Optimist or Pessimist?

Discussion in 'General Discussions' started by JustAni, Oct 22, 2008.

  1. JustAni

    JustAni Silver IL'ite

    Messages:
    1,055
    Likes Received:
    36
    Trophy Points:
    83
    Gender:
    Female
    In general, what are you an optimist or a pessimist?
     
    Loading...

  2. Drpreethis

    Drpreethis Gold IL'ite

    Messages:
    3,315
    Likes Received:
    186
    Trophy Points:
    160
    Gender:
    Female
    Love to be an Optimist thouroughly but I am also a prepared pessimist ! [​IMG]
     
  3. Srama

    Srama Finest Post Winner

    Messages:
    10,075
    Likes Received:
    11,569
    Trophy Points:
    538
    Gender:
    Female
    I am undoubtedly an optimist - infact when I was working in my earlier days, I had this/something similar printed out on my table - 'An Optimist wakes and says "Good morning God" while a pessimist says "good God, Morning!".
     
  4. dolorcosta

    dolorcosta Senior IL'ite

    Messages:
    324
    Likes Received:
    4
    Trophy Points:
    18
    Gender:
    Female
    I am neither optimistic nor pessimistic- I am realistic !

    Regards.
     
  5. shvap_786

    shvap_786 Gold IL'ite

    Messages:
    5,847
    Likes Received:
    163
    Trophy Points:
    183
    Gender:
    Female
    Most of the time optimist...
     
  6. JustAni

    JustAni Silver IL'ite

    Messages:
    1,055
    Likes Received:
    36
    Trophy Points:
    83
    Gender:
    Female
    It wonderful to know that those who responded are optimist.... as meeting such people certainly beam positive rays in you!

    Thank you! :bowdown

    PS: I'm optimistic as well!
     
  7. BhargaviChakravarthy

    BhargaviChakravarthy Bronze IL'ite

    Messages:
    886
    Likes Received:
    29
    Trophy Points:
    48
    Gender:
    Female
    Dear justani,
    Superb question??:bowdown :cheers

    I am trying to be optimistic but in reality i am a mixture of both.

    BC
     
  8. gopalan1937

    gopalan1937 Silver IL'ite

    Messages:
    311
    Likes Received:
    149
    Trophy Points:
    93
    Gender:
    Male
    All of us are a mixture of both. Pure optimists and pure pessimists are rare. An optimist takes risks. He/She has a tendency to persist in spite of knowing there are dangers in performing a task. Pessimist blames himself/herself and thinks he/she can do nothing right. Never even attempts. Both optimists and pessimists contribute to our society.

    The optimist invents the airplane and the pessimist the parachute. ~Gil Stern
    An interesting story about a perennial optimist. (Copyright is not mine - emailed to me)
    Many years ago in a small Indian village, a farmer had the misfortune of owing a large sum of money to a village moneylender. The Moneylender, who was old and ugly, fancied the farmer's beautiful daughter. So he proposed a bargain. He said he would forego the farmer's debt if he could marry his daughter. Both the farmer and his daughter were horrified by the proposal. So the cunning money-lender suggested that they let Providence decide the matter. He told them that he would put a black bebble and a white pebble into an empty money bag. Then the girl would have to pick one pebble from the bag.

    1) If she picked the black pebble, she would become his wife and her father's debt would be forgiven.

    2) If she picked the white pebble she need not marry him and her father's debt would still be forgiven.

    3) But if she refused to pick a pebble, her father would be thrown into jail.

    They were standing on a pebble strewn path in the farmer's field. As they talked, the moneylender bent over to pick up two pebbles. As he picked them up, the sharp-eyed girl noticed that he had picked up two black pebbles and put them into the bag. He then asked the girl to pick a pebble from the bag.
    Now, imagine that you were standing in the field. What would you have done if you were the girl? Careful analysis would produce three possibilities:

    1. The girl should refuse to take a pebble.

    2. The girl should show that there were two black pebbles in the bag and expose the money-lender as a cheat.

    3. The girl should pick a black pebble and sacrifice herself in order to save her father from his debt and imprisonment.

    Well, being an optimist here is what she did....

    The girl put her hand into the money bag and drew out a pebble. Without Looking at it, she fumbled and let it fall onto the pebble-strewn path where it immediately became lost among all the other pebbles. "Oh, how clumsy of me," she said. "But never mind, if you look into the bag for the one that is left, you will be able to tell which pebble I picked." Since the remaining pebble is black, it must be assumed that she had picked the white one. And since the money-lender dared not admit his dishonesty, the girl changed what seemed an impossible situation into an extremely advantageous one.


    Gopalan
     
  9. Sriniketan

    Sriniketan IL Hall of Fame

    Messages:
    12,521
    Likes Received:
    1,436
    Trophy Points:
    445
    Gender:
    Female
    I am an optimist by nature but it has been tested many times..still in process..

    Gopalan Sir,
    The story is very interesting and shows the height of optimism..at the time of a calamity..
    Hats off to the village girl..

    sriniketan
     
  10. JustAni

    JustAni Silver IL'ite

    Messages:
    1,055
    Likes Received:
    36
    Trophy Points:
    83
    Gender:
    Female
    That was a real nice piece to share with us Gopalan.

    I got to take a print out & say the story to my daughter..... :thumbsup

    Thanks!
     

Share This Page