The Power of Optimism

By Larry Dossey

Even if you weren’t born with a sunny outlook, this pioneer in mind/body medicine argues that you can easily cultivate one

Years ago,while I was finishing my premed studies, I developed an acute pain in my abdomen. I reported to the student health center, where they scheduled me for an immediate appendectomy. Hours later, I awoke
in severe pain, alone, and worried. Then something quite ordinary happened. A nurse appeared, held my hand, and simply said, “Don’t worry, Larry. Everything is going to be just fine.” As she stood there, the pain vanished, along with my anxiety. Fear gave way to optimism that I’d make a quick recovery—and I did. 

There’s no way around it: Whether it bubbles up naturally or is coaxed into materializing by another’s thoughtful gesture, our outlook on life shapes our well-being. Optimism means having faith that things will turn out well in a given situation—and often, they do. But even when they don’t, a positive disposition leads us to find the gifts that are hidden in any difficult challenge. By viewing the glass half-full instead of half-empty, as the cliché goes,we reap tangible rewards: Studies have shown that joyful types are more likely to lead longer, healthier lives than those who expect the worst.

In making an effort to cultivate optimism, we are “optimized,” or made capable of being and functioning at our best. It doesn’t matter whether or not you came into this world with a sunny outlook. You can foster upbeat thinking by shining the light on the positive at every turn. Practice optimism, using the following steps—and enjoy the happy consequences.

+Focus on the big picture. We’re blessed. We live in a modern democracy with the attendant rights and privileges. Most of us are well fed, clothed, sheltered, and protected. Our daily luxuries—clean water, air-conditioning, indoor plumbing, safe food—have become so commonplace that we cease to notice them. In the name of optimism, we should wake up to our abundance. Doing so will help gratitude arise as a natural response to being alive at our place in human history.

+Connect. Pessimists often make unpleasant company, and solitude leads to more pessimism. When you purposefully interact with others, you break the cycle of gloom and create an opening for optimism to take root. But choose your friends carefully—feelings are contagious. Want to be depressed? Hang out with depressives. Want to be happy? Make friends with happy people. Since both pessimism and optimism are catching, you’re more likely to feel optimistic if you surround yourself with optimists.

+Read about optimists. What makes them tick? Where do they get hope in hard times? I like Jon Meacham's Franklin and Winston, an exploration of the friendship between two of the 20th century’s greatest optimists, Roosevelt and Churchill. Explore the lives of well-known optimists, and you’ll start to see how an invisible feeling can transform into visible deeds and accomplishments.