When you are ask a question on how you can describe things that are happening to you, will you consider them good or bad? Roughly, by good , we mean in the most general sense of the word, be it in the state of happiness, contentment, fulfillment, pleasurable, beneficial, and the likes. On the contrary, by bad, we mean, the exact opposites.
Our mindset on how we see things that are happening to us, is in as much as examining what we do in our everyday lives. It is just as important as the things that we do in itself on the reason that this is our conceptual framework on to deal with the world. Be it in our ordinary state of affairs such us, how we talk to our friends and colleagues, how we compliment another's accomplishments, how we face challenges, how we deal with criticisms, how we motivate ourselves to accomplish a particular goal, and an infinite multitude of instances.
A dictionary may tell us that "Optimism is an outlook on life such that one maintains a view of the world as a positive place. It is the opposite of pessimism. Optimists generally believe that people and events are inherently good, so that most situations work out in the end for the best. A common conundrum illustrates optimism-versus-pessimism with the question, does one regard a given glass of water, filled to half its capacity, as half full or as half empty? Conventional wisdom expects optimists to reply, "Half full," and pessimists to respond, "Half empty" (assuming that "full" is considered good, and empty, "bad"). Another paradox sometimes associated with optimism is that the only thing an optimist cannot view as positive is a pessimist. Pessimism, however, as it acts as a check to recklessness, may even then be viewed in a positive light. " ( http://encyclopedia.thefreedictionary.com/Optimism)
It is not my aim to debate whether what is the appropriate way to look at the world or what is the better outlook in life. We will spend hours of argumentation accomplishing nothing but intellectual masturbation. I remember my university days, when we were discussing two contrary set of beliefs in philosophy. An hour and a half class is not sufficient to resolve two conflicting views. We even had continued discussions outside class in coffee shops in order to resolve whether one is inherently good, bad, or both, whether one action is motivated by desire, and if so what is that desire... so on and so many. At the end of the day, at least we clarified a lot of things and if not learned anything at all, in itself, it feels good.
However, if there are options that are laid down to us, due to lack of term, be it optimism, be it pragmatic, be it practical, be it what works, whether to see the world in a positive way or the exact opposite, why not consider the alternative of looking at it in on the positive light. It may be worth while if we contemplate for a minute or two whether what were doing or about to be done is something worth doing. In my philosophic point of view, our answers on how we describe things that are happening to us, doesn't really matter, whether it is good or bad. What matters is what we have done and what do we have.
And again, at the end of the day if we try to ask ourselves what we have done... or what do we have? We are not satisfied with mere clarification. We are not fulfilled with mental intoxication. We don't don't buy gas by understanding sense data. We don't feed our hungry stomach without the appropriate means. The alternative that I am offering is the practical mindset, you won't lose anything but believing. And part of this mindset is to look at things on the positive light. This is the means for you to be rich and famous. Who knows? You might be the next richest man in the world!
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