Have you ever heard the expression that a glass is half full or half empty? If not, imagine that you are looking at a glass that is filled exactly halfway with liquid. Now, is the glass half full or half empty to you? People who say it is half full are called optimists, while people who say it is half empty are called pessimists. In simple terms, optimists see the best in the world, while pessimists see the worst.
One of the clearest ways to see the differences between the two is to look at the way optimists and pessimists explain events. When something bad happens, optimists tend to see the event as a single event which does not affect other areas of their lives. They generally ascribe external factors to a negative result. For example, when a tennis player loses a match, he or she will say something like this to herself: “I lost the match because my coach wanted me to use the wrong type of serve.” Individuals who are optimistic see negative events as things that can be changed or controlled.
Pessimists, on the other hand, tend to take a fatalistic view of unmet expectations. They will feel that an event is just one of a string of bad events affecting their lives, and that they are somehow the cause of it. These people look internally at perceived failures and shortcomings. Pessimistic people feel they have no control over circumstances in their lives and therefore will likely fail. For example, when a pessimist gets a low grade on a test, he or she might say: “I failed again; I never do well on tests. I should just quit trying.” And when something does go well, he or she often attributes her success to luck. She may say, “I was just lucky that time.” And she does not expect to do well again. While optimists do not see themselves as failures, pessimists do.
Research has shown that optimism can be a learned trait and that, despite their upbringing, people can train themselves to respond to events in more positive terms. For example, a person has a tendency to react negatively to events. The first thing he has to do is become conscious of that behavior. Once he identifies how he is reacting, he can reframe his thoughts in more positive terms. As he or she begins to do more of this, he or she forms new patterns of response, and over time these responses become more automatic. Gradually he or she can develop a more positive outlook on life.