Bringing Balance to Life: The Power of Optimism

A fishing guide once said that catching a trout depends more on who's holding the pole than the bait that's on the hook. "Optimists catch more fish," he said. "They believe they're going to catch 'em and they catch 'em."

Optimism helps athletes. Swimmers were given a psychological test that measured attitude. Those who scored high on optimism performed better after a defeat. Swimmers who scored low on optimism performed worse after a defeat.

Optimism helps students. Psychologists gave col­lege freshmen tests to measure optimism. Four years later, the psychologists found that optimism predicted college grades better than SAT scores or high-school grades.

Optimism helps sales people. Optimistic sales people sell almost forty per­cent more product than pessimists sell. Three quarters of insurance salesmen quit in their first three years. Guess what? Pessimists quit twice as often as optimists. MetLife Insurance executives hired a special group of applicants who failed the normal screening tests, but scored high on optimism. The first year on the job the "dumb" optimists sold 21% more insurance than 'the "smart" pessimists. The second year, the optimists sold 57% more insurance than the pessimists. "Dumb" opti­mists sell more insurance than "smart" pessimists.

Optimism can be learned! Increase your belief in several areas of your life:

• Believe in a God who gives strength for the task ahead: Be strong and courageous. Do not be terrified; do not be discouraged, for the Lord your God will be with you wherever you go. 
• Believe in a country that gives you the freedom to develop your talents.
• Believe in a free-enterprise system that provides you a method to succeed.
• Visualize success. In your mind's eye paint a vivid picture of yourself succeeding.
• Feel in advance what it would feel like when you succeed.
• Assume a confident posture: Stand tall, head erect, eager gaze. 
• Believe in positive action.
• Nothing builds optimism more than action. 
• Act and learn from your actions.
• Succeed by taking little baby steps toward success. 
• Each successful attempt teaches you how to improve. 
• Your optimism soars every time you improve on what you learn.