6 Ways to Cultivate Optimism Each Day

March is Optimism Month, so I thought I’d touch on this topic once again. Optimism and pessimism are ways of looking at yourself and the world through a positive or negative filter. Although some people tend toward one or the other instinctively, either mindset can be learned. That means that you can cultivate optimism and reduce pessimism.

This is great news! When you think of optimism and pessimism as reflections of your mindset, it becomes much easier to believe you can change. Like any new behavior, you simply need to practice every day for it to become a habit. Try these six suggestions to cultivate your optimism every day.

1. Cultivate Optimism with a Journal

Journaling or keeping a diary allows you to process events and to get a different perspective on them. It encourages self-reflection and captures insights into your thinking and behavior. You can write down what happened during your day and document, not just the bald facts but how you did it, what you did to make it happen and what you did right. And, importantly, how it felt while you were doing it. Don’t just record the good things (a promotion, a presentation or meeting that went well), remember to write down the thing that didn’t go so well and reflect on what happened, how you dealt with it, and what you might do differently next time. Here’s a mini cheat sheet for your journal:

Positive Events

• What happened that went right today?
• What did I do to make this happen?
• What did I do right today?
• How did it feel?

Negative Events

• What happened that didn’t go so well today?
• How did I react?
• What can I do so that things will go better in the future?
• What lesson did I learn?

2. Laugh

Did you know you can cultivate optimism simply by laughing? Consciously notice the funny side of things and write them down. (Yep, include this in your journal!) If the technology didn’t work, and you had to give the presentation without the slide deck, or the power went out, or there was a fire drill in the middle of your crucial meeting. What can seem like a disaster at the time can also be looked back on as a comedy of errors.

And, when you feel down and need a pick-me-up, watch or read something that makes you laugh. YouTube is filled with funny videos (I love the cat videos, episodes of Whose Line Is it Anyway? and Jay Lenno’s headlines.) Comics in the newspaper or humorous stories can also do the trick. I’m a big fan of Douglas Addams and Terry Pratchet. It is pretty much impossible to feel down when you’re laughing.

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