I think I was born a pessimist, complete with asthma. Not sure if one caused the other, but I was a sickly kid.  Pessimism is usually defined as a tendency to see the worst aspect of things or believe that the worst will happen; a lack of hope or confidence in the future. Speaking for all pessimists, they think they're smarter than everyone around them, or at least they suspect so. They don't really spend the energy to find out. It takes effort and energy, which is largely the fuel of the optimist.   

Turning to the light side has its advantages such as opening up your eyes and ears to learn new things, to become aware that others may be dealing with heavy personal issues (so learn compassion for others), strengthen yourself with coping skills and be aware of the concept of thankfulness. You and I live in a world of 1st world problems, perhaps its declining appraisal fees, annoying attorneys trashing your valuation, perceived lazy fee appraisers that seem to make the same errors every report you review, external reviewers (the minority of bad ones) behaving like their mothers never hugged them and on and on.



Some say optimism is dumb, a nativity of those not aware of "realty" - rose colored glasses, the world of rainbows, puppies and unicorns. I suppose being a pessimist is beneficial for commercial appraisers, discerning through lots of subject and market data concluding to a value opinion. I wonder if you hired 10 appraisers, half pessimist and the other half optimists, would their core attitude show up in their valuations? I bet so...in a big way. Some appraisers wear their pessimism (they call it critical analysis) with pride. Don't get me wrong, when I get a rent roll that shows 100% occupancy and the shopping center parking lot is nearly empty, I notice. If I catch the property owner in one lie, I assume everything else they're telling me is pure fantasy. That may be good skill set to have for appraising, but it can be annoying if you don't turn it off.

When I took an Appraisal Institute review class, I was somewhat surprised at the instructor's recommendation to read every appraisal at the onset that the report is great. Rather than assume the report is problematic and start the subconscious journey to go MMA on the appraiser and their work product.

Tips for waking up an optimist:

1. Get away from toxic people, they act like victims, spew blame and negativism
2. Stop complaining about your 1st world problems
3. Raise your heart rate with exercise, do it with consistency
4. Understand the universe does not revolve around you
5. Be thankful for your education, whatever its level(1)
6. Experience first-hand real poverty, ideally internationally(2)
7. Recognize our healthcare system is run poorly, but be grateful you have access(3)
8. Realize your problems are nothing to 80% of the planet(4)

(1) Nearly a billion people entered the 21st century unable to read a book or sign their names

(2) At least 80% of humanity lives on less than $10 a day

(3) 2.2 million children die each year because they are not immunized

(4) 1.1 billion people have inadequate access to water and 2.6 billion lack basic sanitation

 

My tips for optimism themselves are well...pessimistic. But sometimes it takes facts and logic to convince a pessimistic person that their life-long dark companion needs to go. Melancholy is a mood of the lazy, the self-absorbed narcissist. If you need motivation to shed your cynical baggage, consider a nine year Netherland study of cardiovascular health of 900 men and women, concluding pessimists die sooner of heart disease than optimists and have higher odds of dementia.

 

I love Stephen Colbert's view on the topic, "Cynicism masquerades as wisdom, but it is the farthest thing from it. Because cynics don't learn anything. Because cynicism is a self-imposed blindness, a rejection of the world because we are afraid it will hurt us or disappoint us." Thankfully, I'm now a converted optimist. Being optimistic seems to make life happier and better, what's so dumb about that?