“The pessimist sees the difficulty in every opportunity; an optimist sees the opportunity in every difficulty”. – Winston Churchill

Optimists tend to earn more money. Economists at Duke University found that optimists even save more. And numerous studies link optimism to better health, relationships and happiness. Optimism, though, is often confused with “positive thinking” as in viewing everything with rose-tinted glasses, a bit Pollyanna-ish, no matter what the situation.

This is irrational optimism or, what I call, irritating optimism. We are hard-wired, though towards this optimism: for example, almost all of us believe ourselves to be in the top 20% of the population when it comes to driving or managing a business. Almost all of us are irrationally optimistic about our health and lifespan- all of us like to think that we will live long and healthy lives. We also hugely underestimate the likelihood of losing our job, getting divorced or getting cancer. In business, optimism can lead to unrealistic forecasts. This is all about our innate belief that the future can be better than the past, or even the present. But this optimistic bias can also inspire and protect us.

Neuroscientist Tali Sharot in “The Optimism Bias”^⁠ says we need to be able to imagine alternative realities and need to believe that we can achieve them. Such hope helps motivate us to pursue our goals, otherwise we might as well give up.

I still believe positive thinking has a lot to answer for though. There is a huge industry built on the back of it. Barbara Ehrenreich in her book “Smile or Die. How Positive Thinking Fooled America and the World”, states that positive thinking has become a cult in the US and that people are addicted to it. Putting on a happy face is the only way forward, no matter what the circumstances are. Any negative thoughts must be banished as they will lead to negative results. Books like “The Secret”, a huge bestseller worldwide contribute to this and feed into a vulnerable mindset that accepts that everything that happens to you is dictated by the “law of attraction”.^⁠ This then leads to irrational optimism (which, after all, is our natural bias anyway) where mindset is all that matters. This can actually be very dangerous. “The Secret” sells itself by promising that “Everything is possible. Nothing is impossible”. This sounds great, but the truth is we can’t change outcomes by thoughts and affirmations alone. And now, more than ever before, it is positive action which is what will help us. Rooted in our reality.

Psychology journalist Oliver Burkeman wants us all to start thinking more negatively. He believes society’s obsession with positivity is actually making most of us more unhappy. In his groundbreaking new book, “The Antidote” Burkeman draws on personal experiences and scientific research to introduce a new, refreshing way of thinking called ‘the negative path’. The negative path is all about embracing those feelings we’re taught to avoid – failure, pessimism, insecurity, uncertainty, anxiety. It’s not about feeling gloomy but instead seeing the bigger picture by being more realistic about happiness.

Some people say that they are neither an optimist or a pessimist but a realist. But both pessimists and optimists can make realistic assessments of a situation. It is far more about how you respond to that situation that defines you as an optimist. And to what extent you are able to take positive action to handle adversity and challenges.

So what kind of optimist are you?