The power of belief

Everyday is not a Sunday.  January’s third Sunday undoubtedly belonged to Seahawks!

Seahawks fans who watched the playoff game against the Green Bay Packers last Sunday (Jan 18, 2015) were not left spellbound, rather we had the loudest eruption of emotions.  The game was as unbelievable as any comeback game can get.  Seahawks beat the Packers 28-22 in overtime after trailing 19-7 with about four minutes left.  An epic comeback that Seattle fans won’t soon forget.

Two euphoric fans

My takeaways from the game and from the post game commentary:

Decisions matter. Packers 13-3-0-6-0 — 22; Seahawks 0-0-7-15-6 — 28 — that was the score thru the quarters.  Had Seahawks not decided to go for a two-point conversion as against a one-point goal in the fourth quarter, the Packers would have taken it all away with their touchdown and the game would have ended at 22-21 against Seahawks.  The two point decision led to a tie into overtime.  This was a big decision that saved the day for us but is not being discussed much.  Its strategic value has apparently been overshadowed by its seismic value!

Luck mostly favors the braver.  Through most of the game, Seahawks had trouble possessing the ball for offensive.  The overtime toss was in our favor and it helped save the day as we got the opportunity to score a touchdown.  This is where the metaphysical / destiny / God (whatever you want to call it) stepped in to play its role and proved Mr. Murphy wrong.

The power of belief (most important).  Post game, Coach Pete Carroll was asked whether there was any doubt in the locker room or on the sideline.  And how Russell maintained poise when the team made mistakes after mistakes.  He talked about turning the negative emotion of frustration into the positive juice that the team really needed to turn around the game, and they did it.  He went on to say that it was nothing out of the ordinary.  On the second question, he commented that believing you will be okay allows you to be really focused and take advantage of opportunities when they arise.

This – the power of belief – is a very important lesson from this game.  Positive thinking is not the same as daydreaming.  It requires belief to be followed through with determined action.  In the absence of belief, actions will be half-hearted and will generate only half the result if at all.