If you expect something to turn out badly, it probably will. Pessimism is seldom disappointed. But the same principle also works in reverse. If you expect good things to happen, they usually do!There seems to be a natural cause-and-effect relationship between optimism and success.

Optimism and pessimism are both powerful forces, and each of us must choose which we want to shape our outlook and our expectations. There is enough good and bad in everyone's life -ample sorrow and happiness, sufficient joy and pain -to find a rational basis for either optimism or pessimism. We can choose to laugh or cry, bless or curse. It's our decision: From which perspective do we want to view life? Will we look up in hope or down in despair?

I believe in the upward look. I choose to highlight the positive and slip right over the negative. I am an optimist by choice as much as by nature. Sure, I know that sorrow exists. I am in my 70s now, and I've lived through more than one crisis. But when all is said and done, I find that the good in life far outweighs the bad.

An optimistic attitude is not a luxury; it's a necessity. The way you look at life will determine how you feel, how you perform, and how well you will get along with other people. Conversely, negative thoughts, attitudes, and expectations feed on themselves; they become a self-fulfilling prophecy. Pessimism creates a dismal place where no one wants to live.

Years ago, I drove into a service station to get some gas. It was a beautiful day, and I was feeling great. As I walked into the station to pay for the gas, the attendant said to me, "How do you feel?" That seemed like an odd question, but I felt fine and told him so. "You don't look well," he replied. This took me completely by surprise. A little less confidently, I told him that I had never felt better. Without hesitation, he continued to tell me how bad I looked and that my skin appeared yellow.

By the time I left the service station, I was feeling a little uneasy. About a block away, I pulled over to the side of the road to look at my face in the mirror. How did I feel? Was I jaundiced ? Was everything all right? By the time I got home, I was beginning to feel a little queasy. Did I have a bad liver? Had I picked up some rare disease?

The next time I went into that gas station, feeling fine again, I figured out what had happened. The place had recently been painted a bright, bilious yellow, and the light reflecting off the walls made everyone inside look as though they had hepatitis! I wondered how many other folks had reacted the way I did. I had let one short conversation with a total stranger change my attitude for an entire day. He told me I looked sick, and before long, I was actually feeling sick. That single negative observation had a profound effect on the way I felt and acted.

The only thing more powerful than negativism is a positive affirmation, a word of optimism and hope. One of the things I am most thankful for is the fact that I have grown up in a nation with a grand tradition of optimism. When a whole culture adopts an upward look, incredible things can be accomplished. When the world is seen as a hopeful, positive place, people are empowered to attempt and to achieve.

Optimism doesn't need to be naive. We can be an optimist and still recognize that problems exist and that some of them are not dealt with easily. But what a difference optimism makes in the attitude of the problem solver!Optimism diverts our attention away from negativism and channels it into positive, constructive thinking. When you're an optimist, you're more concerned with problem-solving than with useless carping about issues. In fact, without optimism, issues as big and ongoing as poverty have no hope of solution. It takes a dreamer--someone with hopelessly optimistic ideas, great persistence, and unlimited confidence--to tackle a problem that big. It's your choice.

如果你預(yù)料某事會很糟糕，那么它很可能真會這樣。悲觀的想法一般都能實(shí)現(xiàn)。但反過來,這個(gè)原理也同樣成立。如果你料想會好運(yùn)連連，通常也會這樣!樂觀和成功之間似乎有一種天然的因果關(guān)系。

樂觀和悲觀都是強(qiáng)大的力量，我們塑造和展望未來，都必須從中做出選擇。每個(gè)人的生命中都有太多的幸運(yùn)或?yàn)?zāi)難：充滿著憂傷和快樂、無限的喜悅和痛苦——不論我們是悲觀還是樂觀，都有充分的理由。我們可以選擇哭或笑，祝?；蛟{咒。這是我們的決定：選擇用什么樣的眼光來看待人生?是在希望中昂首闊步，還是在絕望中低頭長嘆?

我喜歡展望未來。我選擇注意積極面，忽視消極面。我是樂觀主義者，與其說源于天性，不如說是來自選擇。當(dāng)然，我知道，生命中總存在著悲傷?，F(xiàn)在，我已經(jīng)70多歲了，經(jīng)歷過太多災(zāi)難。但是，當(dāng)一切塵埃落定，我發(fā)現(xiàn)生命中的美好遠(yuǎn)多于丑惡。

樂觀的態(tài)度并非奢侈品，而是一種必需。你看待生活的方式?jīng)Q定了你如何去感受，去表現(xiàn)，以及你與他人如何相處。相反，消極的思想、態(tài)度和預(yù)想也決定了這些，它們成為一種能自我實(shí)現(xiàn)的預(yù)言、悲觀會制造一種陰沉的生活，沒有人愿意活在其中。

幾年前，我開車去一個(gè)加油站加油。那天天氣很晴朗，我心情很好。當(dāng)我進(jìn)站付油費(fèi)時(shí)，服務(wù)員對我說：“你感覺怎么樣啊?”這個(gè)問題有些莫名其妙，但我感覺很好，也這樣跟他說了?！澳隳樕淮蠛?，”他說。我十分驚訝，于是，我告訴他，我確實(shí)感覺不錯(cuò)，但已不再信心十足了。他毫不猶豫地繼續(xù)說我臉色如何不好，連皮膚都發(fā)黃了。

我心神不寧地離開加油站，開了一個(gè)街區(qū)后，我把車停在路邊，照著鏡子看看自已的臉。我怎么了?是不是得了黃疸病了?一切都正常嗎?回到家時(shí)，我開始想吐了，我的肝臟是不是出了問題?我不會染上什么怪病了吧?

我再次去那個(gè)加油站時(shí)，又感覺不錯(cuò)了，也明白了究竟是怎么一回事。這個(gè)地方最近涂了一種明亮、膽汁質(zhì)的黃色油漆，燈光反射在墻壁上，讓里面的人看起來像是得了肝炎。我想，不知道有多少人也有過類似的經(jīng)歷呢。我的心情卻因?yàn)榕c一個(gè)完全陌生的人短暫的交談，改變了整整一天。他告訴我，我看起來像生病了，而后不久，我真的感覺不舒服。這個(gè)消極的觀點(diǎn)，深刻地影響了我的感受和行為。

唯一比消極更具力量的是一個(gè)積極的肯定，一個(gè)樂觀和希望的言詞。最令我欣慰的是，我是在一個(gè)有著樂觀主義光榮傳統(tǒng)的國度里成長的。當(dāng)整體文化積極向上時(shí)，再難以置信的事也能完成。當(dāng)世界看起來充滿希望，人們就會在這個(gè)積極的場所，努力向上并獲得成功。

樂觀并不需要變得幼稚，我們可以在成為樂觀者的同時(shí)，仍意識到有問題存在，有些甚至難以解決。但是，樂觀使解決問題的態(tài)度有所不同!樂觀會使我們把注意力從消極轉(zhuǎn)向積極的、建設(shè)性的思考上。如果你是一個(gè)樂觀者，會更關(guān)心問題的解決而不是毫無價(jià)值地怨天尤人。事實(shí)上，如果沒有樂觀主義精神，一些現(xiàn)存的巨大問題，如貧窮，就毫無希望解決。它需要一個(gè)夢想家——一個(gè)擁有絕對樂觀、矢志不移、堅(jiān)定信念的人——解決這個(gè)巨大的問題。樂觀，或是悲觀，在于你的選擇。