After thousands of interviews, we had thought we had found the secret sauce to living longer and happier. Curiosity. But based on some recent proprietary research of ours, we have changed our mind. Curiosity is essential, but the underlying attribute is optimism; that is what energizes curiosity. Optimism was something we knew a lot about when we started AGEIST 10 years ago. We found that people who imagine a positive future for themselves behave in a way that allows that to happen. There is data stating that on average, optimistic men and women live about 15 percent longer. More about this study in the future. Short version: believe in a good future and you have a better chance of creating it.
What about those pessimists out there, are they doomed? Let’s just say the great thing about having amazing brains is that we can change our point of view. One may be inclined towards positivity or negativity, but these attitudes are not set in stone. We can choose to see things differently. There is this wonderful thing called neuroplasticity, which is a big word for saying that we can learn and essentially re-wire how we think. If not for this, we would all have stopped learning around age 20. Who wants to be a 60-year-old stuck with a 20-year-old’s brain? Yikes, worst of all worlds.
There is a lot of woo-woo stuff out there around improving our outlook that is easy to dismiss as nonsense, and truthfully a lot of it is, but all that stuff about gratitude, helping others, taking time to relax and recover, and getting good sleep can be helpful for not only improving our day and our relations with others, but also moving the needle towards more positivity.
Keep in mind that people are pre-wired for negativity, and one big reason for doing something like a daily gratitude list is to counter that bias and help shift to a more positive outlook. In truth, acknowledging this negativity bias is a good first step if one wants to become more positive.
Happiness has been studied to show that it increases after middle age, but what about positivity? My guess is that while they may not go in lockstep, there is probably a correlation there too. I am not advocating going smiling into the ditch without regard for reality, but perhaps give yourself a once over on how you see yourself in the future. This image is entirely your creation, so keep in mind that an optimistic outlook will be the easier, happier, and most likely healthier way forward.
Onward and upward,
David