Discounting Positives: Lack Thinking

ME: I first need to focus on school more and if that doesn’t work i will have to stop going out with my girlfriend.

Kerr’s observation on “The folly of rewarding A while hoping for B is true today, simply illustrates the sometimes fouled up rewards systems that most companies have in place. Fouled up in the sense that most companies wrongly reward not so positive behaviours while hoping and expecting for better ones.

As I found out at choir camp over the summer, a Cappella was doing a compliment circle, where everyone in the circle gives each person a compliment. Naturally, I was concerned I’d give someone a better compliment than I gave someone else, on accident or because I knew them longer. But I hadn’t expected the compliments I received.

There are many different views on positive thinking whether it is to be positive all the time as suggested by the film The Secret, be a realist and don’t be delusional as stated by Barbara Ehrenreich in her speech “How Positive Thinking Undermines America”, or just be somewhere in between such as a person who is optimistic but not to the point where they expect something they want to come out of the blue, they have to work for it.

An article written by Barbara Enhrenreich – “The Power of Negative Thinking” was published in New York Times in September 2008, a hard time otherwise known economic collapse of the World. Enhrenreich writes that greed and speculation are the two phenomenon responsible for the crisis. Enhrenreich defines positive thinking at a time as a “delusional optimism”, effect of which was over exaggerated and overvalued, “Positive thinking is endemic to academic culture – from weight loss programs to cancer support groups – and in the last two decades it has put down deep roots in the corporate world as well.” (Enhrenreich 270) Most importantly, Enhrenreich claims that Americans were not “deluded optimists” in the past. Visualizing success in her opinion became the guiding tool of a time. As summarized by Peter Theil in his book Zero to One, Americans were in a state of definite optimism up to 1980. Later, it has turned into indefinite optimism where

Counterfactual thinking is the cognitive process in which individuals can simulate alternative realities, to think about how things could have turned out differently, with statements such as ‘what if’ and ‘if only’. Counterfactuals can be either upward, in which alternative realities are improved, or downward, in which alternative realities are worsened. Reflecting on previous outcomes can make individuals experience regret and this review will focus on the effects of counterfactual thinking and feelings of regret, which has been referred to as a ‘counterfactual emotion’.

Since the release of 1984 by George Orwell in 1949, the word ‘doublethink’ as well as a few others such as ‘Newspeak’ became somewhat ingrained in the vocabulary of well-read individuals. The protagonist, Winston Smith, describes ‘doublethink’ as “To know and not to know, to be conscious of complete truthfulness while telling carefully constructed lies, to hold simultaneously two opinions which cancelled out, knowing them to be contradictory and believing in both of them, to use logic against logic, to repudiate morality while laying claim to it” (Orwell, 35). He also describes it as “The power of holding two contradictory beliefs in one's mind simultaneously, and accepting both of them... To tell deliberate lies while genuinely believing in them, to forget any fact that has become inconvenient, and then, when it becomes necessary again, to draw it back from oblivion for just as long as it is needed, to deny the existence of objective reality and all the while to take account of the reality which one denies – all this is indispensably necessary” (Orwell, 214). Essentially, the term mean to hold and believe two contradictory ideas/opinions. These ideas and opinions can contradict, logically, morally, and factually. Doublethink can both attack an idea and defend it. Doublethink can represent a solution that only aids the problem. There are many uses of doublethink in our present-day societies that are used globally. For example, discrimination against race, gender, and

As a student I can do now and later as a health care processional to work towards the ideas presented in the videos is positive psychology being positive in the healthcare by simple act of kindness, gratitude in the healthcare can lead to a positive well-being practices. Being positive in health care processional to work is a positive health, and important to physical health for ourselves as well as the patients. In the articles is explained that a patient having a positive possesses has a healthy live and live longer, while negative possesses are the opposite. Health processionals can ask patient to be more positive, optimistic can protect a patient from infections, recover quickly, etc. As a student now and later it is important to remain

The main barriers to the successful use of coaching can be caused by individual self-doubt. Hindmarch (2008) defines self-doubt as the negative feeling associated with evaluating one’s abilities and perceiving them as inadequate to carry out a piece of work effectively. Therefore, this barrier is a work related phenomenon which may affect performance at work in an adverse way. Leonardeli and Arkin (2002) found that when doubts about one’s abilities are not addressed, then damage to self-esteem can follow. This can develop into a negative evaluation of one’s self at a more profound level, and therefore potentially be more damaging. It seems that positive beliefs about oneself may augment performance. Taylor and brown (1985) indicate that excessively positive self-evaluation are characteristics of normal individuals that helps lead to

I personally enjoy giving complements because they make people feel good about themselves. I also do it without think about it, if I see something that I like or if someone is dressed up I usually will say something to them about it out of instinct. However, I kind of feel awkward when people compliment me. Its not that I don’t like being complimented, I just feel awkward and say thank you and change the subject.

Congratulation on your promotions and achievements and thank you for your informative post. In addition, Warrell (2014) defines Impostor Syndrome as a group of feelings of incompetence although evidence may indicate that the opposite is true . It is a persistent of self-doubt and a feeling of intellectual fraudulence experienced internally. Impostor Syndrome may be contributed as luck or being at the right place at the right time rather than ability and some may live in fear that they will eventually be exposed as an intellectual imposters (Hughes, 2014). Overcoming the Impostor Syndrome requires self-acceptance by understanding that perfection is not necessary to feel worthy of the success or any other tributes earned. Also, lowering the

My anti-thinking habit is strategic ambivalence. It affects me in all aspects of my life as student, as a RA, as a teacher, and in my personal life. I can come up with really good lesson plans or activities but then I become unsure in the process of carrying out those activities and then I start over. This is a problem because the time I waste being uncertain and starting over. As a teacher my time will become valuable and limited. I will not have the luxury to start something over half way though because I am unsure that it will work, or I am undecided because maybe I wanted to do the other activity.

Most of us want honest politicians who tell us clearly what they will do in office, then stick to that once elected. The actual reality is that politicians don’t behave that way, yet they get elected by our vote and we sustain this reward system.

I agree the more you praise the individual the closer they are to praising themselves. When people feel good about themselves and the work they perform, it makes them want to do better. I could be categorized as one of those people. My performance reviews have always been happy times for me. After going over my review, I find myself on a high for weeks. My boss will then critique me on something that was not done right and I go into “I don’t care” mode. I get defensive and my attitude reflects in my work. It takes longer for me to accomplish that task and I do not put as much effort into it as when I am feeling good. Giving praise gets people in the routine of praising themselves. I have a habit of patting myself on the back when I feel I have done a good job or figured out a solution to a problem that

Good posture is defined as having a forward tilted pelvis and having the rib cage aligned with the pelvis, wide and long shoulders, but not squeezing the shoulder blades, and having an elongated head. When sitting, the torso and the legs should form a 90-degree angle, and the knees should also be at a 90-degree angle. Even though that is the definition of having good posture, sitting position should be adjusted to the user’s comfort. If sitting position is forced, then more harm is being done to the body. Poor posture has many negative effects if not treated. Such as rounded shoulders, potbelly, bent knees when standing and walking, muscle fatigue, and headaches. Also, postural mechanisms problems may occur with poor