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NUGGETS OF WISDOM
for
Successful Living
The Power of
Optimism and Hope
"If
you view all the things that happen to you, both good and bad, as
opportunities, then you operate out of a higher level of
consciousness."
~
Les Brown
If you expect your life to unfold according
to your plan or the way you imagine it to be, you could lose hope and
become despondent If things don’t go your way. However, if your
outlook on life is close to that expressed in the above quote by Les Brown,
it is almost impossible to lose hope.
If you believe in the Word, it is impossible
to lose hope, no matter what your current circumstance appears to be.
The examples from the Bible are too numerous to quote here. Here are
just a few to serve as reminders.
“Fear thou not; for I am with thee: be
not dismayed; for I am thy God.” Isa. 41:10.
“Faith is the substance of things hoped for,
the evidence of things not seen.” Heb. 11:1.
“Thou art my hope, O Lord God: Thou art my
trust from my youth. Ps. 71:5.
One of the secrets to maintaining hope and
optimism is to live your life as a testament to what you consider to
be most important to you. If you have discovered your life’s purpose
on your own or during one of Dr. G’s Believers Prep classes, then you will
feel a sense of accomplishment despite your circumstances. You will
understand that your circumstances do not define who you
are.
Bottom line, you determine your reaction to
any event or series of events. Translated, you determine whether
circumstances destroy your hope, or renew your desire and commitment to
succeed.
There
are very real benefits of optimism and hope. The following
information was written by Elizabeth Scott who holds a Bachelor of Arts
degree in Psychology and a Master of Science degree in Counseling with a
specialization in Family Therapy, both from San Diego State University. She
has counseled and coached people on effective stress management and healthy
living strategies for 13 years, and is a writer for About.com’s Guide to
Stress Management.
The
Benefits of Optimism
Staying positive can improve stress
management, productivity, and your health
By Elizabeth
Scott, M.S.,
Superior Health
In a study of 99 Harvard University students, those who were optimists at age
25 were significantly healthier at ages 45 and 60 than those who were
pessimists. Other studies have linked a pessimistic explanatory style with higher rates of
infectious disease, poor health, and earlier mortality.
Greater Achievement
Seligman analyzed the explanatory styles of sports teams and found that the
more optimistic teams created more positive synergy and performed better
than the pessimistic ones. Another study showed that pessimistic swimmers who were led to believe they’d done
worse than they had were prone to future poor performance. Optimistic
swimmers didn’t have this vulnerability.
Research
like this has led some companies to go out of their way to hire optimists
-- a practice that seems to be paying off.
Persistence
Optimists don’t give up as easily as pessimists, and they are more likely
to achieve success because of it. Some optimistic businessmen, like Donald Trump, have
been bankrupt (even multiple times), but have been able to persist and turn
their failures into millions.
When
you understand this, it becomes more clear how optimism and positive
self-talk can impact your stress levels, as can pessimism and negative self-talk. Negative events are
less stressful when you see them as 'not your fault', and less likely to
recur. Similarly, positive events are even sweeter when you see them as
evidence of more to come, and see yourself as the master of your own fate.
Additionally, because of the difference in behavior in optimists vs.
pessimists, those who habitually practice positive thinking tend to
experience more success, which can add up to a less stressful
life.
The
power of optimism cannot be over-rated as a factor in success and personal
growth and development. Optimism allows you to see the positive aspects of
any situation and enables you to capitalize on each possibility. Optimism may
be partly responsible for success in most aspects of life. Some research
exists that demonstrates that optimism results in higher
achievement.
Part
of the power of optimism is the result of changing the outlook of the
little voice in your head. Constantly looking at the negative and seeing no
options when situations go awry, negative self-talk limits your success.
Positive self-talk expands your ability to achieve, to learn, and to
accomplish. An optimistic belief in yourself and your capabilities to positively
impact situations, even ones that appear negative, fuels success. Try
gently moving your mind into positive, optimistic thoughts whenever you
find yourself feeling negative, depressed, or wallowing in despair. The
rainbow is there; you just need to see it.
Remember to invite others to the Thursday and
Saturday Information Sessions at the SMART Center.
Continue to pray for our country's leaders and
GET OUT THE VOTE.
Be
sure to visit for Dr. G's events and class schedule at www.llife.org.
Dr. G and the Successful Living Team
LLIFE
110 N. Main Street
East St. Louis, IL 62210
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We are all saved by
hope.
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