The Pros of Being Life’s Optimist

Pros of Being Life’s Optimist. There is increasing evidence that being optimistic about life has measurable benefits, not just for your mental health, but your physical well-being too. Scientific studies have shown that as you become more optimistic, your life will improve in all sorts of ways. You are even likely to have a longer life, just from being more hopeful and positive.

Negative attitudes attract negative outcomes. Pessimist often expects things to go wrong and we human beings like to be proven right. Therefore, with negativity, our subconscious minds set us on a path that will ultimately provide our expected results.

Some of the Pros of Being Life’s Optimist include:

Optimists find it easier to bounce back from adversity

Falling and getting back up has been viewed as the process of learning and growing among many for generations. When we think of toddlers learning to walk, how many times do they fall before they really get steady on their feet?

We have all been toddlers and many of us have that same ability to bounce back and keep going when life gets us down. If we did not accept failure as children and carried on, where would we be today? As the oldest of ten grandchildren, I had the privilege of seeing many of my younger cousins learn to walk and now my own children. I can say with certainty that they all fall over at times but they have the determination to persevere. On each attempt, they get a bit closer to their goal.

Determination gets us up and optimism keeps us going!

Optimists are healthier

Optimists not only rate their own health and wellbeing as better, but studies have also shown that optimists have better mental and physical health than pessimists. In a study of the effects of positive psychological well-being, optimism was found to be the biggest predictor of improved heart health. Optimists also have lower blood pressure and cholesterol and a lower risk of developing heart disease.

Optimists live longer

The University of Pittsburgh conducted a study on 100,000 post-menopausal women age 50 and older, over a period of eight years. The results of the study found that optimists had a thirty per cent reduced risk, of dying from coronary heart disease, than women with a more pessimistic outlook. In the study, optimism was defined as the expectation that good, rather than bad, things will happen.

Those identified as more cynical were twenty-three per cent more likely to die from a cancer-related condition.

That was confirmed by a later Harvard study that showed the women who had a positive outlook had a much lower risk of dying from serious illnesses.

Life is hard enough without us living in fear of pending disaster all the time. It cannot be much fun if there is nothing much to look forward to in life. Negativity keeps us in a constant state of fear and it affects us mentally as well as physically.

Optimists are happier

Optimists are happier because they focus on the positives around them and face the future with the same outlook.  Being positive means that we send of good energy which attracts positive people and experiences. Therefore, it makes people measurably happier in their relationships, jobs, and life in general. They deal better with stress, are more resilient in bad times, and produce less cortisol, the stress hormone that leads to inflammation and a lowered immune system.

Optimists have smoother career paths

Researchers from Duke University found that the optimistic MBA graduates they studied were more likely to find a job, earn a higher starting salary, and have more frequent promotions than the pessimists in the group. Optimists also deal better with negative feedback, seeing it as an opportunity to improve and increase their chance of promotion in the future. Positive thinkers have a can-do attitude and therefore are better at dealing with challenges and will more than likely get better results. If an employer must choose between a person who is ready for challenges and a pessimist, who do you think they will choose for any promotion?

Optimists make better leaders in my opinion. They are better able to motivate people by highlighting positives in their performance, recognising potential and providing increased training opportunities.

Optimists tend to operate from a place of personal power

Life’s adversities do not crush an optimist; they remain hopeful about the future. Optimism helps you deal with whatever limiting beliefs you have developed and shows you a way out. Being positive about life’s possibilities means you focus on what you can do. It boosts your confidence and makes you more likely to look for constructive solutions.  You realise that you are the one driving the bus and therefore responsible for making things happen. If you put enough energy behind that belief, the results will eventually follow. Now that you have found out about some of the pros of being life’s optimist, try looking at all those positive things in your life to start on your journey.

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References

Dugas Rose A., 2009 ‘Healthy Outlook Women Who See the Glass as Half Full live Longer Pitt Study Finds’. Pitt Chronicle 04.09.2020 chronicle.pitt.edu

Duke Today Staff., 2011 ‘Study: Optimistic MBA Grads have better Career Prospects than Pessimist’. Duke Today. 04.09.2020. today.duke.edu

Feldscher k., 2016 ‘How the Power of Positive Thinking Works’. The Harvard Gazette. Harvard Chan School Communications.04.09.2020 news.harvard.edu

Links:

https://news.harvard.edu/gazette/story/2016/12/optistic-women-live-longer-are-healthier/

https://today.duke.edu/2011/01/optimistic_mba.html

https://www.chronicle.pitt.edu/story/healthy-outlook-women-who-see-glass-half-full-live-longer4