People can live through similar events, and yet, how they experience them can be completely different.  While the pessimist is left feeling dejected and even hopeless, the optimist is energized by life.  Speaking of life’s opportunities, my optimistic wife says: “The door is always open.”

Optimism is a vital competence for successful leadership.  Based on the research of Martin Seligman, what is briefly outlined here is his famous ABCDE method for optimism through life’s setbacks.

A: You face Adversity

B: Your Beliefs about this experience are either positive or negative thoughts

C: The Consequence is that you have either positive or negative feelings and actions

D: Learn to Dispute any negative thoughts

E:  Experience the Energy

As an example, you try to deliver a humorous speech, but you don’t get many laughs.  You say to yourself that you’re just not funny and you have made a fool of yourself.  This leads you to feel embarrassed, humiliated and dejected.

Instead, dispute your thoughts by saying that you did get some laughs, and almost everyone enjoyed the first punchline.  You also fulfilled your client’s request to put some serious content in the body of your speech.  You have made great improvement in the pauses before your punchlines, and you can continue to improve on your surprise factor!

How does your ENERGY level feel now?

As my wife says, “The door is always open.”  To my eternal optimist and dear wife Nadia, Happy Birthday!