Acting positively

Optimism, pessimism and realism. These are ways we see the world, they are not tools of personal growth no matter what some people might tell you. All they are is descriptors of what information we emphasize when we information. The optimist notes the potential benefits of a situation, the pessimist the potential perils, and the realist tends towards the middle ground. The point here is that these viewpoints happen at the data gathering side of things not at the action side of events.

Acting positively is importune and can be done even if you are pessimistic in nature. By acting positively we increase the potential for a beneficial outcome and mitigate the perils in any given situation. The keys to acting positively are proper attitude, constructive results, and minimization of harm.

The proper attitude with which to approach positive action is one of acceptance if not joy. When we act positively we can not wine, we can not complain and we can not be a burden on those we labor with. Whining and complaining about the work we have to do comes from not excepting the necessity of the action. If we are doing something unnecessary that we do not want to do why are we doing it in the first place? If we are complaining about doing a necessary task we are taking away from working and making the work harder on those we are working with. If work is necessary then do it, set your frustration aside.

When we act positively we also need to consider the results that we are working for. Positive action will lay the ground work for future action and create opportunities rather than limit them. In acting positively we must go in to each and every situation with our eyes open, we must look with the eyes of the pessimist, the realist and the optimist. We have to see both the opportunities and the perils of a situation and work to maximize the rewards that a situation may provided. Constructive results will leave us with options while destructive results will leave us wondering what to do next.

The last aspect of positive action is the minimization of harm. When we act positively we have to consider more than just our own self interest. We have to take in to account how our actions affect those around us as well as how they affect our own future.

So when we take action we have to make sure we do it positively. If we do not we risk alienating others, damaging our selves, and sacrificing long term results for short term ones.