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> Pessimism is closer to truth. But it promotes inaction. Is there any evidence on this? (I must admit, I didn't read the paper, just the abstract.) > Optimis

> Pessimism is closer to truth. But it promotes inaction. Is there any evidence on this? (I must admit, I didn't read the paper, just the abstract.) > Optimist by choice, Pessimist by experience Optimism vs. pessimism in a particular situation doesn't appear to me as being a choice. Can you really choose to be an optimist or is it just ignoring/suppressing your pessimism?

EarthLaunch 3y ago
> But [pessimism] promotes inaction. I don't know if there's evidence, but I find the point interesting because the idea occurred to me independently when I read this in the paper: > Unrealistically optimistic financial expectations [...] can lead to excessive business entries and subsequent failures, as optimists overestimate the financial returns from entrepreneurship (de Meza et al., 2019) I thought: Do pessimists overestimate the financial returns from a regular job? It seems in many ways to be about whether/what risks are worth taking.
solatic 3y ago
The universe tends towards first chaos and then entropy. Working against these forces, to build security, comfort, and meaning, inherently work against the tide. Resistance is inherently difficult. Realists blend both pessimism and optimism: a pessimism born of recognizing the natural forces (such as most people will be overwhelmed by them), and an optimism that, with healthy choices, they can escape those forces during their lifetime.
- starbugs 3y ago
  > The universe tends towards first chaos and then entropy. Working against these forces, to build security, comfort, and meaning, inherently work against the tide. I am not sure I would agree. Try living in the snowy mountains without shelter and a fireplace. I'd bet optimism wouldn't help you a lot in that particular circumstance unless you'd have already secured the necessities for survival.
  - solatic 3y ago
    The shelter and the fireplace are themselves expressions of optimism that it is possible to live in the snowy mountains. Pessimism notes that the shelter and fireplace will naturally fall into disrepair; optimism drives you to maintain the shelter and fireplace so that you can continue to live there for as long as you like.
    - starbugs 3y ago
      Let’s say I am a mighty evil lord who put you there against your will. I think you’d need more pessimism to anticipate risks rather than optimism to believe that you can survive. The will to survive is somewhat hardwired anyway.

EarthLaunch 3y ago

> But [pessimism] promotes inaction. I don't know if there's evidence, but I find the point interesting because the idea occurred to me independently when I read this in the paper: > Unrealistically optimistic financial expectations [...] can lead to excessive business entries and subsequent failures, as optimists overestimate the financial returns from entrepreneurship (de Meza et al., 2019) I thought: Do pessimists overestimate the financial returns from a regular job? It seems in many ways to be about whether/what risks are worth taking.

solatic 3y ago

The universe tends towards first chaos and then entropy. Working against these forces, to build security, comfort, and meaning, inherently work against the tide. Resistance is inherently difficult. Realists blend both pessimism and optimism: a pessimism born of recognizing the natural forces (such as most people will be overwhelmed by them), and an optimism that, with healthy choices, they can escape those forces during their lifetime.

starbugs 3y ago
> The universe tends towards first chaos and then entropy. Working against these forces, to build security, comfort, and meaning, inherently work against the tide. I am not sure I would agree. Try living in the snowy mountains without shelter and a fireplace. I'd bet optimism wouldn't help you a lot in that particular circumstance unless you'd have already secured the necessities for survival.
- solatic 3y ago
  The shelter and the fireplace are themselves expressions of optimism that it is possible to live in the snowy mountains. Pessimism notes that the shelter and fireplace will naturally fall into disrepair; optimism drives you to maintain the shelter and fireplace so that you can continue to live there for as long as you like.
  - starbugs 3y ago
    Let’s say I am a mighty evil lord who put you there against your will. I think you’d need more pessimism to anticipate risks rather than optimism to believe that you can survive. The will to survive is somewhat hardwired anyway.