Lesson 16: Optimism is Learned
A story is told of a very old lady who looked in the mirror one morning. She had three remaining hairs on her head, and being a positive soul, she said, “I think I’ll braid my hair today.” So she braided her three hairs, and she had a great day.
Some days later, looking in the mirror one morning, preparing for her day, she saw that she had only two hairs remaining. “Hmm, two hairs… I fancy a centre parting today.” She duly parted her two hairs, and as ever, she had a great day.
A week or so later, she saw that she had just one hair left on her head. “One hair huh…,” she mused, “I know, a pony-tail will be perfect.” And again, she had a great day.
A few weeks later, she looked in the mirror. She was completely bald.
“Finally bald huh,” she said to herself, “How wonderful! I won’t have to waste time doing my hair any more…”
I have learned that optimism is learned. It is not a fixed trait. Whilst an individual may have a predilection towards optimism or pessimism, they can learn to respond differently. Optimism is defined as ‘hopefulness and confidence about the future or the success of something.’ It is the ability to confront reality with the conviction that problems that arise can be solved. It’s believing that there are always options.
Optimism is an asset in achieving leadership success. The key is to view setbacks as temporary, isolated (not pervasive), not personal & within your power to fix. Every obstacle has a solution. Successful leaders acknowledge the seriousness of the problem, but choose rather to focus on finding the solution, thus exercising optimism and strengthening the growth mindset.
Individuals who are high in Emotional Intelligence understand the importance of practising greater optimism. To learn more about how to develop greater Emotional Intelligence, check out – Six Seconds, The Emotional Intelligence Network that I am part of. We are on a mission to have one BILLION people practising Emotional Intelligence.
Can I count you in?
Can I count you in?
