The Power of Negative Thinking
Are you the kind of person who thinks the future will take you by the hand or do you expect it to punch you in the neck? Does that soft, drumming sound you hear announce the arrival of a unicorn friend or an army bent on carnage? Just because no one knows what's going to happen doesn't mean individuals don't have expectations, or that individuals don't tend to have consistent expectations about what hasn't happened yet. Some people view what lies ahead as a welcoming country full of pleasant byways and delightful surprises. Others make a habit of cowering before the prospect of a burned-out hell-scape.
People can, on the whole, be divided into a few distinct categories in terms of what they anticipate. Other variations and subcategories may well exist, but as I have not defined them yet, I choose not to discuss them here.
People can, on the whole, be divided into a few distinct categories in terms of what they anticipate. Other variations and subcategories may well exist, but as I have not defined them yet, I choose not to discuss them here.
The Upbeats
We're so used to being told that we can. That if we just try hard enough, or work hard enough, or wish hard enough, we will achieve our goals and be rewarded with the blessings of life. Positive thinking affects the world, shapes the world, we're told.
The people who tell us that life is brimming with delicious possibilities (the "Upbeats") are vigorously, unrelentingly upbeat. They tend to be healthy and blindingly white-toothed. They are so convinced of the righteousness of their outlook that they can be relied upon to endeavour to help those more negative "see the light" of optimism. "You shouldn't be so worried about that job interview. If you believe in yourself, other people will believe in you, too!" "You know, if you just tell life what you want from it, it will happen. It's amazing what thinking positive can do!"
This belief in the efficacy of optimism does indeed bear fruit, or rather, two different kinds of unpleasant fruit, because either the Upbeat becomes self-deluding ("Everything's really for the best - all these terrible things that keep happening must really be for the best") or self-reproaching ("I"m just not being cheerful enough. I must not be being upbeat enough. I must just have to try harder"). The third, and far less common, option is that nothing terrible will happen to the Upbeat and he or she will become completely insufferable.
We're so used to being told that we can. That if we just try hard enough, or work hard enough, or wish hard enough, we will achieve our goals and be rewarded with the blessings of life. Positive thinking affects the world, shapes the world, we're told.
The people who tell us that life is brimming with delicious possibilities (the "Upbeats") are vigorously, unrelentingly upbeat. They tend to be healthy and blindingly white-toothed. They are so convinced of the righteousness of their outlook that they can be relied upon to endeavour to help those more negative "see the light" of optimism. "You shouldn't be so worried about that job interview. If you believe in yourself, other people will believe in you, too!" "You know, if you just tell life what you want from it, it will happen. It's amazing what thinking positive can do!"
This belief in the efficacy of optimism does indeed bear fruit, or rather, two different kinds of unpleasant fruit, because either the Upbeat becomes self-deluding ("Everything's really for the best - all these terrible things that keep happening must really be for the best") or self-reproaching ("I"m just not being cheerful enough. I must not be being upbeat enough. I must just have to try harder"). The third, and far less common, option is that nothing terrible will happen to the Upbeat and he or she will become completely insufferable.
The Bergmans
You know the one. He carries a black sketchbook and looks out the window. He laughs quietly and bitterly when people talk about their hopes for the best. He watches German (or Swedish) films and reads Russian novels. He wishes he could have written poetry in fin-de-siecle France and then died of tuberculosis. He explains that he doesn't want children, because who would want to bring a child into such a damaged world? He wonders why people are so particularly depressed about their age on their birthdays when each and every day they are closer to death? If he is handsome, he will be irresistible to women. If he is unattractive, he will be a gamer. He can, of course, also be a she. If she is attractive, she will be passed over by male Bergmans for a blonde Upbeat and become active in local theatre. If she is unattractive, she will become active in local theatre.
You know the one. He carries a black sketchbook and looks out the window. He laughs quietly and bitterly when people talk about their hopes for the best. He watches German (or Swedish) films and reads Russian novels. He wishes he could have written poetry in fin-de-siecle France and then died of tuberculosis. He explains that he doesn't want children, because who would want to bring a child into such a damaged world? He wonders why people are so particularly depressed about their age on their birthdays when each and every day they are closer to death? If he is handsome, he will be irresistible to women. If he is unattractive, he will be a gamer. He can, of course, also be a she. If she is attractive, she will be passed over by male Bergmans for a blonde Upbeat and become active in local theatre. If she is unattractive, she will become active in local theatre.
The Nervies
The Nervies
They're neurotic. High-strung. Constantly vibrating with nervous energy that cannot and will never be released. Was that someone at the door? Did I forget to do something? I just know I forgot to do something. I think I just chipped one of my teeth. It doesn't matter what the subject is; the nervie will find something to obsess about. Minor inconvenience or major cataclysm: scale is of no consequence. Life is transformed into one high-pitched, irritating buzz with nagging undertones of unavoidable personal inadequacy.
Never Fear: Catastrophize!
Visit with THE CATASTROPHIZER
They're neurotic. High-strung. Constantly vibrating with nervous energy that cannot and will never be released. Was that someone at the door? Did I forget to do something? I just know I forgot to do something. I think I just chipped one of my teeth. It doesn't matter what the subject is; the nervie will find something to obsess about. Minor inconvenience or major cataclysm: scale is of no consequence. Life is transformed into one high-pitched, irritating buzz with nagging undertones of unavoidable personal inadequacy.
Never Fear: Catastrophize!
Visit with THE CATASTROPHIZER
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