“Tell me something good that happened today.”

Primeiro, ler este trecho:

"When I was growing up, my mom had a ritual. Every night at dinner, despite the real challenges we were facing as a family, she would look around the table at her six kids and say, “Tell me something good that happened today.” As simple as those words are, they changed the energy in the room. Instead of harping on the dysfunction in our home, we were connecting and laughing and acting like a family. Wow Mom, how’d you do that?"

Lembrei-me logo de:

• Cortisol, cortisol, cortisol
• Curiosidade do dia 

BTW, recordar Seligman:

"Pessimistic prophecies are self-fulfilling."

Trecho retirado de "Focus on What Works and You Start Solving Problems"

Acerca do optimismo (parte II)

Parte I.
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Não há acasos, todas as consequências são significativas. No dia em que descubro o Seligman da parte I, encontro estes dois textos sobre o optimismo e o pessimismo:

• What George Eliot Teaches Us about the Life-Cycle of Happiness and the Science of Why We’re Happier When We’re Older
• The Science of Our Optimism Bias and the Life-Cycle of Happiness

Do segundo retiro:

"The problem with pessimistic expectations, such as those of the clinically depressed, is that they have the power to alter the future; negative expectations shape outcomes in a negative way. Not everyone agrees with this assertion. Some people believe the secret to happiness is low expectations. If we don’t expect greatness or find love or maintain health or achieve success, we will never be disappointed. If we are never disappointed when things don’t work out and are pleasantly surprised when things go well, we will be happy. It’s a good theory — but it’s wrong.
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Although the belief in a better future is often an illusion, optimism has clear benefits in the present. Hope keeps our minds at ease, lowers stress, and improves physical health. This is probably the most surprising benefit of optimism. All else being equal, optimists are healthier and live longer. It is not just that healthy people are more optimistic, but optimism can enhance health. Expecting our future to be good reduces stress and anxiety, which is good for our health.
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Yes, optimism is on one level irrational and can also lead to unwanted outcomes. But the bias also protects and inspires us: It keeps us moving forward, rather than to the nearest high-rise ledge. To make progress, we need to be able to imagine alternative realities, and not just any old reality but a better one; and we need to believe that we can achieve it. Such faith helps motivate us to pursue our goals."

E volto a Seligman:

"Pessimistic prophecies are self-fulfilling."

E a uma luz de esperança para Constança:

"Habits of thinking need not be forever. One of the most significant findings in psychology in the last twenty years is that individuals can choose the way they think." 

Acerca do optimismo

"Life isn't fair
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Yes, life isn't fair, which is why you MUST be optimistic.
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Pessimists pretend that life should be fair and then get upset when it isn't. When the unfairness of life smacks pessimists down, they tend to stay down.
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Optimists know life is unfair but still try to make things better. When the unfairness of life knocks them down, optimists get back up on their feet and try again.
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Think of it this way: you've been dealt whatever cards you've been dealt.  You have two choices: 1) complain that other people got better cards than you or 2) concentrate on playing the cards you got as well as you possibly can.
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Optimism is the only "cure" for the unfairness of life."

Interessante encontrar este trecho em "Life Isn't Fair-- So Be Optimistic" depois de ter descoberto "Learned optimism" de Martin E. P. Seligman.

"The optimists and the pessimists: I have been studying them for the past twenty-five years. The defining characteristic of pessimists is that they tend to believe bad events will last a long time, will undermine everything they do, and are their own fault. The optimists, who are confronted with the same hard knocks of this world, think about misfortune in the opposite way. They tend to believe defeat is just a temporary setback, that its causes are confined to this one case. The optimists believe defeat is not their fault: Circumstances, bad luck, or other people brought it about. Such people are unfazed by defeat. Confronted by a bad situation, they perceive it as a challenge and try harder. These two habits of thinking about causes have consequences. Literally hundreds of studies show that pessimists give up more easily and get depressed more often.
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A pessimistic attitude may seem so deeply rooted as to be permanent. I have found, however, that pessimism is escapable. Pessimists can in fact learn to be optimists,"