Personal Development

We Are All In The Gutter. But Some Of Us Are Looking At The Stars.

5 Powerful Ways To Stay Optimistic During Tough Times

Gutter and Stars, the two different worlds, poles apart, the mud and the heaven. Consider the wistfulness of that image, of someone lying in the gutter, but gazing up at those bright stars in the heaven.

The quote comes from Lady Windermere’s Fan, a play Oscar Wilde wrote in the early years of his career. When we look at it in context, it takes on quite a different meaning. A beautiful poetic expression, it represents an extremely highest form of ‘optimism’ we all can relate.

‘The Gutter’ is a metaphor for our sufferings, pains, unfulfilled dreams, our own gutter of sorts. This is a place where we have nought but despair, melancholy, hopelessness. And hence, being in the gutter is an expression of utter despair, of having gown down as low as one possibly could go.

‘Some of us are looking at the stars’ expresses that there are those who have goals, that they aspire to move beyond their present circumstances and that they just do not wish to remain there in the gutter and bemoan their fate.

While just looking at the stars alone is not enough to achieve the goals yet that hope lies beneath each one of us, that yearning to be something, is what makes us human.

The Latin proverb ‘Per Aspera Ad Astra’ meaning ‘Through hardships to the stars’ has the same expression with intense optimism lies within it.

‘Optimism is the faith that leads to achievement. Nothing can be done without hope and confidence.’ ~ Helen Keller

Optimism - See The World Through Rose-Tinted Glasses

Optimism is one of the noblest virtues one can possess when it comes to facing adverse circumstances in life. It is not about being positive but all about our approach towards ‘negative’ while keeping the fire of hope burning.

According to Seligman, being an optimist is mainly rooted in how we approach the ‘negative’.

‘Optimists see the world through rose-tinted glasses. They operate from the deeper level and keep their ‘Optimism Muscle’ turned on all the time which they further use to transform all their challenges into opportunities for greater purposes.’

But why rose-tinted glasses are worth wearing?

Well, bitter experiences or better experiences what you will choose? Of course, you will go with better. Right? And that’s what optimists do.

‘Optimists churn out better from the bitter.’

In Lemony Snicket’s ‘A series of unfortunate events’, Klaus repeatedly rescues his family out of perilous ventures such as a fast-approaching train, where he manages to divert the tracks by accessing the lever from their car. The young boy’s got one thing figured for sure ‘there always is a silver lining to every dark cloud’.

Optimism - Cultivate Thy Muscle

People with a better outlook on life are always those who consciously choose to look beyond what may seem to be a hurdle or invalidation. Focus on the tools and resources you have at your disposal, and set your mind out to solve the task to the best of your ability- because you have got to prove only to yourself how capable you truly are.

1. Self-Motivation Is Powerful: Always have the drive to excel at what you do. Not for others, but for yourself. A growth-oriented mindset triggers a person to achieve in their chosen sphere, and thus provides a gratifying experience. Self- motivation creates a feeling of self- satisfaction, which then makes you more confident at what you do.

Confidence is a power booster when it comes to facing challenges, in turn yielding a virtuous circle of optimism.

2. Gratitude Expression: Expressing gratefulness is one of the simplest yet powerful things humans can do to each other. This very act shows that you do not take things for granted and understand the significance it imparts to you and hence encourages you to pursue life with a better outlook.

The net result is that both you and people around you learn to be more optimistic towards matters that concern you, which is how it becomes a win-win for everyone involved.

3. Staying Happy: Being happy could mean different things to different people. Happiness is a concept that is achieved when one attains a goal, develops a relationship, acquires wealth and so on. It is the culmination of all things that one finds meaning in life.

A person is most efficient when he is in a happy state when he can worry less and achieve more. This state of mind can be controlled to an extent by us, and over time become a daily habit to have a fulfilling life.

On the whole, it leads to an optimistic person who can handle circumstances with more stability.

4. Being True To Yourself: Being honest with ourself seems to be an easy feat to achieve, but in actuality demands the most courage. To admit to yourself when you have committed an error, or hurt someone, or maybe even let yourself down, means you have to;

• Realise the intensity of the action,
• Salvage what you can,
• And most importantly, forgive yourself.

This comes with the maturity of course and can only be achieved by learning from personal experiences.

5. Being One Of A Kind: We, as human beings, are more than our thoughts, and deserve to be analyzed and tried out in more ways than one, though it may take a couple of years to do so until we can finally figure out who we are. All it requires is patience and optimism. Being unique is a trait that optimists inherently possess.

Our individuality decides where our focus lies -‘the stars’. How we choose to see the world as opposed to how the world actually is. Down here or up there!

It doesn’t have to do with what we work as, or even where we grew up. All that matters is what we eventually want to be. Cultivate perfected optimism by moving forward and learning from past experiences, and remember to treat yourself with the respect that you deserve.

And, as you ramble on through life, whatever be your goal, keep your eye upon the doughnut, and not upon the hole!