Are you a pessimist or an optimist?

[ToastiestZombie]

Simple question, are you a pessimist or an optimist. A pessimist is a person who generally feels like things will get shit for them, and won't work out for them. An optimist is something who thinks the opposite, that things are going to get better all the time and things will work out for them.

Personally, I think I'm more of a pessimist than an optimist. I never believe I can win in competitions, mainly because I never do. And I always dwell on what bad stuff's going to happen, instead of the good stuff. I know it's not a good way to think, but it's so hard to get out of the mindset.

 

[Daystar Clarion]

Always the optimist

Life is too short to spend it worry about how badly things could go wrong.

Whatever happens, happens.

It's how you deal with what happens, that matters.

 

[GM.Casper]

I sort of swing between optimism and pessimism. 'Hope for the best, prepare for the worst' is a good philosophy to go by.

Also, there's a saying that 'true pessimists get only pleasant surprises'.
Of course, if you believe that, then you are not a true pessimist per definition.

Always the optimist
Life is too short to spend it worry about how badly things could go wrong.
Whatever happens, happens.
It's how you deal with what happens, that matters.

Except for things that could have been prevented with some forethought. Its actually a good idea to worry about those.

 

[OriginalLadders]

I tend to lean more towards pessimism, but I try not to let it stop me from trying things. I think that kind of pessimism makes more sense; if something is as bad as you expect then you are vindicated, if it's not crap then you'll be pleasantly surprised and if it's actually good then it will seem even better.

 

[the abyss gazes also]

I'm an pessimist with optimistic tendencies. I expect things to go badly, but that means I'm rarely disappointed and often impressed. If I expect a movie to suck and it doesn't go me. If I expect someone to be a dick and they are nice it is awesome. If the movie sucks or the person is a dick than I get that warm fuzzy feeling of being right.

EDIT: Or I could just put quotes around OriginalLadders.

 

[[Kira Must Die]]

Optimist.

I hate thinking negative thoughts, and I tend to look forward to things rather than dread them before experiencing them.

 

[Cranky]

I aim to be optimistic but whenever I'm in an uncontrolled environment, negative thoughts auto-form.

 

[Mournful Crow]

I am actually a reverse-reverse optimist. I am outwardly pessimist, so that optimistic things can occur. For instance, if I go on a trip, and say that "This is going to end in tears...", then it ends up not being tears. If I go on that same trip, and say, "This will be awesome!!!", then it will end up in tears. It took me several years to figure this out, and several more years to perfect my methods of manipulation of the space-time-luck-fate spectrum...

 

[EeveeElectro]

Optimist. Maybe a sprinkle of pessimism. I have plenty of bad days (had one today again ._.) but I keep smiling. I smile most of the time when I speak. I smile because I have a roof over my head and people who care for me.
I'd go insane if I ever stopped smiling and laughing at myself.
I am cautious, I know stuff can go wrong but I prepare for it and get ready to keep my chin up when it does.

Also people who constantly moan just irritate me. I love a good moan but some people are just so ungrateful moaning about everything.

 

[Relish in Chaos]

I?m so pessimistic it?s not even funny, as my life is in a bad place at the moment.

 

[ChildishLegacy]

I'd say optimistic but I never actually bother do anything to make happy things happen, I guess I'm an optimist in the sense that I expect good things to happen without any effort put in, which does happen, luckily for me.

Always the optimist

Life is too short to spend it worry about how badly things could go wrong.

Whatever happens, happens.

It's how you deal with what happens, that matters.

I'd say pessimism can be quite helpful when it comes to safety issues etc., an earthquake on a fault line has the chance of not happening or happening, but optimism won't save you if it does

Also people who constantly moan just irritate me. I love a good moan but some people are just so ungrateful moaning about everything.

This too, I've been going through some very (very) troubling stuff lately, but I don't like to talk about it and I don't like to drag people around me down because it's a lot nicer to have people treating you normally and keep in your normal groove while you're having trouble because it's nice for the rest of your life to continue as normal while one part of it is hell.

However, while I'm trying to stay positive while all of this crap it annoys the crap out of me when some jackass is losing it and moping over "how shit their life is" because their boyfriend/girlfriend of 2 weeks is giving them a bit of grief or they had a row with their friends/family. It really does piss me off because they're obviously taking a lot of things for granted.

Just a question for anybody, do people get notified when you edit your quotes in? or just when they're quoted in your original post?

 

[hazabaza1]

Optimistic realist, when I can be.
I'll go around looking for the good, but sometimes really shitty thoughts just sneak up on me and it's all I can focus on.

 

[Jedoro]

I guess I'd be an optimist, because I believe things will go well for me, since they have so far, but I know from experience that things could still go either way. Granted, I'm by no means a happy person, but I do believe things get better.

 

[Scarim Coral]

I always feel optimist even when it seen bad. I guess I refuse to get depress and wallow over it. I don't believe the negative will last forever as it will eventally be over but it may take a while.

 

[Fuhrlock]

Pessimism just seems to come more naturally for me, with only a few things rarely sparking any decent level of optimism. Still it's not because of the usual avoid dissapointment arguement many give, I just tend to overly critical when assessing things in my own mind. I do appreciate when my pessimistic stance on a matter is proven wrong, however it doesn't really provide any long-term changes to my perceptions

 

[Daystar Clarion]

I'd say optimistic but I never actually bother do anything to make happy things happen, I guess I'm an optimist in the sense that I expect good things to happen without any effort put in, which does happen, luckily for me.

Always the optimist

Life is too short to spend it worry about how badly things could go wrong.

Whatever happens, happens.

It's how you deal with what happens, that matters.

I'd say pessimism can be quite helpful when it comes to safety issues etc., an earthquake on a fault line has the chance of not happening or happening, but optimism won't save you if it does

Also people who constantly moan just irritate me. I love a good moan but some people are just so ungrateful moaning about everything.

This too, I've been going through some very (very) troubling stuff lately, but I don't like to talk about it and I don't like to drag people around me down because it's a lot nicer to have people treating you normally and keep in your normal groove while you're having trouble because it's nice for the rest of your life to continue as normal while one part of it is hell.

However, while I'm trying to stay positive while all of this crap it annoys the crap out of me when some jackass is losing it and moping over "how shit their life is" because their boyfriend/girlfriend of 2 weeks is giving them a bit of grief or they had a row with their friends/family. It really does piss me off because they're obviously taking a lot of things for granted.

Just a question for anybody, do people get notified when you edit your quotes in? or just when they're quoted in your original post?

To put it simply, I prepare myself so that I don't fall off of the horse, but when it does happen, I don't cry 'why me?', I pick myself up and get back on the horse.

 

[Raven's Nest]

I'm a realist...

Regardless of how I'd like things to go, I tend to expect the most likely outcome. I don't actively expect things to be better or worse than I imagine.

Blind optimism is for idiots and sheer pessimism is a recipe for a bad time.

I'll allow the ocassional idealist thought to come through, especially when politics are concerned, though I'm certainly more pessimistic at those times because that idealism has to first survive the realist filter.

 

[unoleian]

Not really one or the other, it changes with circumstance. Right now, I'm probably not either, but some events are turning me into a cynical bastard. Learning to not be surprised if things have a negative outcome, is what I'm saying. I don't actively believe negative events happen regularly, but I've resigned to accept their likely occurrence. Maybe it's the same thing *shrug*

I'll likely keep right on thinking that until there's enough empirical evidence in my day-to-day life to the contrary. Thus far, it's not weighting heavily to the side I'd prefer.

 

[Qwurty2.0]

I try to look at things objectively and accept that bad things can happen.

That said, I tend to be very optimistic.