Optimism: A Curse?

[ImNotMyIllness]

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[akala]

I think it's helpful, when you can't do anything about something, then you can be optimistic about it instead of worrying over it, some things are out of our control, but some things aren't i think. because you can always help yourself with SA and Depression.

 

[Liliford_]

I don't think Optimism is necessarily a curse, the same way I don't think Pessimism is a curse. Having a balance between the two, generally would be best (Easier said than done, I know).

 

[lonelee1]

gahh, optimism. it's so hard to stay in a positive mindset for me. i can start out a day actually believing in life and myself and then it's a hostile takeover. maybe if it helps to see negativity as something else. like..bees to a beehive or something. that's how i feel. thoughts-anxiety-depression. its a really horrible cycle.

i try not to get grandiose about being optimistic in case this happens. and i read somewhere that positive affirmations might not necessarily be helpful for these disorders.

so i rearrange my idea about it: things can get better with work.

 

[ImNotMyIllness]

so i rearrange my idea about it: things can get better with work.

Good point. Optimism without work and a realistic plan is futile.

 

[KiaKaha]

I wouldn't say it is a curse - but I do feel that it is not a particularly sensible way of thinking. Balance is key - realistic thinking and not being afraid to acknowledge that bad things actually happen is important.

 

[GraybeardGhost]

"It was inevitable . . ."

Ten years, twenty years ago, even twenty-five, I should have known where I would be today. The die was cast. The tea leaves showed a hermit in a cardboard cave: alone, afraid, bogged down in a mire of apathy and despair. I was asocial even then, a drunk, without focus or ambition. I, too, expected things to work out by themselves—to some extent, I still do—but I wouldn't call that optimism. I'd call it naiveté.

Optimism is neither curse nor cure. It is not the cause of our problems, and it cannot solve them. All it can do is give us hope that we may—and with which we may—one day escape our self-built prison cells. Optimism unlocks the door; pessimism throws away the key. Once the latch is sprung, the rest is up to us.

 

[coyote]

i'm neither an optimist nor a pessimist

it doesn't matter if the glass is half empty or half full

what matters is that you can knock it off the head of a charging rhinoceros with a banana

i guess you could call me a surrealist

 

[ImNotMyIllness]

"It was inevitable . . ."

Ten years, twenty years ago, even twenty-five, I should have known where I would be today. The die was cast. The tea leaves showed a hermit in a cardboard cave: alone, afraid, bogged down in a mire of apathy and despair. I was asocial even then, a drunk, without focus or ambition. I, too, expected things to work out by themselves—to some extent, I still do—but I wouldn't call that optimism. I'd call it naiveté.

Optimism is neither curse nor cure. It is not the cause of our problems, and it cannot solve them. All it can do is give us hope that we may—and with which we may—one day escape our self-built prison cells. Optimism unlocks the door; pessimism throws away the key. Once the latch is sprung, the rest is up to us.

Well Said!

 

[SilentAndShy]

I wouldn't say it was a curse but something that I tend to keep contained but find it difficult to do.

I recently applied for a job that I really want but competition will be huge and the job is located in a big city. I don't see myself getting it compared to other people but my optimism or day dreaming if you call it that is already thinking ahead of the interview, what will I do if I get the job etc. Optimism can be good, like someone said, if you have a plan.

 

[squidgee]

I don't think being optimistic all the time won't do you much good, especially when you don't have a course of action. Bad things inevitably happen sometimes and being optimistic in times like those just seems like you're lying to yourself or giving yourself a false sense of hope.

I don't consider myself to be an optimist or a pessimist, I'm probably somewhere in the middle, probably leaning towards the pessimistic side a little. Like KiaKaha said, I also think realistic thinking is key.

 

[gustavofring]

I think optimism is an important key in being able to recover from setbacks and defeat. Otherwise, we will want to give up every time things go bad.

But of course, like has been said, realism and the willingness to work are important too. Balance.

 

[mikebird]

I started life with a 50-year-old retired mum who liked my blue eyes, and said I would be Jesus one day, because she like Superman and got me dressed up like that because she loved her kind second son of three and argued with dad all the time. My school told us all we were special. Mum pulled me out of a big gathering for a pupil's birthday party, when I cried about the excitement.

I was desperate to leave home when I was 17

My attitude started optimistic. Just a few life lessons showed me reality. I adopted a frown and cursing, critical outlook when I didn't get what I wanted.

I've got deeper into that. My intentions are always pleasant. I go out of my way to do anything for anyone. One stab / poke, and I build up a pot of boiling blood, and keep it sealed, with an exhaust valve ready

My recent black hole of interview this week, very similar to venting my horror to my parents, whenever I don't get what I want

 

[theslowesthand]

Optimism is neither curse nor cure. It is not the cause of our problems, and it cannot solve them. All it can do is give us hope that we may—and with which we may—one day escape our self-built prison cells. Optimism unlocks the door; pessimism throws away the key. Once the latch is sprung, the rest is up to us

Yes, very well put.
But i wonder what it is that gets us to go THROUGH that door???.
I guess, breaking it down further, one could say that knowledge is the key itself. And the door or doorway is the "portal" to unlimited possibilities & potential. This reminds me of a sequential list of things that a person needs to go through to succeed .. is quite similar to what i've just written .. i'll have to see if i can locate it...


I am eternally optimistic about certain things, completely pessimistic about others. And the things i am optimistic about, i still have significant doubts or reservations, in the back of my mind, so it's more a "doubtful optimism", certainly not "blind" optimism.

 

[Silatuyok]

i'm neither an optimist nor a pessimist

it doesn't matter if the glass is half empty or half full

what matters is that you can knock it off the head of a charging rhinoceros with a banana

i guess you could call me a surrealist

Well, I laughed.

 

[coyote]

Well, I laughed.

you win the mesh umbrella!

 

[cowboyup]

this is a pretty good article:

Is optimism really good for you? - CNN.com


that being, uh, said, "The Secret" was going around a few years back and I got caught up in it. I knew people who didn't start their day without listening to "The Secret" and put up post-its in their house/work to remind them to stay positive and optimistic.

I've settled down since then. lol

I think, in 'real life' one has to find a balance of positive/negative and be realistic about things as well. Kind of take the good with the bad and make a nice drinky drink in my sippy cup....hehe

balance...yeah, well it's easier said than done but I hear it can be done...

 

[ImNotMyIllness]

this is a pretty good article:

Is optimism really good for you? - CNN.com


that being, uh, said, "The Secret" was going around a few years back and I got caught up in it. I knew people who didn't start their day without listening to "The Secret" and put up post-its in their house/work to remind them to stay positive and optimistic.

I've settled down since then. lol

I think, in 'real life' one has to find a balance of positive/negative and be realistic about things as well. Kind of take the good with the bad and make a nice drinky drink in my sippy cup....hehe

balance...yeah, well it's easier said than done but I hear it can be done...

I can go for a drinky drink right about now. lol

 

[cowboyup]

I can go for a drinky drink right about now. lol

LOL, tell me about it!

 

[MikeyC]

What's wrong with optimism? Trying to make the best of any situation can't be a bad thing, and it can reduce stress, keep you happy, and increase motivation.

Of course, some realism has to come into it. It's okay to be optimistic about winning big in lotto, but you have to acknowledge that, really, the chances are slim that you will win anything. As long as you don't break that threshold, optimism is a great trait.