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“Worrying is thinking negative thoughts about things that are outside of your control.”
-Mel Robbin
The title of today’s post may seem oxymoronic or counterintuitive. Worrying by definition is a negative trait so how can it be optimistic?
Let me elaborate.
TODAY OUR DAILY WISDOM WORD IS SPARKLE. WHEN WE THINK OF SPARKLE, WE OFTEN THINK OF BLING. WE THINK ABOUT SOMETHING BRIGHT AND SHINY HOWEVER, THERE ARE PEOPLE THAT CAN ALSO SPARKLE.
I LOOK AT SPARKLE AS THE SHINE ONE HAS WHEN INTERACTING WITH OTHERS. HAVE YOU EVER MET SOMEONE THAT HAS “SPARKLE” AS PART OF THEIR PERSONALITY? THERE IS SOMETHING ABOUT THEM THAT DRAWS YOU TO THEM. THEY HAVE WHAT I REFER TO AS THE PERSONALITY OF ONE WHO SPARKLES OR SHINES. IT TAKES MORE THAN CHARISMA TO SPARKLE.
I BELIEVE WHEN WE HAVE CHARISMA WE HAVE A PERSONALITY THAT IS MAGNETIC. I BELIEVE THAT WHEN WE HAVE SPARKLE, OUR SOUL SHINES. SPARKLE, AS I CALL IT, COMES WHEN YOU ARE HAPPY WITH YOURSELF. IT IS SOMETHING WE OFTEN AREN’T AWARE OF, BECAUSE MOST PEOPLE AREN’T TRULY HAPPY. WHEN WE SEE THOSE THAT SPARKLE, THEY ARE NOT JUST HAPPY IN THE MOMENT. THEY ARE HAPPY DESPITE UPS AND DOWNS. TRUE HAPPINESS SHINES LIKE A BEACON IN THE NIGHT, LIGHTING A PATH FOR OTHERS, SHINING FROM THEIR BEING. THIS IS THE DEFINITION I THINK OF WHEN ONE SPARKLES. THEIR HAPPINESS SHINES FROM WITHIN. THERE IS PROBABLY ONE TO TWO PEOPLE I HAVE MET OVER A LIFETIME THAT TRULY SHINES OR SPARKLES.
THEY ARE THE ONES, DESPITE A RAINY DAY AND DREARY CLOUDS, WHO ARE HAPPY. FOR THEM, THERE ARE NO BAD DAYS. THERE ARE DAYS HOWEVER, THAT ARE FILLED WITH BAD EVENTS, BUT THAT IS WHEN ONE WHO HAS SPARKLE SHINES THE MOST. THEY REACH OUT TO HELP OTHERS AND IT IS WITH THAT SPARKLE, THEY CAN HELP OTHERS WHEN THE DARKEST OF DAYS DAWN AS WE CONTINUE TO SEE IN THE PANDEMIC.
THERE ARE SIMPLY THOSE THAT HAVE THE ABILITY TO STAY GROUNDED WITH GREAT DISPOSITION DESPITE WHAT GOES ON AROUND THEM. THESE ARE THE INDIVIDUALS THAT TRULY SHINE. THEY ARE THE ETERNAL OPTIMISTS FROM THE SOUL AND WILL ALWAYS “SPARKLE” DESPITE CIRCUMSTANCES, LIFE EVENTS OR TRAGEDY. DO THEY EXPERIENCE SADNESS WE MAY ASK? YES, BUT IT IS IN THEIR PERCEPTION WHAT MAKES THEM DIFFERENT. THEY SHINE EVEN WHEN TRAGEDY STRIKES. THEY HAVE THE STRANGE QUALITY OF SEEING THE HOPE IN WHAT APPEARS AS A HOPELESS SITUATION. THEY CAN LITERALLY LIGHT ANOTHER’S INTERNAL CANDLE BY HELPING THEM SEE LIGHT IN THE DARKEST OF DAYS. THANKS SO MUCH FOR READING TODAY.
SAMANTHA LEBOEUF/DAILYWISDOMWORDS.COM
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“Before you ‘assume’, try this crazy method called asking.”
-Unknown
The year is 2000. I’m in high school. The bell has rung and I’m about to go from choir class to Spanish class. Spanish class has two textbooks which my teacher, Mr. Brown, uses interchangeably. Unfortunately, I’m not sure which one is needed for that particular day. Perhaps Mr. Brown had mentioned it the day before and perhaps he hadn’t. I can’t remember.
“Success isn’t always about greatness. It’s about consistency.”
-Dwayne “The Rock” Johnson
How did I go from feeling very optimistic to desolate to optimistic again?
“Future endeavors with superstitions attached to them have the same probability of coming to fruition that anything else does. Either they’ll come to fruition or they won’t. Had they been anything more or less, the world would be a much different place.”
-Excerpt from upcoming short story “Howl of Freedom” by Angie Verhoeven
Are you superstitious?
“Patience is not the ability to wait, but the ability to keep a good attitude.”
-Joyce Meyer
In a previous post I had talked about the importance of being patient and how what’s meant to be yours will eventually come to you even if it’s later than expected.
“There is no failure except in no longer trying.”
-Elbert Hubbard
Imagine this scenario: You’re working on a specific project or endeavor and nothing seems to be going right. Every plan, no matter how analytical when conceived, falls apart. You try and try and try and there’s no hope in sight. In short, you feel you have no option left but to give up.
OPTIMISTS IS OUR DAILY WISDOM WORD TODAY. BEING AN OPTIMIST, OR A PERSON WITH A POSITIVE ATTITUDE ABOUT MOST THINGS, IS SUCH A PLUS IN LIFE. IT IS FAIRLY COMMON TO BE OPTIMISTIC WHEN YOU ARE YOUNG. HOWEVER, AS LIFE PLAYS OUT, AND TOUGH TIMES HAPPEN, IT IS NOT QUITE AS EASY TO BE AN ETERNAL OPTIMIST. BEFORE GOING ANY FURTHER, LET US TAKE A LOOK AT THE MEANING OF OPTIMIST FROM OUR WEBSTER DICTIONARY AND OUR DAILY WISDOM WORDS MEANING.
OPTIMIST-A PERSON WHO TENDS TO BE CONFIDENT AND OPTIMISTIC ABOUT THE FUTURE.
DAILY WISDOM WORDS DEFINITION-A PERSON THAT SEES A GLASS OF WATER HALF-FULL INSTEAD OF HALF EMPTY.
OPTIMISTS ARE RARE, IN MY OPINION, ESPECIALLY AS THEY BECOME OLDER AND LIVE THROUGH TRAGEDIES IN THEIR LIFE. SOME PEOPLE HOWEVER, DON’T ONLY HAVE OPTIMISM AS ONE OF THEIR PERSONALITY TRAITS, THEY LEARN TO PRACTICE IT. THIS CONTINUES TO KEEP THEM OPTIMISTIC. WHEN A PERSON PRACTICES OPTIMISM, THEY DO THINGS LIKE AFFIRMATIONS, AND POSITIVITY. THEY FIND THE JOY IN THE LITTLE MOMENTS NOT ONLY BECAUSE THEY ARE THERE, BUT BECAUSE THEY ALSO SEARCH FOR THIS GOOD MOMENT. THEY GET THROUGH THE HARD TIMES, TAKING THE LESSON WITH THEM AND LEAVING BEHIND PAIN.
I BELIEVE THAT IN ORDER TO BE ABLE TO BE AN “ETERNAL OPTIMIST”, ONE MUST HAVE A PREDETERMINED DISPOSITION FOR THIS ATTITUDE. HOWEVER, TO SUSTAIN A POSITIVE ATTITUDE, THEY MUST ALSO PRACTICE IT. THIS IS WHAT CREATES AN ETERNAL OPTIMIST.
I NEED TO BE HONEST ABOUT MYSELF AS THIS MAY GIVE ME CREDIBILITY. I SUFFER WITH DEPRESSION. SOMETIMES, I CAN SEE THE OPTIMISM IN ANY SITUATION, AND SOMETIMES I ALSO VIEW OPTIMISM AS THE FURTHEST THING AWAY FROM ME AND FEEL I AM IN A WORLD THAT IS BLACK. OVERCOMING THESE HARD TIMES, REQUIRES FOR ME, TIME TO DEVELOP A DIFFERENT ATTITUDE. I HAVE TO GO THROUGH THE DARKNESS TO SEE THE LIGHT.
IF I HAD ONE QUALITY I COULD PICK AS A PERSONALITY TRAIT, IT WOULD BE A PREDISPOSITION FOR OPTIMISM. I HAVE SUFFERED WITH THE DEPRESSION SINCE I WAS A CHILD. FORTUNATELY, I AM NOT ALWAYS DEPRESSED. I NEED TO RESUME WORKING OUT. EXERCISE PRODUCES ENDORPHINS WHICH COUNTERACTS THE DEPRESSION. ENOUGH ABOUT MY ISSUES, AND MORE WRITING ABOUT OPTIMISM ABOUT OPTIMISTS.
OPTIMISTS FIND SOMETHING WONDERFUL IN EVERY SITUATION, EITHER GOOD OR BAD. IF THEY LOSE SOMEONE, THEY FOCUS ON THE MEMORIES AND LOVE THEY HAD WITH THEM. THEY ARE ABLE TO MORE FORWARD TAKING A LESSON LEARNED FROM THEM FORWARD, AND LEAVING THE DEATH BEHIND. THEY MANAGE TO HEAL WITH THE MEMORIES AND LOVE THEY HAD WITH THEM WHILE THEY WERE ALIVE. I PICKED AN EXTREME EXAMPLE, BUT STILL VERY TRUE. A NORMAL PERSON MAY SUFFER WITH “SITUATIONAL DEPRESSION”. SITUATIONAL DEPRESSION PASSES IN APPROXIMATELY SIX MONTHS WITH MOST PEOPLE. THEY ARE THEN ABLE TO TAKE THE NEXT STEP WHICH IS THE FIRST STEP AN ETERNAL OPTIMIST TAKES.
HOW CAN WE BE INDIVIDUALS WHO ARE OPTIMISTIC MORE OF THE TIME, INSTEAD OF PESSIMISTIC OR DEPRESSED. I SHARED MY DEPRESSION WITH YOU IN HOPES YOU WOULD TAKE MY SUGGESTIONS SERIOUSLY. WHEN YOU ARE DEPRESSED SOME OF THE TIME, THERE ARE WAYS THAT DON’T INCLUDE MEDICATION, (ALTHOUGH I HAVE CHOSEN TO BE ON AN ANTIDEPRESSANT), THERE ARE ADDITIONAL WAYS THAT DON’T INVOLVE MEDICINE.
IF YOU DON’T SUFFER FROM DEPRESSION, IT MAY BE EASIER TO TRY THE ABOVE SUGGESTIONS BECAUSE DEPRESSION MAKES IT DIFFICULT TO BEGIN THESE TASKS AND PULL OUT OF THAT BLACKNESS TO TRY THEM. THAT DOESN’T MEAN IT IS HOPELESS. THERE ARE SUPPORT GROUPS, COUNSELING, AND OF COURSE MEDICATION THAT CAN HELP WITH THE BLACKNESS MAKING IT EASIER TO TRY THEM.
THANKS SO MUCH FOR READING ABOUT OPTIMISTS TODAY. HAVE A BEAUTIFUL AND BLESSED DAY.
SAMANTHA LEBOEUF/DWW
OTHER DAILY WISDOM WORDS YOU MAY LIKE: http://dailywisdomwords.com/daily-wisdom-words/loneliness-2/
It’s the repetition of affirmations that lead to belief. And once that belief becomes a strong conviction, things begin to happen.
-Claude M. Bristol
Sometime last year, I had written a post on self-affirmations. At that time, my posts were still relatively short and brief. With a universal lock-down in place, I have found myself drawing closer to this subject after moving away from it for a while. Hence, I am re-posting part of that article but with new and relevant information and also, my reasons for losing faith in this topic but ultimately coming back to it.
“Look on the bright side, then make it brighter.”
-Unknown
With practically the whole world on lockdown, it’s natural to feel helpless and wonder, is there anything in our control at all?
There is. Emotional growth and connecting with family and friends on a more intimate level.
“It’s the little things that are vital. Little things make big things happen.”
-John Wooden
Sweat the small stuff.
If you read that phrase, the first thought you’ll have is, he forgot the “don’t” at the beginning of the sentence. But I didn’t.
“Smiling does not necessarily mean you’re happy. Sometimes it just means you’re strong.”
-Nishan Panwar
In the past, I’ve written a post or two about the power of a smile. I talked about how it could make someone’s day and the psychological effects it can have on you even when you’re not really happy.
Although that post is quite old now, I recently received a message from a new reader who didn’t agree. Their argument was that why should they fake an emotion? Isn’t the norm today to encourage people to speak up if something’s wrong?
“There are two great days in a person’s life – the day we are born and the day we discover why.”
-William Barclay
Today happens to be my birthday. I, like many others, rejoice in getting birthday wishes, the love of family and friends, parties, etc. In short, I love celebrating.
“Future endeavors with superstitions attached to them have the same probability of coming to fruition that anything else does. Either they’ll come to fruition or they won’t. Had they been anything more or less, the world would be a much different place.”
-Excerpt from upcoming short story “Howl of Freedom” by Angie Verhoeven
Are you superstitious?
Even if you don’t believe in the traditional superstitions like Bloody Mary, black cats crossing your path or the bad luck of breaking a mirror, chances are you still are. If you’ve ever said “bless you” to someone after sneezing to prevent their soul from coming out, that’s a superstition. If you’ve ever said something like “I’m crossing my fingers,” that’s a superstition.
“What I think is what I am. If I think I can, I know I can.”
-Neel Trivedi
It’s constantly preached at self-help seminars. Psychologists make it a point to hammer it in. Every type of life coach stresses on the idea: Think positive. But how exactly do we do that?
“Visualization is daydreaming with a purpose.”
-Businessman Bo Bennett
Can you visualize your dreams into reality?
“Patience is not the ability to wait, but the ability to keep a good attitude.”
-Joyce Meyer
In a previous post I had talked about the importance of being patient and how what’s meant to be yours will eventually come to you even if it’s later than expected.
“Wherever you are, be there totally.”
-Eckhart Tolle
What is mindfulness? To me, it’s accepting the current situation you’re in even as you’re aspiring to get out of if it’s negative.
I look at it much like the first step to conquering an addiction: Admitting you’re an addict.
It’s only after then that you can start on the road to recovery. I think that principle applies to any negative situation in life.
You have to recognize and acknowledge where you are.
It’s important to stress, however, that I’m not advocating pessimism. I’m simply condoning being practical and realistic about how long it will take you to get out of the dilemma.
Once you embrace the basic idea of mindfulness, the path of expectations becomes much more clear.
Do you believe in the mindfulness philosophy? Join this discussion by commenting below.
“Worrying is thinking negative thoughts about things that are outside of your control.”
-Mel Robbin
The title of today’s post may seem oxymoronic or counterintuitive. Worrying by definition is a negative trait so how can it be optimistic?
Let me elaborate.
There are hundreds of writers, self-help gurus and philosophers who advise us not to worry as it not only doesn’t help our dilemmas but also brings our mental health down.
Realistically, however, we can’t help it at times. We’re human. When our backs are against the wall, we’re bound to be concerned.
What we can do to alleviate some of the negative energy is combined the worrying with rational thinking.
If you’re in a tough spot, worry a little but also think about the solution. Admit to yourself that the situation really sucks. But then immediately ask yourself what’s a possible solution? Or how can you tackle the longterm effects of this?
Hence you end up with what I call optimistic worrying. You don’t suppress your negative emotions but instead, you add positive thoughts to them to balance them out.
As human beings, it’s impossible never to worry about anything. But we can still nurture and/or manipulate those worries in order to minimize their consequences.