The picture shows a slide I used during a presentation in 2017. Back then and still today, I described myself as a die-hard optimistic.
My understanding of optimism was “focusing so much on the good that could happen, as I simultaneously ignore the bad or evil that not only surrounds but sometimes envelops me.” That has been one of the biggest mistakes in my adult life.
Through the past few years, I have made a series of bad decisions that I could have avoided had I understood better what true optimism is. Oxford Dictionaries defines optimism as “hopefulness and confidence about the future or the successful outcome of something”. I have lived with that definition of optimism, literally.
Taking a step back and through personal experience, an optimist should not only have hope and confidence about the future, but also anticipate, prepare for and consciously take actions to ensure that the worst doesn’t happen. I had always neglected that second aspect of the equation, at great costs sometimes.
One of the reasons why I am grateful to be alive is that every single day, we have a renewed opportunity to make a different set of choices. I am glad that with hindsight, I am able to see things better, make better decisions, and become a better “die-hard optimist.”
We live and learn. What is one thing you’ve learned recently about yourself?