If you want to live longer, be healthier, and be happy with your life, you could do worse than try to develop an optimistic outlook. It does not naturally or easily reach around 30% of the population, many of whom have an inherently pessimistic outlook.
Frederick Langbridge, writing his ‘A Quiet Group of Thoughts’ described how two people can share the same view but see different things:
“Two men look through the same bars: One sees the mud and the other the stars” also known as the principle of the glass half full or half empty.
In other words, you have two options: you can look up or you can look down. The optimist will see and describe the beauty of the stars above, while the pessimist will see the dirt road and rocks below.
In life, you are always given options. If you take a pessimistic view, you risk living a self-destructive life. Choose to take the optimistic point of view, and you can create a challenging and fulfilling future for yourself.
OK, what good is an optimistic point of view? And why should you want to change anyway?
Optimism is the natural state of positive mood and good morale. It is a route to academic, sports, military, occupational and political success; to personal popularity; to good health and even a long, stress-free life.
Unfortunately, today’s rates of depression and pessimism have never been higher. They are affecting both middle-aged adults and younger people. The average age of onset has gone from 30 to 15 years. It is no longer just a disorder of a middle-aged person, but is also increasingly becoming a disorder of adolescents.
So what would you expect to see in an optimist?
Optimists tend to expect positive outcomes or results from their actions.
The opposite is true of pessimists, who tend to expect the worst, which will last a long time and undermine everything they do. They also believe that it is their own fault.
When optimists face setbacks, the difference is in the way they explain their misfortune. They tend to believe that defeat is only temporary and that it is a unique situation.
They don’t affirm negativity with statements like “things will never get better,” they just quickly move on to the next thing and show better reactions to new or even difficult situations. If they fall over, they dust themselves off and get going again. An optimistic point of view is to see opportunities instead of problems.
Most people respond positively to an optimistic point of view.
Optimists are less dependent on others for their own happiness and being happier tends to attract people to them as they are easier to be around and their world view is more desirable than those who spread pessimism or negativity .
When the going gets tough, optimists know they’re up to the job.
Optimists generally maintain a higher level of subjective well-being in times of stress. They think positively and are less susceptible to self-pity. Pessimists, on the other hand, are likely to develop chronic illnesses or bouts of depression.
Optimists are healthier and live longer.
Medical research has shown that simple pleasures and a positive outlook can cause a measurable increase in the body’s ability to fight disease.
The health of optimists is usually good. They age well, being much less prone than most to the usual physical maladies of middle age. And they come to survive those prone to negative thoughts.
So isn’t it better to be optimistic today? And think positively toward a more fulfilling life—you’ll benefit in many different ways when you develop an optimistic outlook.
