The world is about balance: night and day, light and dark, black and white. Especially as balance is an integral part of life, in the mind and perspective-wise, it presents itself as optimism and pessimism. The two can be extremes: a cynical point of view that nothing will go right and an overly bright and sometimes ignorant belief in life. Much like the balance of sunrise and sunset, optimism and pessimism are necessary to each other.
Optimism and pessimism are predictably rooted in the mind, but how exactly is it set? Neurophysiology suggests that the two are linked to the hemispheres of the brain. As the right side is more reserved and watchful, its sense of caution lends itself to the insecurity and thought patterns of a pessimistic mindset. Meanwhile, the left side is much more active and positive reactions from the body to its functions create stability and confidence, which corresponds with a positive mindset (National Library of Medicine).
These differences in the hemispheres’ functions and subsequent effects on the mind reflect the nature of optimism and pessimism. Optimists see stability in the world and have confidence that issues will resolve themselves. This results in bolder actions, rising to the challenge with the assurance that could either be misguided or create a new opportunity. The more idle and reserved nature results in a lack of sureness, which can be seen as a barrier for pessimists, used for protection, and serving as a roadblock. These negative and positive sides further prove the need for a balance, for one to exist to improve the other (Collaborative Fund).
Optimism is often associated with the “glass half-full” mindset, which involves seeing what is present rather than what’s missing. The positive side of this positive mindset is that it leads to persistence during tough times. Krishaa Seth (10) reflects this mindset as she expresses, “I would say I am an optimist because I believe looking on the bright side of things brings more good into my life than being negative does.” Unfortunately, this also means optimists often fall victim to unhealthy coping mechanisms as they don’t fully face reality. When faced with a difficult situation, optimists may believe issues will sort themselves out, focusing on improving life outside the problem. These coping mechanisms are more active, working on improving life, but not necessarily improving the situation (Positive Psychology).
On the other hand, pessimism is associated with the “glass half-empty” mindset, where the focus is absence of good. In a dire situation, pessimists are less active, often acting idly and allowing the issue to grow as they believe it cannot be helped. The result is a constant cycle of lower and lower self-esteem associated with depression and anxiety, only contributing to a pessimistic point of view. Sam Kent (11) expresses this in school as he says, “I’m a pessimist because there’s so much stress to deal with. Especially with AP classes, it’s easy to make mistakes and difficult to recover from them, so I expect the worst.” Ultimately, though, reasonable pessimism regarding health is found to be related to reduced depressive symptoms and a lower risk of death (Positive Psychology).
Of course, as may be expected, realism, the balance of pessimistic and optimistic thinking, reigns supreme over both pessimism and optimism. Optimism without a sense of caution may result in recklessness and negligence. Pessimism without a sense of security would leave one susceptible to a cycle of negative thinking. Returning to the two cerebral hemispheres, if the two sides cannot communicate, the brain suffers and works independently through the less damaged side. This further proves the need for balance, for both to communicate and contribute to each other to create a healthy lifestyle (National Library of Medicine). Balance is necessary in perspective, like night and day, black and white, and light and dark; pessimism and optimism must coexist to live life to the fullest.
