Some people seem naturally inclined to see the glass half full. In other words, they’re optimists! Optimism is defined as a mental attitude characterized by hope and confidence in success and a positive future.

Optimists tend to view hardships as learning experiences or temporary setbacks. Even the most miserable day holds the promise for them that “tomorrow will probably be better.”

Optimists expect good things to happen, whereas pessimists instead predict unfavorable outcomes. Optimistic attitudes are linked to several benefits, including better coping skills, lower stress levels, better physical health, and higher persistence when pursuing goals.

Keep reading to learn more about why seeing the brighter side of things can actually lead to more positive events in your life. Also explore how this optimistic outlook can help reduce stress and improve your overall health and well-being.

Signs of Optimism

Does it ever seem like things are actually going to be OK? Even when you’re dodging life’s curveballs, do you still believe something good can come out of it? If so, you’re probably a bit of an optimist. Here are some other signs:

• – You believe that good things are coming. It’s not toxic positivity—it’s just a feeling.
• – Even when things are difficult, you expect them to work out eventually.
• – You trust yourself to handle life’s challenges. You’re resilient.
• – You feel that the future looks bright.
• – You think you can learn from even the worst situations. Tough times build character.
• – You see setbacks as opportunities to learn, not the end.
• – You feel gratitude for the good things in your life, big or small.
• – You look for ways to make the most of opportunities.
• – You have a positive attitude about yourself and others.
• – You take responsibility for mistakes but don’t dwell on them.
• – You don’t let one bad experience affect your expectations for the future. A bad day doesn’t mean a bad life.

An example of optimism is believing there will always be opportunities to improve things tomorrow, even if you are experiencing challenges today. Even if today was a disaster, you know that tomorrow is another chance to make things great.

What Makes Someone an Optimist?

Why do some people radiate positivity while others often focus on the negative? Researchers aren’t entirely sure about the exact causes of optimism, but several factors likely contribute. Genetics, upbringing, culture, and other environmental influences can affect optimism.

Twin studies suggest that genetics account for about 25% of optimism. Another study found that optimism tends to increase through young adulthood, levels off between ages 55 and 70, and declines in older adulthood.

Research has also shown that optimism and pessimism are influenced by neurophysiology. Optimistic attitudes are associated with activity in the brain’s left hemisphere, while pessimistic characteristics are connected to activity in the right hemisphere.

But it doesn’t all depend on biology or genetics. Your environment and experiences also play a role. How you were raised, the culture you grew up in, and your own life experiences (both good and bad) can impact whether you are more of an optimist or pessimist.

Explanatory Styles

Many factors influence optimism, but whether you tend to be more of an optimist or more of a pessimist can often be explained by how you explain the events of your life.

Explanatory style or attributional style refers to how people explain the events of their lives. There are three facets of how people can explain a situation. This can influence whether they lean toward being optimists or pessimists:

• Stable vs. unstable: Can time change things, or do things stay the same regardless of time?
• Global vs. local: Is a situation a reflection of just one part of your life, or your life as a whole?
• Internal vs. external: Do you feel events are caused by you or by an outside force?

Realists see things relatively clearly, but most of us aren’t realists. Instead, we tend to attribute the events in our lives either optimistically or pessimistically.

Optimist Explanatory Style

Optimists explain positive events as having happened because of their own actions or characteristics (internal). They also see them as evidence that more positive things will happen in the future (stable) and in other areas of their lives (global).

Conversely, they see negative events as not being their fault (external). They also see them as being flukes (isolated) that have nothing to do with other areas of their lives or future events (local).

For example, if an optimist lands a promotion, they’ll believe that it was because of their hard work. They’ll also believe that it means that more big opportunities will be coming their way. But if they miss out on a promotion, they’re more likely to chalk it up to having a bad month with a lot of extenuating circumstances. They don’t see it as a sign of failure and know that they can do better in the future.

Pessimist Explanatory Style

Pessimists think in the opposite way. They believe that negative events are caused by their own mistakes or traits (internal). They believe that one mistake means more will come (stable), and mistakes in other areas of life are inevitable (global) because they are the cause.

They see positive events as flukes (local) that are caused by things outside their control (external) and probably won’t happen again (unstable).

A pessimist would see a promotion as a lucky event that probably won’t happen again, and may even worry that they’ll now be under more scrutiny. Being passed over for a promotion would probably be explained as not being skilled enough. They would, therefore, expect to be passed over again.

How to Practice Optimism

Understandably, if you’re an optimist, this bodes well for your future. Negative events are more likely to roll off of your back, while positive events affirm your belief in yourself, your ability to make good things happen now and in the future, and in the goodness of life.

Research suggests that genetics determine about 25% of your optimism levels and environmental variables out of your control—such as your socioeconomic status—also play an important role. But this doesn’t mean that you can’t actively improve your attitude.

While you might tend to have either an optimistic or pessimistic explanatory style, there are things that you can do the help cultivate a more optimistic attitude. These include:

• – Become more mindful: Mindfulness focuses on being engaged, attentive, and present in the here and now. It can be a helpful technique to help you focus on what matters in the present and avoid worrying about future events and things outside your control. Living fully in the moment makes you much less likely to ruminate over negative past experiences or worry about upcoming events. This makes you feel more appreciative of what you have now and less consumed with regrets and anxieties.
• – Practice gratitude: Gratitude can be defined as an appreciation for what is important in life. One study found that participants assigned to write in a gratitude journal showed increased optimism and resilience. If you are trying to develop a more optimistic attitude, set aside a few minutes each day to jot down some of the things you are grateful for.
• – Write down your positive emotions: Research has shown that something as simple as writing down positive thoughts can help improve your optimism. One study found that expressive writing focused on positive emotions was linked to decreased mental distress and enhanced mental well-being.

It is also possible to develop learned optimism. Pessimists can essentially learn to be optimists by thinking about their reactions to adversity in a new way and consciously challenge negative self-talk.

Cognitive Restructuring

Using a practice called cognitive restructuring, you can help yourself and others become more optimistic by consciously challenging negative, self-limiting thinking and replacing it with more optimistic thought patterns.

The process of cognitive restructuring involves a few different steps:

1. Identify the situations that are triggering negative thoughts or moods.
2. Assess how you are feeling in the moment.
3. Identify the negative thoughts that you are having in response to the situation.
4. Look at the evidence to either support or refute your negative thoughts.
5. Focus on the objective facts, and replace automatic negative thoughts with more positive, realistic ones.

Can Optimism Ever Have Downsides?

Optimism is generally a positive characteristic that confers a number of physical and mental health benefits. But this does not mean that is doesn’t have a few potential pitfalls. Some ways that optimism can be detrimental include:

• Optimism bias: Sometimes excessive optimism can lead people to overestimate the likelihood that they can experience good things while avoiding bad things. The optimism bias suggests that people often underestimate their risk of experiencing negative outcomes. This can sometimes lead people to engage in risky behaviors that actually increase their chances of having a bad outcome.
• Poor risk assessment: When people are overly optimistic about something, they may be less likely to think about all of the potential risks and take steps to mitigate those issues. This can ultimately make it more likely that their efforts might fail, or at least run into major problems along the way.
• Toxic positivity: Sometimes people tend to overvalue positive feelings while ignoring or even repressing negative ones. It can also cause people to invalidate the emotional experiences of people who are going through difficult times.

Optimists can avoid some of these pitfalls by focusing on maintaining a healthy, realistic approach to positivity. Rather than focusing only on “staying positive” and ignoring other emotions, the goal should be to try to look on the bright side while still acknowledging the difficulties of the situation.