There's a lot of negativity in most threads talking shit about shitty people, so let's balance this out by talking about amazingly positive people we know. Off the top of my head, I can think of two people. Last night I got kicked out of a bar for the first time in my life. This is the first time I got kicked out of any place so I was quite amused. My friends were pissed as hell though. We were at an extremely crowded bar where he couldn't find a seat so we were standing (like most of the people there) when one of the employees was really rude to us about not standing in her way and literally elbowed a few of my friends. My friends turned around and told her off, at which the employee called security and kicked us out lol. My friends were very peeved at this seeming injustice and tried to argue with the bouncer and then the manager outside of the bar. Amongst all of this happening this guy we know was singing and dancing and chatting people up while they passed, and overall was not giving a fuck. Most of my friends let this incident ruin their night, but this dude, he didn't let circumstances affect him and was having the time of his life. I met him only a couple hours prior to this and I liked him immediately after. Another is a girl I know who seems to see everything as positive. What most people would see as a tedious chore, she sees it as an awesome challenge. I liked her very quickly when I met her due to her bubbly disposition but she impressed me more when while we were drinking beers together, I accidentally tipped over my glass and spilled my stout (with hints of chocolate and coffee) all over the table in front of her, getting some of it on her bag. I apologized but she was like, "Don't worry about it! This is a dirty old bag, and I bet it smells better now thanks to your chocolate stout!" My friend works with her and he says while most are downtrodden by the pressures of the job, this girl is always upbeat and goes out of her way to do more work. Awesome chick, I want to hang out more with her and the guy I mentioned above. Forgive me for tooting my own horn, but I'm also going to add myself to the list. Last night after the bar incident, we went to another bar where a drunk dude accidentally spit out his drink all over my back. Pretty gross. The guy apologized profusely like a million times but I was more interested in cleaning myself up. Afterwards, I resumed chilling. One of my friends caught some of the blast on his arm and was pissed and he remarked at how I was so calm about this and always positive. If it was him that caught most of the blast, he would have gotten in the dude's face. I don't know if I would say I'm a positive dude; I think I'm just being logical as but I don't know how getting angry or aggressive would solve anything from a logical perspective. Ultimately what I want is to be happy and have fun, and I can't accomplish that by getting angry. Do you have any awesome, positive people in your life?
Great thread. First guy sounds awesome. Last guy sounds like a real piece of trash. My nephews are probably the best example. But I feel like using kids as an example is cheating. So I'll say my brother. He seems to always be able to find a solution to things. Not just advice. It goes beyond that. Almost like assurance. He's a real wise dude. A real inspiration. Things weren't always like that either.
There are only two ways to be. As good as can be or as bad as can be. Both are active and true at the same time in any living moment but its a choice each makes to decide which perspective to go with. I enjoy both. I find being as good as can be makes me feel good and happy, and contentbwith what I have. As bad as can be is a little more difficult to deal with emotionally but I find it slightly better for introspection and ironically(imo) much better for productivity. Probably my aunt who is a catholic missionary is the most positive person I know. She literally radiates an aura of warmth and love every single time Ive been around her. Amazing person and probably the only one I personally know of who is always positive and joyful. To be fair most people I know are very postive which is probably why Im so naturally contented myself. To get that taste of the dark side of mind that I feel is crucial to my own mental health I have to force myself into it. Anyway I ramble now but I will say that balance is key.
I was really enjoying this thread until the part where you noted your stout had hints of chocolate and coffee in parentheses. I had to stop reading there.
I try to be positive about most things. I have a successful marriage, healthy kids, a large support network of family and friends, a fulfilling job that pays well, and I live and work in a nice area. Fact is, I often interact with people in very stressful or trying circumstances. I think of it as a variation of the "M Bison" speech: This scary, humiliating and surreal experience that will affect you for life? This is my Tuesday. If I can make that easier to deal with (and, conveniently, make you easier to deal with also,) why wouldn't I do that?
My little sister is probably the most positive person I know, but to a scary, militant and almost delusional degree. She literally will tell you to stop talking to her if you mention anything "negative" (i.e. that tragedies happen or people somewhere in the world are suffering, or even that bureaucracy is a drag). I can't get behind head-in-the-sand-ism, but it is what it is I guess. The most typically positive person I know is a good friend of mine, who could probably be construed as living the dream: wife, two young sons, house, stable job in a field he enjoys and plenty of friends and family around him. Whenever I hang out with him it is difficult to be my usual cynical, pessimistic self, which can only be a good thing.
My wife, and it's not close, as far as the people I know. Easily the most up beat person in my circle of friends. It can actually be a little off putting until you get to know her and realize it's not an act. She's a clinical psychologist as well with her doctorate who sees patients daily so hopefully we'll have more people with those skills soon. We are a pretty good combo as I'm mostly a cynic, but she's definitely moved me more into,the positive arena.
Yes it's fucking awesome. I don't consider having your head in the sand a positive thing. Positive people I know can stay positive in face of "bad" things. Not harping on those kind of things is what they're good at. Some people avoid anything negative because they don't want to deal with the bad feelings that come up within them when they hear of tragedies. That's not an emotionally healthy thing in my opinion.
Hired this chick years ago. Really smart, super outgoing and just a really positive person. Her positivity was infectious which was ideal for the job, since it was leading people all day. Fell out of touch with her over the years, but saw on Facebook she did a Ted Talk recently, so I'm sure she's doing something right with her life these days. But I always knew she would.
