Reading the article “The Benefits of Looking on the Bright Side” completely changed my outlook on why it is important to think like an optimist rather than a pessimist. Jessica Cassity, the author of the article expressed her opinion about optimistic views, in a way that improves and maintains a healthier life style. Suzanne Segerstrom, PhD, a professor of psychology at the University of Kentucky stated that "People who are optimistic are more committed to their goals, are more successful in achieving their goals, are more satisfied with their lives, and have better mental and physical health when compared to more pessimistic people.” The idea of being optimistic about everything you come across seems a little farfetched, however statistics where pulled from a study of more than 150,000 people living in 142 countries, proving that staying optimistic is beneficial. Cassity continued in her article and explained multiple studies drawn out to support Dr. Segerstrom’s input toward optimistic people. Optimists tend to feel healthier, are healthier, better athletes, and bouncing back from an upsetting event. …show more content…
Harvard’s School of Public Health is one of many studies shown to support the fact that thinking optimistically benefits not only your attitude but your health as well. Another famous study done to support the views of optimistic people is known as “The Angry/Happy
Optimism was an attractive to many because it answered a profound philosophical question: if God is omnipotent and benevolent, then why is there so much evil in the world? Optimism provides an easy way out: God has made everything for the best, and even though one might experience personal misfortune, God (via your misfortune) is still helping the greater good.
Optimism is a hopefulness for the future. People who are optimistic generally expect the best from situations. Overall, optimists tend to be healthier than pessimists. Optimism can aid in maintenance of psychological health when faced with physical health problems. This claim is evident with Bob Salvini in the Young at Heart film. Bob, having looked death in the eyes multiple times, managed to pull through when the odds were against him. Bobs strong will and optimism for live and his situation helped him live happily for as long as he did, before he unfortunately died in May of 2006. While still in the ICU, Bob stayed positive and was determined to make the show in less than three weeks. Sadly, Bob passed away the night before the show (Walker & George,
The importance dispositional optimism as a facilitator of well-being, positive health, flourishing, and quality of life has been documented in the positive psychology literature. Dispositional optimism evaluated by the LOT-R is a positive personality trait characterized by favorable personal future expectation (Scheier et al., 1994). It has been emphasized that optimism is a malleable personality trait and that pessimists can become optimists by utilizing techniques such as positive psychology interventions (Carver et al., 2009; Seligman, 2011). In contrast to traditional psychological interventions, positive psychology interventions have a strong focus on cultivating positive personality traits including dispositional optimism.
Optimism was attractive to many because it answered a profound philosophical question that mankind had been grappling with since the beginning of faith: if God is omnipotent and benevolent, then why is there so much evil in the world? Optimism provides an easy way out of this philosophical dilemma: God has made everything for the best, and even though one might experience personal misfortune, God (via your misfortune) is still helping the greater good.
Optimism is applicable to both crises and normal living. It has been shown how optimism brings about the good life amidst catastrophe, but what happens between major life events? One cannot live the good life without a sense of purpose. Optimism encompasses both goals and one’s hope in their accomplishment, giving one a sense of purpose and an anticipation of happiness in times of comfort or distress and keeping the individual progressing within their life story. Thus, a positive view of the future is critical to the good life in adversity or
Whether we are naturally an optimist or more of a pessimist, it’s impossible to know what the future holds. So perhaps the best of both worlds is to be a realistic optimist - someone who tends to maintain a positive outlook, but within the constraints of what they know about the world (actionforhappiness.org).
While the notion of optimism is seldom brought to attention on a daily basis, it is actually an integral part of the human experience, even among those who claim to be particularly rational. In fact, it serves as a sort of Chicken Soup for the Soul, for society. Of course, rather than being a series of inspirational books, optimism quite literally gives off the comfort of warm soup on a cold and dreary day- wafting in the possibility of hope and the sentiment that this is the “best of all possible worlds.” It is this comfort that people cling to in times of strife, be it a death of a loved one, or even something as typical as a missed bus. The prevalence of optimism began in 1710, when Gottfried Leibniz asserted that the actual world was as
Optimism is the action of seeking the hope that lies in every situation. The hope is like gold or a valuable gem. It may be resting on the surface, or it may be buried deep down. Either way, if one does not actively seek it, it may never be found. Helen Keller wrote, “Most people measure their happiness in terms of physical pleasure and material possession….If happiness is to be so measured, I who cannot hear or see have every reason to sit in a corner with folded hands and weep….Only by contact with evil could I have learned to feel by contrast the beauty of truth and love and goodness.” However, there is a such thing as too much optimism. Helen Keller also explained this when she wrote, “It is a mistake always to contemplate the good and ignore the evil because by making people neglectful it lets in disaster….This is false optimism. A man must understand evil and be acquainted with sorrow before he can write himself an optimist and expect others to believe that he has reason for the faith that is in him.” A German theologian named Jurgen Moltmann backs this up by stating, “Genuine hope is not blind optimism. It is hope with open eyes, which sees the suffering and yet believes in the
Through out the 1920’s many inventions were created that altered human civilization. Transportation was successfully mastered. Radio communication was becoming more common and medicine was saving more and more lives every day.
Although too much positivity can lead to naiveté, I still believe in the power of optimism. After a long day, nothing beats the feeling knowing that you made someone else smile and believe, if for just a second, the world is a wonderful place. Being positive is a choice. And contrary to popular belief, it’s not always easy. There are times that you may want to give up or just be content with being negative. But, you must pick yourself back up and remember that tomorrow is another day, and every day is an opportunity to make your situation better. As Richard M. DeVos said, “Few things in the world are more powerful than a positive push. A smile. A world of optimism and hope. A 'you can do it' when things are tough.” This is an idea that I try to live by every day; my state of eternal optimism.
Firstly, people who show an optimism bias feel more happy and satisfied with their life. These people are also more in control of and engaged in their life’s goal, they will not just think about happy thoughts and wait for life to pass, instead they will be engaged in a meaningful life and do whatever it takes to accomplish their goals. They are also less likely to give up on a difficult situation and will cope with it. These are people who will not wait for the rain to pass but who learn to dance in the rain in order to fulfil their life’s goal. Unrealistic optimism shows an increased well-being and happiness. With this increased well-being, unrealistically optimistic people are also more able to pick themselves up after a major life
Whether an individual has positive or negative attitude is not a major contributor to their happiness and a realistic attitude would be ideal for those trying to increase their
In a world threatened by an approaching and daunting future, optimism is an important attitude that must be cultivated in order to succeed. The future is going to be a scary and challenging place and having an optimistic mindset is going to be very valued to help get out of the sticky mess that society is creating. Optimism will help to keep society and its population in check and create ideas from both ends of every spectrum to solve very important issues. With many challenges ahead of society, optimism gives a clear and strong focus and will help to relieve worries and stress caused by forthcoming challenges. It provides not only a bright light in a cloudy day, it also provides and delivers a clear focus.
B. Cade Massey once said, “It 's gotten to the point where people really feel pressure to think and talk in an optimistic way” (Massey). Optimism is generally seen as healthy, while pessimism is generally seen as dangerous. The difference between optimism and pessimism is a difference in perspective and mindset. An optimist has a positive perspective and cheerful mindset, while a pessimist has a negative perspective and a gloomy mindset. There are consequences to both perspectives. But which has better consequences for one’s health? Assuming that it is moderated, pessimism is healthy for a person’s well-being. Pessimism is more realistic than optimism because it prepares people for an unpredictable and possibly negative life. Pessimism is also better for expectations compared to future surprises. Pessimists are either proven right or pleasantly surprised. Pessimism is a healthier mindset to have than optimism.
These phycologists have wondered if there are more optimist or pessimists in the world. They have made an attempt to find out what approach is greater or better. There are some advantages to optimism because it makes people feel better about life, however, there are also some advantages to pessimism in that looking at the unfortunate side of things can help some pessimists cope better with the world. Both optimism and pessimism have important roles to play the lives of everybody. Being optimist permits people to go after their goals in a positive way, to dream bigger and better dreams, which they can strive to work towards. Optimist also tend to respond better to positive feedback, and a part of being an optimist may be producing this feedback for themselves, example, thinking positive thoughts. While on the other hand, being pessimistic may help people to better acknowledge negative feedback and reduce their natural anxiety to perform better. Once again, part of the reason why pessimist generates negative thoughts is that it helps them perform a lot better. People tend to utilize both optimism and pessimism in order for them gain out of their advantages. People who are mainly concerned with growth or advancement often manifest an optimistic view, whereas those who are concerned with safety and security, or avoiding negative outcomes, focus more on pessimism in order to improve their