When people set positive expectations for us, they give us two different types of information. First, there’s information that shapes our own expectations. To the degree that we believe in the expectations others set for us, we’re more likely to live up to them. We reason that if others expect great things of us, we must be capable of delivering. Second, there’s a social aspect of a positive expectation—and with it comes the dark side that sacked Ryan Leaf: performance pressure. Performance pressure distracts us with worrying about
