#985 Musings Beyond the Bunker (Monday September 2)

Good morning,

Today is my birthday.

I have always tended to view life through the prism of a glass half full rather than a glass half empty. When someone complains about the weather, I might remark that rainy days are beautiful. On occasion, someone will remark that such an attitude is unrealistic. The other day, I was accused, half-jokingly, of suffering from “toxic positivity.”

What does it mean to be “toxically positive”? I suppose a hypothetical conversation with someone with toxic positivity might go something like this:

Friend: “I’m really disappointed with the way [fill in event or slight] makes me feel.”

Toxically positive person: “That’s terrible. But things could be worse.”

For as long as I can remember, I’ve awakened each day with the general belief that it will be a good day. And why not? Despite all the valid reasons why there are problems in the world, when faced with the choice of optimism or pessimism to govern one’s attitude, why choose the latter?

We increasingly are living in a “glass half empty” world. People dismiss our media, our churches, our country, our universities, our communities, our institutions, our cities, and our political adversaries as inadequate, disappointing or downright evil. And yet, with all that can be done to improve them all, things are better than we would choose to believe…if only we looked first for the positive. Yes, I know, this positivity can be annoying at times…

There is a lot of tragedy in life and it comes for us all—most notably in the loss of parents, friends, and loved ones. That sort of personal experience can engender negativity, to be sure. But I’m not concerned about the inevitable great tragedies and minor disappointments in life. Rather, I’m concerned with the general attitude of negativity. When 71% of Generation Z answers in the affirmative that “everyone is out for themselves and most people are out to get me,” it would seem we are in the depths of a crisis of negativity and cynicism. Negativity can affect our world view, our life choices, and our relationships. It can also serve as a poison that eats at our physical and mental well-being.

Life’s experiences can be viewed as different levels of negative or as different levels of positive. To be negative is in some way to give up both on happiness and on responsibility. Viewing things through a negative lens removes us from agency and a responsibility to ourselves and others to improve circumstances. When we choose to look beyond the negative to find the positive, we are taking a step toward making ourselves happier. And when we see the negative as an aberration, rather than the norm, we can work on making those things that are not optimal even better.

As Voltaire taught, “The most important decision you make is to be in a good mood.”

This is my birthday wish for our world today. Let’s try to be in a better mood—and be a bit more positive.

Enjoy the week,

Glenn

PS: Thinking today about Bill, Jessica, Gale, Eddie, Mike, Jay, Brad 74, and, of course, Bradley. Every year there are more people to remember and miss…