Learned Optimism-Written By Dede Henley

I’ll admit it.  I’ve been struggling with pessimism these past few months.  I’m having trouble thinking that things always turn out for the best in light of my daughter’s death.  So, I decided to try to learn a bit more about something I’ve always kind of taken for granted – optimism.

At its most basic, scientists believe, pessimism is an innate response to stress that was hardwired into prehistoric human brains as a survival mechanism.  The species survived and evolved because humans developed a “fight, flight, or freeze” response to any threat.  Those who did not develop this response were more likely to become victims of predators or other dangers.  The key to survival was remembering sounds and smells and events associated with danger.  

Most of us are no longer under threat from predators and yet, we still instinctively can come from the “fight, flight or freeze” mentality – looking for and imagining the worst that can happen.  It is time to evolve as leaders and to balance our automatic (and instinctive) thinking. 

Martin Seligman spent years researching optimism. In his book, “Learned Optimism,” he describes “Optimism” as the process of reacting to setbacks from a presumption of personal power:

• Bad events are temporary setbacks
• Bad events are Isolated to particular circumstances
• These can be overcome by my effort and abilities

Benefits of optimism include: inoculation against depression, improved health, and, when combined with talent and desire, optimism can enable achievement.

He describes “pessimism” as the process of reacting to setbacks from a presumption of personal helplessness:

• Bad events will last a long time
• Bad events will undermine everything I do
• They are my fault

Martin claims that optimism can be practiced and learned, even by those who have not consistently used them previously.   

An optimist sees a bad performance review as an opportunity for improvement.  He investigates what went wrong and takes action.  He doesn’t let it spill into the rest of her life, and he recovers more quickly from setbacks.  

And yet, in the domain of balance, pessimism has to be in the mix when you face risky decisions – a big investment, for example.  It’s the lens through which you see the ugly details in the scenario and explicitly look for the worst case.  One CEO shared that she looked to her CFO for pessimism; she knew she needed someone to help temper her strong optimism.  

I encourage you to notice your automatic thinking and challenge it, if it leads us down the path of “Bad events will last a long time; Bad events will undermine everything I do.  They are my fault.” 

It is possible to practice optimism and look for what’s working. It’s just a change of mind!