A Little Optimism Goes a Long Way

Bruce and I were competing in a musical talent contest. He had a band, and I was a solo guitarist performance. Bruce’s band won the contest, I was proud of him, but disappointed that I did not win. I could have just quit playing guitar and thrown in the towel (which crossed my mind) but I decided to carry on. As confirmation of my refusal to give up, I was approached to teach guitar at school, which I did.

I could have chosen to quit, but instead decided to commit to keep going forward, and received reward for my decision to do so.

Later in life, Bruce and I played in a band together for a while, until our lives took different paths. We’re still acquainted, thanks to Facebook. Good times.

When faced with any quandary, generally there are at least two vantage points to approach any situation from; either the perspective of the pessimist or the optimist.

In general, if you can approach life from the perspective of the optimist, there’s a far greater chance that you will more easily live a better life, potentially your best life, and maybe even desire to contribute to the greater good and make the world a better place.

Why might you want to look at the bright side of life often, if not all ways?

There are many benefits from having your default setting set at “Optimistic,” such as reduced stress, lower blood pressure, more often in a good mood, and have a heightened level of performance in any endeavors with more ease than your pessimistic peers who will find themselves working harder to keep up. (Just saying.)

I hate to be the bearer of bad news, but optimists are now being overrun by pessimists as their numbers begin to grow. If you are basically optimistic (not 100% of the time but more often than not) then you are definitely in the minority.

And who could blame anyone in this day and age for being unable to see the bright side of anything? What with having to put up with a constant barrage of negative media pounding you down every day, and that’s completely separate from the attitudes of others who just fail to have compassion or the willingness to create a real connection with others.

In general, our relationships suck, and no one is too terribly surprised when they find themselves stabbed in the back by someone, they thought they could trust. Integrity is just not fashionable anymore. Then there’s disrespect, abuse, broken dreams, and promises. If all that doesn’t beat the optimist out of you, it’s a miracle.

This pessimism promotes depression exponentially, and it affecting us at earlier and earlier ages. It wasn’t that long ago that adult onset depression would commonly develop in adults in their thirties. Now our children are suffering from depression more predominantly at about age fifteen.

Pessimism, it’s associated depression, drama, and trauma is causing our culture to erode.

A little optimism goes a long way in living a better life, your best life, and filling your life with such an exuberant quality of life, you may very well be inclined to want to make a positive contribution to your family, friends, the community, or even the world at large.

Why? Because you “feel good,” and that good feeling is contagious and makes you want to give it to others.

As much as you wish you could give the gift of looking at the bright side, or the blessing in any given situation (even the really bad ones), it’s generally not possible because pessimists just think you’re cazy and living in a fantasy world.

But for those who have chosen to make the transition from pessimist to optimist (and it happens), their lives have changed dramatically (even if their peers do think they are a little whacko).

What can you expect as am optimistic individual?

Well, first off, you have a general expectation that good things are always happening; and so, they do. Onlooking pessimists will observe the happy go lucky optimist encounter tragedy, to find them coming out of a potentially crippling episode in life with little more than a scratch, smelling like a rose.

The pessimist might just think that the optimist was lucky (or might secretly be hoping that they suffer appropriately the next time they encounter hardship). When the truth is, the optimist created the outcome from their own positive thoughts.

The same is true for the pessimist, as his or her thoughts determine the outcome of the challenges they face in life. If they have a generally negative vibration or thought process, this spins every potential scenario in a negative direction, even the good things in life tend to go haywire, and that deepens their depression, as they seek solace in withdrawal from society so as to protect themselves from further risk of more bad news.

Once kicked off the horse, an optimist is more likely to get right back on, knowing that the worst is over, and it can get better, while the pessimist will vow to never look at another horse again.

Rather than accept the role of “victim” by admitting defeat, an optimist will look for the lesson, the hidden secret, the blessing of any negative situation, and see a divine, sacred synergy in all things, and be grateful for the experience. They are far less likely to give up.

If you are of the optimistic persuasion, you celebrate the wins of others, you encourage and edify them. There’s no underlying jealousy, or one-upmanship going on behind the scenes, you really do like to see others shine and enjoy sharing these moments with others. Pessimists are more likely to “have an angle” and feel as though they must control or manipulate situations or others to get ahead.

Unsupported optimists don’t need the feedback from others to make them feel good, they find their good feelings within their own center of gravity.

Fortitude and stick-to-itiveness are attributes you find showing up in optimists as they encounter challenges in life. They have an increased stamina by wielding their own economy of energy, exerting only the amount of force necessary to keep enough momentum to carry them from here to there.

Stress is the battleground of the pessimist, while the optimist has more of a tendency to go with the flow, using the current to their advantage. Pessimists are more likely to struggle and fight against the current.

Good health, a more youthful appearance, attitude, and longevity are the rewards of an optimistic lifestyle. Being in a state of happiness or gratitude boosts one’s immune system, while fear, anxiety, frustration, suspicion, paranoia, jealousy, hurt feelings, and a vengeful heart deplete one’s immune system.

Maybe you might like to join the ranks of the optimists?

Or not.

No one would blame you for not wanting to.

Just know this: You are love, and there is far more goodness waiting to come to you.

 

Shiny Happy People How to be one

There are some people who live the most amazing lives. shiny happy people get up every morning to a bright, new day, full of magical opportunities as if every day is a perfectly wrapped gift with a bow just waiting to be opened and enjoyed. Many of the happiest successful people start their days, like this, and they don’t let up, keeping that sense of childlike awe and wonder as they progress through the day.

If life’s not turning out as you thought it might, and you’re feeling down, lonely, betrayed, victimized, unworthy, and/or worthless, not to fear. You can have a more optimistic and fulfilling life and journey ahead, all it takes is a little hacking to reprogram your life and get onto a track that will take you where you want to go.

Some purposeful redirection of your thoughts and energy, looking for the things that you desire from life and expecting them to appear, unfolding in their natural way (not necessarily like you thought they might), the way that it best for you and your journey, and suddenly your starting to climb back into the driver’s seat of your life.

Just thinking about the good things in life releases endorphins which make you feel better and can help pull you out of a slump. See? You’re already making progress.

Shiny Happy People: How to be one

Scientists who study the characteristics of shiny happy people and learning about how to be one are understanding that it doesn’t take much effort to shift your vibration enough to significantly and demonstrably change your mind and your life by hacking the computer which runs your life, your brain.

By studying shiny happy people, they way they look at life and integrate with it, we can learn the steps necessary to achieve the dramatic shift and actually start to enjoy life, living among the shiny happy people as one of them, and it starts with changing the way you look at life, them how you feel about it.

Looking for good things, and avoid ruminating on bad things, is a key activity of shiny happy people. There is a synergy which kicks in which brings to your life more of that which you focus on. Therefore, if you are focused on things that are not going well with the world, you will attract more of those types of things in your life. If you focus on the good things in life, and the world, you attract even more of these things, like a magnet.

Shiny happy people are optimistic promoters of good and have a desire to see an even better world tomorrow and for the generations to come.

The most successful and happiest people in the world aren’t just thinking about it, they’re doing something. The something they do doesn’t have to be enormous, in fact, it can be minute, but it all has a cumulative effect on the world as the efforts of all shiny happy people create a wave which changes the world energetically. This positive energy infiltrates all areas of life on this planet and makes the world a better place, leading the human race through a positively expanding form of evolution for an even better world.

Challenges and obstacles will often interrupt the lives of the shiny happy people. Just because they are more optimistic than their peers doesn’t mean their lives are free from problems or trouble. The difference is, what they do about it.

They apply their optimistic outlook to anything which presents itself as a challenge. If something goes wrong, if they’ve made a mistake, or something didn’t turn out like they planned, of course, they are disappointed, but as quickly as possible, they try to look for the good, extract knowledge, learning from the experience, and taking that experience and learning into the future with them.

So, if you know what you want, what makes you feel good, and you spend time focusing on that, the happier you will be, and you will start to shine.

It’s all about how you look at things, how you see and think about everything frames your life. You wrap it up beautifully and tie it up with a pretty bow, and admire its beauty and magnificence.

Although it might sound like living in fantasy land, shiny happy people are very practical, down to earth people, who are clever, practical, and purposefully control their minds, their thoughts, and their feelings.

They are more motivated than their peer to take action, and they don’t depend on exterior circumstances to make them feel motivated to do something. They look within themselves for motivation, make plans and execute them to the best of their ability.

They do not isolate themselves. They interact with others, are congenial, and find opportunities and ways to network with others (even if it is contrary to their individual personality type). They also create their own support networks, building strong relationships with a core group of often like-minded individuals, who they can share reciprocal common bond and trust.

Shiny happy people are confident in their ability to find provision for all their needs from within, and they are strong and wise enough to reach out and ask for help if they need it. Their high self-esteem and personal confidence are what adds the sheen to their shine.

Their positive outlook also encourages them to look after themselves, as they are more apt to find ways to get the proper nourishment, exercise, and rest necessary to maintain a healthy body and outlook on life, staving off fatigue and depression which might be rooted in physiological decline, or lack of maintenance.

Choose to be a shiny happy person

Happiness is a choice. By choosing to adopt the lifestyle of shiny happy people, you, too, become a shiny happy person, affecting both you and the world for a brighter future.

Blessings await all who join the ranks of the shiny happy people. All the best things in life are already there, waiting for you to join them on your new happy shining journey.

Start today with a smile. Get out in public and smile, even if you don’t feel like it, and see how the world smiles back at you. How shiny you are…

You are headed in the right direction, keep going.

The more you do it, the happier you will feel, and your world will change with you.

Look at the Bright Side

Probably the most annoying trait of the optimist is optimism; the ability to see the good in even the most desperate of circumstances.

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While humanity is programmed to remain in a state of fear, lack, discomfort and confusion, there are a few people who have either pushed beyond the programming or are born with an innate instinct to see the goodness, or at least the possibility of goodness, in anything that appears to be dismal.

So uncommon is it in our society that optimists are ridiculed, bullied and made fun of throughout their tenure from the playground to the boardroom.

The effect of bad news is to “keep you down,” to keep the population so confused, angry, sad or depressed that it is improbable that one might seek solution for problems or to retain hope of a better world.

The special ability (or superpower) of the optimist is to see things from a broader perspective. While a particular scene may be absolutely dire, the view of the optimist can zoom out to as wide a view as may be necessary to see how this particular incident plays a significant part of a positive and uplifting outcome; a result that may have not been possible at all if not for this lackluster or even horrific episode.

In no way does this make light of the specific atrocity that consumes the attention and energy of the short-sighted individual who is intensely focused on the atrocity. Even the optimist is emotionally impacted by the event as any normal person would be.

The optimist knows that it is always darkest before the dawn and the light of a new day shed upon the landscape reveals even more than the day before because we do not exist within a timeless vacuum.

Growth necessitates change and change often comes from less than desirable circumstances. If there were no conflict, no confusion, no pain or suffering, there would be no growth, no change and no life.

Abraham Lincoln is credited as saying, “The optimist sees the opportunity in every difficulty,” this coming from a man who persisted in the worst of circumstances through difficult times and overcoming his personal shortcomings and not being thwarted by failure to become one of the most impactful Presidents of the United States.

It is this ability to visualize the big picture, a brighter future that helps the individual push-through the ugliness and despair to change – not only their individual circumstances – but the world for the better. It is a common trait amongst positive risk takers and change makers who inspire the rest of us to consider there might be hope in an otherwise dark future with ominous fearful overtones.

Nonetheless, if the past is any indication, things do get better. Our humanity has gone through tremendous growth, change and advancement to get us to where we are today. Even in just the last hundred years, we have progressed so much it is nearly unfathomable when compared to the rest of our existence. This alone, should forecast a brighter future, even in light of all the negative press and media.

Even in our darkest moments, our future is spectacular and those leading in love are the light bearers leading the way to a brighter day.