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I suspect that on a large scale these emotional states don't make much difference to anything (although of course they're very important on the level of individual people).
Offense is optimists, they run to good shooting positions in case the ball comes there. Most of their running is in vain, yet they have to do it every time. They get praise if they make a goal, and if the opponent scores, it doesn't make a difference to them personally or affect their career.
Defense is pessimists, they try to prevent the opponent from scoring. They for example have to sometimes commit a tactical fault in order to prevent the opponent from getting to a dangerous position where they could score a goal. They have to guard opponent offense players, even if the ball never comes near. They are criticized if the opponent makes a goal and they don't get credit for their team's offense scoring goals.
So, one thinks a good thing might happen and tries to seize the opportunity. The other one thinks a bad thing might happen and tries to make sure it is prevented. Both are estimating an uncertain future and a lot of their work goes to waste - but only in hindsight.
Both are needed for a team to win the championships.
Conversely optimism can waste resources on unworkable progress which could have been applied to workable progress. Reality is way more nuanced than single perspectives.
Just the opposite, I see empathetic, gushing, ridiculous cotton candy optimisim all over places like LinkedIn and the corporate world. Everybody Smile! There isn't nearly enough contention, questioning, satire (notice how SNL never really goes for that) etc.. Marc Benioff spends the entirety of his time virtue signalling about how he is saving LGBT refugees from this or that, while superficially that's nice, it's ult…
I don't think this sort of cynicism about LGBT rights activism is helpful. If we want to make progress in this area, we need support from all sectors of society. That definitely includes people who aren't saints and who don't act from wholly disinterested and pure motives. Whatever his motives (and I can't read his mind – can you?), Marc Benioff did something substantial to support LGBT rights when many other CEOs did not.
There's no objective content to the accusation of "virtue signalling". It's a zero-effort means of objecting to whatever kind of activism someone doesn't like. Instead of making a substantive criticism of the activism itself, just jump to uncharitable conclusions about the person's inner motivations.
Apart from that I think the article is mostly wrong. To make progress you need agency and self-confidence. The effects of Optimism and Pessimism are very context-dependent.
Just one example: A very driven and confident pessimist might be much more motivated to find a solution for Climate Change, because he knows for sure otherwise Earth is Doomed.
While a very driven and confident optimist in Politics might reduce Carbon Tax, because he knows for sure that Technology Companies will find solutions for Climate Change and they'll find it faster if they have more money.
Conversely optimism can waste resources on unworkable progress which could have been applied to workable progress. Reality is way more nuanced than single perspectives.
Yes, there's a price to pay for optimism, but the alternative is much more costlier - I think this is the premise of this article.
> Reality is way more nuanced than single perspectives.
That's a truism, I believe.
Just the opposite, I see empathetic, gushing, ridiculous cotton candy optimisim all over places like LinkedIn and the corporate world. Everybody Smile! There isn't nearly enough contention, questioning, satire (notice how SNL never really goes for that) etc.. Marc Benioff spends the entirety of his time virtue signalling about how he is saving LGBT refugees from this or that, while superficially that's nice, it's ult…
>Marc Benioff spends the entirety of his time virtue signalling about how he is saving LGBT refugees from this or that, while superficially that's nice, it's ultra narcissistic PR and self aggrandization to use those people as tools for corporate branding. Nobody calls him out. I don't think this sort of cynicism about LGBT rights activism is helpful. If we want to make progress in this area, we need support from all…
This is why I worry about the doomerism, especially by young people, I see online so often. Thankfully, stepping out of the bubbles that are Twitter and Reddit, it's not nearly as common to see in the real world. Just one more reason not to (unproductively) use these platforms.
Earlier quoted context omitted.
>Marc Benioff spends the entirety of his time virtue signalling about how he is saving LGBT refugees from this or that, while superficially that's nice, it's ultra narcissistic PR and self aggrandization to use those people as tools for corporate branding. Nobody calls him out. I don't think this sort of cynicism about LGBT rights activism is helpful. If we want to make progress in this area, we need support from all…
Why do we want that? We're well past the point of diminishing returns on that particular obsession.