Whiners Are Both the Canary in the Coal Mine and ... well, whiners

I worked on one of my previous employer's largest projects and it was a complete disaster.  I've tried and tried to take away really great lessons from that experience.  But here's the lesson I find most frustrating.  It's not that resources were squandered.  It's not that money was wasted.  It's not that opportunity was lost.  It's not about profit or loss. No, the lesson I find most frustrating is this:

From the president right down to the interns, the people on a project that whine the most will provide the least amount of actionable feedback and will contribute the least to avoiding the problem next time.

In part this is a call to action - if you're a freaking whiner then get off your ass and contribute solutions - but mostly it's an acknowledgement of the pattern.

Once I noticed the pattern I have become terribly fascinated by it because it means it's very dangerous to listen to whiners.  At the same time, whiners are clearly how you know things may not be going well.  My system of detection and actions have become much more nuanced since realizing this trend.