Optimist: A man who is chased up a tree by a lion but enjoys the scenery anyway.

~ Walter Winchell

It is hard to overstate how important perspective is to living a positive, happy, optimistic life. Very little about our outlook is based on external phenomenon, either supernatural or natural, but rather how our experiences are created out of the way we choose to look at a situation.

The above quote is amusing, because surely someone being chased by a lion might be feeling a lot more than appreciation for the scenery! But it hits home the idea that we are constantly “under attack” by what life throws at us. And it is also true that even those people who live “charmed lives” are sometimes the most miserable people around, simply because they are unable to appreciate the scenery.

The difference is the act of practicing optimism: see what is true, accept it, appreciate the good, and actively work to improve the rest. The lions are always after us, and life itself is a messy, complicated existence. We become what we bring to the experience, not the other way around.

I make the most of every opportunity in a positive and productive way. I look to myself for happiness and optimism, because what I nurture will grow. I concentrate my thoughts on appreciation, gratitude, and positive solutions makes me a happier, fulfilled human being.