Oscar Wilde once defined a pessimist as “one who, when he has the choice of two evils, chooses both.”
I suppose, based on that definition, you could define an optimist as one who, when he has the choice of two evils, chooses neither.
What does this have to do with your business or job? Everything. Every day we are confronted with options - do we delegate or just do the job ourselves? Do we organize our space or invest time in marketing? Do we do what is urgent or what is important?
Sometimes these options conflict directly, other times, they conflict indirectly. Sometimes it’s a choice of one thing or the other and sometimes it’s a choice between many options.
How we make decisions is important. If we go into decision making situations with a pessimist’s attitude as Oscar Wilde defined the term, the consequence are significantly different than confronting options from the attitude of an optimist.
Think of how you make your decisions and see how you might improve those decisions, just for today. See what the long and short term effects are and make the necessary adjustments.
[...] wrote a post on the idea of an optimist vs. a pessimist. Here’s the [...]
Dear Mathew,
I came across your blog through the INSE network.
I just wanted to let you know that I liked your posts.
On this particular topic - Optimist vs. Pessimist - I wanted to share my own opinion — “Who is right an optimist or a pessimist? BOTH (since I believe one’s disposition shapes one’s future - Remember? one has a choice of response!)
Warm Regards,
Harsh
Thanks for the comments Harsh. That reminds me of the analogy of water in a glass. Is it half full, or half empty? The answer of course is both and neither. It’s always full, it’s just a matter of what it is full of - water and air.
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