academic essay~~~

Being an optimist and enjoying a fulfilling life

Tagore (1916) said, ’If you shed tears when you miss the sun, you will also miss the stars’. When facing a loss, some people can recover very soon and look forward, while the others remain in deep sorrow. According to people’s different ways of thinking about life, we can divide them into two types: optimists and pessimists. Optimists are the ones who are always hopeful for the best, believe that the misfortune is temporary setback and have favorable expectations about the future (Edward, n.d.), while the pessimists react oppositely under the same situations. Everyday people work hard to pursue a happy and fulfilling life, and optimism plays an important trait in this pursuit. It can ensure that optimists will probably have good health, more opportunities and better outcomes, and better relationships with others.
Firstly, optimism can help achieve good health physically and mentally. Research shows that optimism is associated with health in a coefficient about 20-30%. When being in the same sick condition, compared with pessimists, optimists probably suffer less from the onset of the illness, can recover sooner, and have fewer relapses (Peterson & Bossio, 2001). According to Taylor et al. (1992), among HIV-seropositive gay men, those who were optimistic were reported to have more impetus to maintain their health through diet and exercise. In addition, optimists are likely to stay positive and resilient to the challenges and changes. They are not likely to cry over the split milk for a long time. Instead, they will probably accept the reality quickly, wipe out their tears, and self-motivate themselves. These reactions probably help them find another way to overcome the obstacles. In short, optimists can have good physical and mental health, which is one of the fundamental conditions of a fulfilling life.
Secondly, when encountering threatening or challenging situations, optimists can probably grasp more chances and get relatively better outcomes than the pessimists. Filled with courage, confidence and hopes for the best, optimists are probably braver and more active in daily life. Thus, they are willing to try new things, improve themselves, test their capabilities and fulfill their curiosity and ambitions. Moreover, they are more likely to make their efforts continuously to solve difficulties. A questionnaire has been done by Martin (2006) on one hundred productive and unproductive sales agents, respectively. It showed that productive sales agents were more optimistic than the unproductive ones. The top ten optimistic sales agents sold ‘88 percent more than the most pessimistic ten’. In addition, agents who were less optimistic were ‘twice as likely to quit as agents who were more optimistic’ (Martin, 2006). With perseverance, optimists have more probabilities to get better results than those who give up halfway. Therefore, optimist can achieve more and better outcomes than the pessimists.
Lastly, people with optimistic attitude may have relatively more adequate social support and a better impression on others. Martin (2006) did a research on comparing the optimism levels of two candidates in each American presidential election from 1948 to 1984. Interestingly, he found that nine out of the ten elections were won by the more optimistic president-to-bes. They presented more vigorous campaigning and gave more hopes to their voters. To reiterate, optimists can have a better social relationships and impressions.
In conclusion, optimists enjoy a happy and fulfilling life with good health, better outcomes and relationships. Become an optimist, observe the world from a different point of view, and one can explore more and enjoy a fulfilling and amazing life.

Reference
Edward C. C (Ed.). Optimism & pessimism : Implications for theory, research, and practice (1st ed., pp.127). Washington, DC: American Psychological Association.
Peterson, C. & Bossio, L. M. (n.d.). Optimism and Physical Well-being. In Edward C. Chang (Ed.). Optimism & pessimism : Implications for theory, research, and practice (1st ed., pp.127). Washington, DC: American Psychological Association.
Seligman, M. E. P. (2006a). Success at work. Learned optimism: How to change your mind and your life (pp.99-102). United States: Vintage Books.
Seligman, M. E. P. (2006b). Politics, Religion, and Culture: A New Psychohistory. Learned optimism: How to change your mind and your life (pp189). United States: Vintage Books.
Taylor, S. E., Kemeny, M. E., Aspinwall, L. G., Schneider, S.G., Rodriguez, R., & Herbert, M. (1992). Optimism, coping, psychological distress, and high-risk sexual behavior among men at risk for Acquired Immunodeficiency Syndrome (AIDS). Journal of Personality and Social Psychology, (pp. 460-473).
Tagore,R. (1916). Stray Birds. London: Macmillan &Co.