Title: Optimism vs. Pessimism; The Power In A Single Thought
Date: September 24, 2014
Summary: Optimism is many opinions; variations; for seeing something from different points of view. An example of optimism would be seeing a glass as half full rather than half empty. Being optimistic is a necessary factor in improving your lifestyle, health, and the levels of your happiness, which will result in benefiting you in the long run. According to statistics, those who have a optimistic attitude tends to be more successful, less vulnerable to stress, and are less likely to fall into depression.
Connection with health class: From a video that we watched in class, we learned that viewing stress negatively while only being under the influence of little amounts has resulted in more deaths than viewing stress positively even if you may face it at every corner. However, we didn't have the opportunity to look at how we could avoid bearing that extra load of burden, which can be avoided with an optimistic attitude. Optimism is a positive outlook of a situation, instead of beating down on yourself all the time, you instead would look at the better side of every conflict, finding the light under even the darkest circumstances, which could help us evade the seemingly impossible situations and come out on top.
Question for health class: How optimistic or pessimistic have you been recently, did it get worse? If so, was it due to the stress school tends to have on different individuals? How can you change the circumstance and take control of your life to ensure a better future and a more stable mental state?
“Perhaps our eyes need to be washed by our tears once in a while, so that we can see life with a clearer view again.”
For me, lately, I've been starting out the day optimistic, but as the day goes by my attitude gets worse and worse. A main factor for this is schoolwork and homework. I suppose managing my time better would help, but it won't cure things. It will only make it more tolerable. (I realize how pessimistic that sounds, and it's 8:30. See what I mean?)
ReplyDeleteThank you for commenting on my blog, Aech. I'd love to tell you how similar to myself you sound with those word choices, but I doubt that'd be professional or appropriate thing to do, so instead of that, let me give you some advice instead. Keeping a positive frame of mind is tough, and life is trained to come back at you with more than you can handle on many situations. So I urge you to remember that behind every dark cloud is a silver lining, after the darkest nights, there will always be a brighter day. As for schoolwork and homework, work at your own pace, one that you're comfortable with, and don't let others shove their expectations down your throat. You're your own person, live your life that way. Time management on the other hand is a bit trickier, try focusing on one thing at a time, the hardest things at first, then eventually when you're all worn out, you get the easier things to finish, or vice versa, whichever way helps you feel more comfortable. And try setting out a mental reward for yourself after each assignment or every few. Lets say you have 10 assignments due tomorrow and only a few hours at hand. After 2 or 3 assignments, you could promise yourself a break or the long awaited candy or whatever you enjoy the most, which will help motivate you and keep you going. We learned in health class that our minds work more diligently when we have something to look forward to, a goal that we want to achieve that will benefit us immediately. (To be honest, I'm a pessimist myself at many intervals, and the only reason I'm trying to get some work done right now is because my friend promised me that she'd sing for me.) And even if it doesn't help cure things, making it more tolerable will benefit you in the long run, and take off the unnecessarily load of stress off your back and save you from close calls when matters become overbearing. Never underestimate the little things, for they can add up to quite a lot.~
DeleteFor me, I have to follow my schedule as closely as possible lest I receive a lecture from my parents. I start optimistic that the day will be fine, but as I get home from school, and I don't finish my homework "on time" which is 5:00, I receive snide comments from my dad and lectures on how to do homework. I tell my dad that I want to take control of my life and when I finish everything (extracurricular and etc.) I want to go to sleep at 9:30, but he seems to find something I can do. I feel that I manage time pretty well and can do more work to ensure the fact that my dad has nothing to talk about. Hopefully tomorrow will be better.
ReplyDeleteThank you for commenting on my blog, David. I understand how much stress you may be put under at times, for I too have parents who adds to the load of stress rather than help to alleviate it. But the pace that you're pressured to follow will eventually be your undoing. We are still children, our brains have not yet developed fully, and we weren't built to handle all of this weight at our age. No matter how resilient an individual is, everyone have their own breaking point, and I assure you that it's the wrong decision to wait for yours to come hurling at you at top speed. Don't let anyone become dictators in your life, and you the martyr, there's a reason it's called yours. If what they set out for you becomes too much, let your feelings be known, tell them. It's much better to stand up to the ones you both love and fear rather than letting yourself be pushed around so much that it becomes second nature to them because they believe you're fine with it. They don't know better, you need to tell them otherwise, your voice counts, no matter what they may say, because in the end, you're their child, their own flesh and blood. Your dad has his own opinions on how things should be done, and that's completely fine, but it doesn't need to be the way that you get your things done, unless you let it be. Your needs will never be heard if you keep it to yourself, let it be heard instead. Other than that, you shouldn't feel like you need to push yourself to the limits to be the perfect prodigy every parent would want, that'll simply lead them into expecting more and more towards you. Trust me, I've been there. Common interests is a good place to start off at a topic for family discussions, I'm pretty sure blood isn't the only thing you and your parents have in common. (I feel like I'm giving a lecture now..) And as long as you think tomorrow will be a better day, then that will power will make it happen.~
DeleteI have been quite optimistic lately. I tend to not put my entire pressure on school, and give myself some free time to play video games and most importantly, sleep. I usually have a constant schedule over the week: on the weekdays, I get back from school, do my homework from 4 to 6, eat dinner, play outside, browse the internet, and then go to sleep at around 8:30 or 9. This has really helped me lessen my stress about school. The only thing problem is that sometimes, I procrastinate and everything gets pushed to Thursday.
ReplyDeleteI always try to be optimistic about things and lately I've been thinking abut school and homework in a lot of different ways. I don't think school itself is very stressful but the daily activities added on are what make the stress like homework which I try to do early but I usually procrastinate until 6 or 7. I can change this by focusing not one but a few things at a time and try not to get overwhelmed by them.
ReplyDeleteSeveral things determine how positive you are. For example, if you do not get enough sleep, have an over-scheduled life, or don't do your homework on time, etc., you will be more likely to get caught up in the stress of your life. It is very difficult to be optimistic when so many things are making you stressed. To stay optimistic I try to focus on one thing at a time and just get through that first, before worrying about something else.
ReplyDeleteI am usually very optimistic but recently I have been very pessimistic. I am having negative thoughts about most subjects. I feel like Homework makes me the most pessimistic because my parents think that, that should be the only thing I'm doing everyday besides the sports that I play which I completely disagree to. As students we shouldn't have as much homework as we do now after 7 hours of leaning. I usually have a hard time remembering things if there is so much homework. I think that if I cut down on all the activities that I do i will be able to focus more on my studies than I do now. I think all students lives would be easier if the homework load was cut down a little so that we can actually focus on learning instead of trying to cram everything into our brains and memorizing everything.
ReplyDeleteI am pretty good at keeping myself in an optimistic state. But at times it can be really hard with homework and stuff. I have to juggle a zero period and cross country, and music lessons, and homework almost everyday and I always go to bed really late. Honestly I have no idea on how to decrease this load but I can try to keep being optimistic in my life so that I can improve.
ReplyDeleteFor most of my life I've been optimistic and recently that hasn't changed. I always see the upside to everything. School has been a little bit stressful, but the work load is still quite manageable for me.
ReplyDeleteI'm pretty optimistic, even if I may not act it. I can keep up a positive state of mind for a long time, and when I sink into sadness I can recover quickly. Homework and grades and pressures have made it a little more of a challenge, but to me that's all it is: a challenge I can overcome. Although, optimism is hard to hold up when watching politicians...
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