Another disaster. Or is it?

I think it's fair to say that most people would regard 2020 as a pretty crappy year so far. It's certainly not one I really look back on with much fondness either having to deal with Covid's effects on so many aspects of life - holiday cancellations, extreme work pressure, lockdown restrictions and having to wear a bloody face mask!

Last week I had my first holiday/vacation for nearly a year and had a nice relaxing road trip around Scotland - enjoying fabulous scenery and warm hospitality. It was really good to just get away from it all for a week - even if I did still have to frequently don that damn mask.

Yesterday I set off to return to work and got into my car to drive there. After dropping off my dog at his doggy daycare I headed off to work, which is usually a 10 minute drive.

Unfortunately I ended up getting involved in a car crash when another motorist drove into the back of me (apparently she was late for work...)

My car is damaged and I am feeling a bit stiff and sore myself today. My initial reaction was "What else can go wrong this year?".

I was very grumpy indeed!

However in the middle of the day the car repair people came to take away my damaged car and in its place they left me a nice shiny new car to drive until mine gets fixed.

I took it out for a drive and it was really good. I'm not usually much of a car person but it definitely feels good to drive a nice new car.

I decided to stop looking at the negative side of the situation and focus on the positive. I think for many of us, this year has led to a lot of pessimism and so I am resolving to start trying to be much more optimistic.

People love optimists. And you know why? It is because they are so rare!

Many people go through life in a sort of neutral mindset which seems to turn negative more easily than positive. That "what else can go wrong?" mode of thinking where we can only see the bad stuff and not the good stuff.

Because so many other people have this negative mindset, it is easy for us to just go along with that and accept that its just how things are.

Being an optimist doesn't stop you from seeing the possibility of failure - that would be unrealistic.

No, an optimist is a person who sees that things could go wrong and has a go anyway.

If things go wrong then they will use it as a learning experience to do better next time. I've said it before - don't fear failure. Failure shows that you are expanding your comfort zone and learning. Not everything works out according to plan - and that's OK!

An optimist is never afraid to take action. They are prepared for problems and if they come across a barrier on the road to success they just climb on top of it to get a better view!

I have allowed things to derail me this year much more than I used to but I am resolving to rediscover my optimistic self again

Not only do people around you like optimists, but optimists like themselves. And THAT is really something worth thinking about!

Keep seeing the positives!

Dave