Optimism is Getting a Bad Reputation

I have recently been working on a substantial keynote for an organization who started out wanting a seminar on optimism. Several phone calls later, and some age old concerns have raised their ugly heads – is optimism really all that realistic?

Perhaps our problem with optimism is the feelings that the word conjures up. For some, it is the belief that one must be perky all the time. For others, it makes us feel like a failure when we cannot maintain such a focus over the long haul. So, my question for my blog readers this week is…..what do you think optimism really represents?

Picture this: You have been eagerly awaiting a wonderful weekend picnicking, riding your bike and soaking up the sun, only to wake up Saturday morning to a foot of snow on the ground (those of us in Alberta know exactly how this feels – 12 months of the year). It’s natural and normal to feel disappointed and frustrated. As a matter of fact, I would be somewhat concerned for your mental health if you didn’t feel just a tad disgruntled with the lovely surprise Mother Nature decided to bestow.

Once you get over your disappointment, though, you look at your day from another perspective. Perhaps you can curl up in bed with that book you never seemed to have time to read. Maybe you can pull out your family’s favourite recipes and cook up a storm. You might even decide to go outside and make a snowman. Changing your attitude has turned a miserable day complaining about what you missed into a day you actually enjoy. This has got to be much better for your physical and mental health – and the mental health of those around you who really don’t want to hear you whine. Along with helping you to stay healthy in both mind and body, optimism makes you a lot more fun to be around. Do you really want to hang around the person who is on a 24-7 downer? Or would you rather spend time with the person who smiles and laughs, who looks forward to the possibilities each day offers, who can accentuate the positive, while at the same time respecting your feelings?

“Having a positive mental attitude is asking how something can be done rather than saying it can’t be done.”
Bo Bennett (active CEO of iGrOOps and author of Year To Success)

Having a positive outlook allows us to believe in ourselves, to take on new challenges, to discover solutions to problems, to keep going when the going gets tough. (Yes, I know, there are so many nauseating sayings about optimism – please just try to appreciate the message.) Optimism has driven the world’s greatest thinkers, adventurers, scientists and leaders.

Just think how much we would have lost if it hadn’t been for optimists. What about Galileo? Would we have modern science if it hadn’t been for his curiosity and motivation? If Christopher Columbus had said, “Nah, it isn’t worth the effort,” where would we be? How about the Wright brothers? If they hadn’t believed in their dream, would we be able to jet off to Paris for a weekend? (OK, most of us can’t do that anyway, but it is nice to know that it’s possible.) If Einstein had been a pessimist, would we have E = MC2, even if we haven’t got a clue what it means? (By the way, it was Albert Einstein who said: “In the middle of difficulty lies opportunity.”) And what about those forward-thinking optimists who put man on the moon?

Most of us aren’t Galileos or Einsteins, but we can believe – in possibilities, in favourable outcomes, in our fellow human beings, in ourselves. Saying “I can” motivates us; saying “I can’t” stops us in our tracks. It’s true that there are some things we are probably not able to do – for myself, Olympic skiing and astrophysics aren’t on the agenda. However, deciding not to attempt something (e.g. climbing Mount Everest) is not the same as saying “I can’t.” It’s saying, “I choose not to.”

And that’s the other side of holding on to your optimism – knowing and accepting your limitations, whether they are actual (not enough money at this point in your life to fly to Paris for the weekend) or your own choice (not pursuing a career in rocket science).

Sustaining an optimistic outlook can be as simple as learning to appreciate the small things in life and taking each day as a gift. Even on the most gloomy days, there is always something to enjoy – a budding flower, the smell of air cleansed by rain, a playful puppy or kitten, a smile from a stranger. And if you occasionally fail, that doesn’t mean you are a failure; it just means that something didn’t work out. Accept it, glean whatever lessons you can from the experience and move on. There’s always tomorrow.

Ultimately, it’s up to you as to what kind of life you have and how you face the challenges. Remember the photos of those fascinating prehistoric cave drawings? The pessimist calls them graffiti; the optimist says, “Art!” It’s all about your worldview.