Diplomacy = Professionalism?

Up until end of last month, I always had the perception that handling a situation with diplomacy often reflects someone's professionalism.

However, after an incident I realise that diplomacy in itself wasn't a good enough trait for being professional.

I was trying hard to find the right words to handle the situation tactfully. In my "diplomatic" sense, I was trying frantically to provide a neutral and non-confrontational answer and opinions. The whole concept backfired. No only did I successfully confused the person because of contradictory statements but I also managed to end the whole conversation awkwardly.

I began to ponder on the the issue at hand. I was somewhat disturbed that my message did not get across and that the recipient was disappointed because of the message not getting across.

Two nights later, something struck me in the head. It was the conventional and an old advise parents and teachers would advise their children and students. Tell the truth!

Then another thought struck me. Is diplomacy a trait for professionalism? I pondered long and hard. If it were how come my actions were not making the right impact? Based on the principle of telling the truth I realise that diplomacy itself is not enough. I think one of the greatest trait of professionalism is the ability to present the truth in a
diplomatic manner. What's the use of telling a lie in a diplomatic manner?

Since then my equation has changed:

Diplomatic Truth = Professionalism


(Posted this somewhere else before this blog was up. It was posted on 10 July 2004)