The economy is terrible. Swine flu is everywhere. It is hurricane season. So what is there to be positive about? This is a difficult question to answer sometimes. How do you stay positive when the negatives are all around you? Anyone can be positive when things are going right and you are on top of the World, but how about in the dark days?

Being and staying positive has a lot to do with long term attitudes and core beliefs. Most people who can stay positive in tough times have an attitude of optimism: when all is said and done, the World is a decent place and most people are pretty decent. This is optimism. On the other hand, people with a pessimistic attitude can even turn Christmas into a downer. Nothing can make them happy. Positive and optimistic people can stay the course and come through tragedy after tragedy and still look at the world as a relatively good place.

Where does this strength come from? Some have argued, and genetic research tends to back them up, that we are born this way. Recent genetic research has identified “happy” genes indicating that some people are naturally happy and optimistic while others are “Debbie Downers” (i.e. negative people).

Psychologists will argue that a person’s World-view is shaped by their environment and experiences (which form our attitudes). Attitude is the screen or filter through which we interpret the world. For example, consider that a baby is born. One person looks at the event as a blessing from God and is filled with joy while another person greets the child with anger and despair since it’s another mouth to feed. The event was the same; a baby was born. However the event’s value and interpretation depended on the observer’s personal attitude.

So, why bother being positive? One main reason is that things change and eventually something good will happen. You cannot get any enjoyment out of life, good times or bad, if you do not stay positive.