So I actually ended up breaking this part off of my Elixir of Good Luck because I realized the post was getting a little bit long and I did not want to have this massive post with all the stories I had to tell. So here is a much more scientific view on the Elixir of Good Luck, which is optimistic thinking.
Optimistic Thinking
Current Studies
The following list is a bunch of different tests that were derived to see if people are optimists or pessimists based on their outlook of daily things in life. However, if you already know you are being tested for optimism, you'll find yourself ruining all of the tests because you are trying to think more positively. I'd like to just quickly note that here, and again in my conclusion of testing
- The Half Glass of Water Theorem: One of the most controversial and popular studies of how people think is dated back to looking at a glass of water that is half-full of water or half-empty with air. The basic concept is simple, if a person comes up and instantly says the glass if half-full, then they are an optimist because they see what remains. On the other side, a pessimist will see the glass is half-empty. However, recent studies that investigated this further found that there was a multitude of other answers to show how people perceived the glass. A realist tends to ignore how much water is even in the glass, stating that it is simply a glass filled with water, not taking into account the amount. Similarly, a deconstructionist tends to say that the amount of water is only bound by the size of the glass, so it's neither.
- The Rain Cloud - Sunshine Theorem: In theory, all people wake-up and perceive their day a different way, but optimists tend to have a brighter outlook on life while pessimist tend to think more darkly. This is where the rain cloud - sunshine theorem comes into effect. Basically, an optimist will see the day and, no matter the weather, always think that it is going to be a sunny afternoon. They don't need to turn on the news to hear it. Meanwhile, a pessimist will wake-up and describe the afternoon as rainy, turning on the news instantly to confirm what they perceive to be true. Of course, there are again a multitude of other answers that make it impossible to tell with this one test whether someone is purely an optimist or a pessimist, but in it's creation and study came another test.
- The Good News Theory: In a short study done on television news reports and the types of people that watch them, it was found that on general that the television news reports tend to give things a darker, pessimistic outlook. As such, the people that tended to be more attracted to watching television for their daily news were more pessimistic people in society. In contradiction to this, people with a more optimistic outlook on life tended to use internet sources for their news reports. The idea behind where you get your news finally came down to the following, a pessimist wants to hear about all the stories, where as an optimist would rather read the headlines and stick to the ones that make them happier or interested. Again, this is a flawed study because of the wide variety of audience and no to mention the overall variety in the data findings.
- The Situational Test: In a much less serious environment, people are handed a test that gives them several situations that they were to answer in a few sentences to a short paragraph. This test actually gives the best results as long as the people answering did not know it was testing for optimism, because each test could be monitored for different types of thinking. I've included a very short version of the situational test below, but since I've already said it is to see if you are optimistic or not it will be harder to get true answers. If you would still like to take it, see the section labeled The Situational Test: Are You Optimistic
The Situational Test
If you aren't sure how optimistic you are about life, then take the following test answering like you would on a daily basis. The problem with a test like this is that I've already told you what it is about, so all of your answers are going to try and sway towards the optimistic thinking side. In other words, you're going to try and give the best possible answer even if in real life you might not say that. Which is why I recommend calling someone who really knows you over and asking them to take this test for you instead! I've included the optimistic output at the bottom if you are curious what an optimist would say.
- You are searching for a new car and you find a dealer that is willing to sell you one, but they are marking the price up quite a bit and it is not exactly what you want. It is close though and you aren't sure if you will get another chance to get a car as close as this. What do you do?
- You and your friends were planning on doing something outdoors in the mountains, which are a 30 minute drive away and everyone is planning to meet at your house. Yet when everyone finally gets there, the rain clouds form in the sky and a few drops start to come down. Turning on the news, you are told to expect lightning and thunder as well. What do you do?
- A natural disaster is on its way towards the house you have been living in most of your adult life and you have had less time than you expected to pack-up all your favorite belongings and get out. After you leave, there is no going back, so you grab the essentials and get out of there. Arriving at a safe-haven, how do you feel?
Optimist Answers:
- You don't actually take the car at first, but rather sit on it and think about it. If worse comes to worse and the car sells before you can get back to buy it, you just think that there will be another chance coming soon and that wasn't the right car for you.
- You discuss with your friends an alternative, but know that as long as you are with your friends it is going to be a good day. You keep a smile on and plan to maybe go to the movies, out for coffee, a library, or even just sit around the table to talk for a while. There's no way of bringing you down even when there's a raging storm.
- It is alright to feel upset that your home, your memories are currently behind you in the destruction path, but an optimist looks at what he/she was able to save and is thankful for getting those out. You are happy to be with your family and friends, happy that no one is hurt, and more relieved that you had even a little bit of time to grab reminds of your precious memories. And even if something does happen to your house, you feel that in rebuilding you are showing you are stronger than the weather and still happy to live with the people you love.
Optimist Testing Conclusions
In truth there is only one way to figure out if you are an optimist or a pessimist without taking tests. Basically, go through a daily routine and just thinking about the decisions you make after you make them. Did you tell a co-worker that you did not think the deal would go through for some reason or did you think on the upside about it? Are you thinking about how much better you feel because you ate a salad or mourning not taking the donuts? If you really want to know what you are, just think about every instance out there
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