“The point of living, and of being an optimist, is to be foolish enough to believe the best is yet to come.” ~ Peter Ustinov
Last week on my Facebook page I shared that I have a bad case of Reverse Paranoia (frankly, I think I have had it all of my life). The discussion was so lively that I thought I would share it here.
What is Reverse Paranoia?
It’s optimism on steroids. Writer J.D. Salinger came up with this idea and a friend recently turned me on to it. Here is my take on it. In the world there are “opportunities” and “danger” — I am only looking for and focusing on opportunities. It’s much like always seeing cars like yours — you just notice them more. What if you only focus on things that are helpful in your life? Everything else would fade away. Imagine having an overwhelming feeling that everybody is out to help you.
Think about it for a moment, most people learned paranoia early in their lives (i.e. “Don’t talk to strangers”, “There is a boogey man under the bed”). This has taught us to be small and not trust the world. What if you approached your life with the attitude that everyone is just trying to help you? This simple shift in focus could make all the difference. If you catch Reverse Paranoia, brace yourself for all the help coming your way!
Bamboo Rule: Attitude is a choice.
To find out more about how you can use optimism to achieve success, read Chapter 12, Optimism, in Water The Bamboo®: Unleashing The Potential Of Teams And Individuals.
