Optimism over Pessimism – The #1 Reason to Think Positive
There are numerous reasons to practice optimism over pessimism. According to a series of studies from across the U.S. and Europe, there are at least 5.
- Optimist have lower blood pressure that pessimist, which leads to lower case of cardiovascular disease (i.e. less heart attacks)
- In times of need, optimist have more social support than pessimist
- Optimist get less viral infections than pessimist (i.e. boost immune system)
- Optimist have a 42% to 45% lower risk of death as they age
- When it comes to overcoming adversity, optimist are significantly more successful than pessimists and have better long term outcomes.
Those 5 reasons are already enough to convince anyone to practice optimism over pessimism. However, I believe the #1 reason is simply due to expectations. Being optimistic is to have positive expectations for the future. This is more powerful than it appears on the surface.
There is a fantastic quote from Henry Ford you’ve probably seen before that illustrates this point:
Whether you think you can or can’t you’re right.
This quote is not only about expectations, but it also provides a subtle hint to why optimism works. It’s the science of the placebo effect.
Optimism over Pessimism is a Placebo that Really Works
Regular people like you and me often think of placebos as “fake” medicine. However, the science and medical community know that placebos are anything but fake.
A placebo is defined as a medically inert substance or technique, which is administered like a drug. As the staple negative control in clinical trials, placebos play a critical role in modern medicine. The placebo effect refers to the well-documented phenomenon in which patients feel better after receiving a placebo. In other words, the mere thought that a treatment has been received causes a beneficial physical response.
Simply stated, placebo’s work because patients expect them to work. The mind does the healing, not the “sugar pill”. All of the many benefits of practicing optimism is a product of the mind as well. The expectations we create in our mind also create the reality we live. It’s literally a no brainier to choose optimism over pessimism when you see it this way.
Optimism is a belief system that gives your mind the ability to create expectations that bend reality in your favor. Knowing this, you would just have to be a gluten for punishment not to choose optimism over pessimism.