Optimism Has Many Benefits

Optimism Is Crucial For Success

Here's one of our favorite quotes, which comes from American editor and writer Thomas Dreier:

The world is a great mirror. It reflects back to you what you are. If you are loving, if you are friendly, if you are helpful, the world will prove loving and friendly and helpful to you. The world is what you are.

The same goes for optimism. An optimistic person will find, notice and leverage positives in life and opportunities. A pessimistic person will see the negatives and hurdles in the same life opportunities. As Sir John Lubbock, an English baron and philanthropist in the 19th century wrote, "What we see depends mainly on what we look for."

Dr. Martin Seligman, professor of positive psychology at the University of Pennsylvania and best-selling author, writes, "The traditional version tells us that there are two things you need to succeed: talent and hunger, or drive. I have added a third thing, and that is optimism. You can have all the talent in the world, but if you don't believe you can overcome failure, if you do not mentally rehearse success, then your talent and drive will come to nothing once you have been knocked down."

Everything you read on the subject will tell you that optimism boosts energy levels, creates higher levels of focus and concentration, improves your chances of reaching a set goal, and prevents health problems from occurring. That would seem to be a better route than wallowing in pessimism and depression from the setbacks and hurdles that get thrown at you.

Ever met a truly successful cynic? It's doubtful. Any level of real success in life will not be achieved in the presence of cynicism. In fact, there are no successful cynics to be found.

Cynicism, while not quite as bad an opposite to optimism as pessimism, is an attitude that should be avoided. Cynics tend to play the blame game, citing a long list of external circumstances or people blocking their way. 

Successful people focus on the positives in their lives and take responsibility for finding solutions to whatever they deem as problems. Cynics, unfortunately, have an attitude holding them back.

As Nobel Peace Prize winner Nicholas Murray Butler said, "Optimism is essential to achievement and it is also the foundation of courage and true progress."

The following comparison pretty much sums up the difference between a positive, optimistic attitude and a negative, cynical or pessimistic one:

Winners say: "It may be difficult but it is possible."

Losers say: "It may be possible but it is too difficult."

As the old saying goes, since you're going to have an attitude you may as well make it an optimistic one. 

This article is partially excerpted from the Amazon best-selling personal development book Project You: Living A Determined Life, available in both paperback and Kindle formats.