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May 5, 2010

2

Optimism is Overrated

Optimism: She's probably in the next one.

Souce: duelinganalogs.com

In life, shit happens.

Optimism won’t solve all your problems, unlike many buoyant, rosy top-of-the-world happy-talky would like to convince you of (Note the clever abuse of synonyms here).

OK, I’m also a happy-talky. Not rosy though, unless I’m wearing my ambiguous shirt (I thought it was red).

So.

If optimism is overrated, so, too, is pessimism. In fact, I don’t think there is any level of RATING pessimism that wouldn’t be overdoing it.

Pessimism achieves nothing, moves nowhere, and certainly won’t resolve the problem at hand (or otherwise expected).

Optimism on the other hand, has all these superb benefits we keep hearing about.

And DON’T GET ME STARTED on realism.

Cheers!

(PS: I’m pretty sure I will get at least 50 comments on this post)

Source: jonestein.mlblogs.com

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  • http://olussier.net/ Olivier

    Optimism sure is a good thing when well balanced with realism (no, I won't get you started on this). It may not always be realistic to expect the very best outcome to a situation, but the optimistic will focus on the outcome's good sides and, more importantly, what he can do about it. Being optimistic is proven to improve one's health. It makes me think of this old proverb that says: “A heart that is joyful does good as a curer, but a spirit that is stricken makes the bones dry.”

    Here are a few advices I've found in an article on optimism for being more optimistic when it may be harder:
    ▪ When you find yourself thinking that you won’t enjoy something or you won’t succeed in some project, reject the thought. Focus on the positive.
    ▪ Try to enjoy your work. Regardless of your job, look for aspects that you find satisfying.
    ▪ Look for friends who view life positively.
    ▪ Deal with the situations that you can control; try to accept those you cannot.
    ▪ Every day, write down three good things that happened to you.

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