Pessimism - It’s not all bad!
Hey all,
Hope you had a great week.
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Last week we spoke about the advantages of optimism. However, the question you may have, the question I had, was…isn’t pessimism useful sometimes?
When I was young I like this phrase:
“When you are a pessimist, you are either right or pleasantly surprised”
I didn’t realise that pessimism had a bad side. I thought that it was a good way to stay realistic. I thought it was useful.
Seligman looks into this.
There are times and places where we need pessimism. And, we all experience both optimism and pessimism. We wake up more depressed but become more optimistic as the day goes on.
During the daily periods of pessimism, we can see how it can play a constructive role in our lives. It pulls us back form risky exaggerations and saves us from rash gestures.
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However, we have an executive that balances the too. Like an umpire or a judge. It listens to the optimistic part and pessimistic part and decides which to listen to.
We can learn to choose optimism for the most part but also heed the warnings of pessimism when it is warranted.
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Have a think this week. Notice when you are pessimistic. Notice when you a optimistic. Is there a cycle?
There is a time and place for pessimism. We all experience both. Pessimism can warn us of rash decisions and risky exaggerations while optimism helps us to be creative and happy. When are you pessimistic? When are you optimistic? Do you use both to your advantage?
Enjoy your week.
