that we deal with on a daily basis that might irritate us, and cause us to lose sight of our virtues. Respect in a kitchen is very hierarchical, and it is necessary in order to really complete anything. When working on something with a colleague, respect can make a world of change in efficiency. In past projects I’ve worked on, having a mutual respect with your partner can lead to delegating tasks easier, better communication, and higher morale while working. 

Respect is something that is critical for us as humans. It is a huge factor in how we communicate as a community, and how we communicate to each other. Respect could be considered a type of give and receive, if you want people to respect you, in most occasions just treating them respectfully will go a long way.