One of my favorite books is The Talent Code. It's a book about the finer nuances of coaching and teaching, and their affect on the development of talent in a person's brain chemistry. The author, Daniel Coyle, dabbles in research in regard to violinists, singers, collegiate QBs, and several other competitive professions. In regard to the motivations behind our pessimists, which range anywhere from seemingly logical ideas like not being able to solve a problem until we emphatically state that we do in fact have this specific problem, having high ideals about demanding excellence day-in and day-out, and the like, this book derives a simple conclusion about that mindset. To put it simply:
Right now, you're just not helping.
Yes, there are some of us who are merely venting frustrations to feel better and I certainly don't disagree with using an internet forum to satisfy this notion (it would nice if you guys specified when you're doing this though..), but there are also those who are griping with a perceived purpose of improving the team through a form of fan dissatisfaction. This, of course, is well within one's right to do but it's also well within one's right to tell you that it doesn't work.
The noted trend covered in The Talent Code with increasing performance through criticism and praise was criticism was vital but only in heavy moderation. Regardless of the skill in question, people improved more quickly when they were praised ~3 times as much as they were criticized and that such criticism only be done in a manner that was largely emotionless and matter-of-fact (as in the opposite of talking about how the Seahawks issues in weeks 1-6 will directly result in a play-off loss). This trend occurs because the human psyche must maintain a balance of confidence and caution to be at pique performance and one statement of negativity makes a much greater impression than one positive statement. In other words, if what was currently being said on this forum were to have an affect on our team's performance, it would serve to only hinder them.
You guys can certainly say what you like, do what you feel, and believe what you want, but if you're to help ensure the best season possible, it would behoove us all to speak nicely, find that silver lining (which is pretty easy at 5-1), criticize seldom and without worry, and simply enjoy what could still be one of the best seasons this franchise has ever had. This concludes your Public Service Announcement.
