Evening star. [volume], March 20, 1955, Page 7, Image 116

About Evening star. [volume] (Washington, D.C.) 1854-1972

Image provided by: Library of Congress, Washington, DC

                
%'‘w[fi J " ,, rim <
J | t | ffjfc rc wccT
HOW TO BE AN S?^HS
Optimist... m|
TO LIVE in the world as it is today requires
optimism. That’s pretty self-evident. The
trouble is. we need the right kind of optimism.
Ambrose Bierce’s definition of it as “the doc
trine that Mack is white” is the wrong kind.
Over-optimism can be as bad as pessimism
both for nations and for individuals, for it does
not prepare us to meet the crisis when it comes.
What we need, of course, is a happy medium
between optimism and pessimism but with
the accent on “happy.” The ideal state of
mincT say psychologists, is one that leans more
to the sunny than the dark side. The person
who refuses to be carried away but who isn't
afraid to anticipate something good is the one
who will best survive the strains and pressures
of life in our time.
In the belief that you would like to find out
how you stack up against this happy medium,
we have had a batch of questions prepared.
Don’t be disturbed if you can't see how they
touch on optimism. Answer the questions
first, well explain later. They are all drawn
from the basic attitudes which, psychologists
To face up to our strained times, it’s vital
to be able to look on the bright side. But
there’s danger in over-optimism. Try this
novel quiz to see if you are on the beam . . .
by Priscilla Jaquith
Photograph hr Ingeborg We Bmimarq
say, separate those who see the doughnut
from those who see the hole.
1. WTien raffle tickets are offered, do you
usually take one?
2. Do you grow a garden or keep houseplants?
3. When you start preparing for a vacation,
does the chore of stuffing the suitcase and get
ting the children ready discourage you?
4. If you seriously disagree with your friends.
do you keep still and hope the subject will
blow over?
S. When you finish a job whether it’s mak
ing a cabinet or a cake do you see nothing
but ways in which you can do the work better
next time? ’*•
4. If you were offered a SI,OOO cruise or SSOO
to put in the bank, would you take the cruise?
7. If you have children, answer A; if not, B:
A. Do you think children are hard to bring
up and in the end go off and forget you?
B. Do you think a person without children
misses the main part of life?
8. Are you annoyed if someone you are col
laborating with jokes and kids as he works?
8. When you step into a room beautifully
furnished except for one ugly chair or table, do
you have a hankering to correct that one flaw?
18. If you are unmarried, answer A; if not. B:
A. Do you fall hard for someone and then
a few months later discover someone much
more attractive?
B. Do you think your husband or wife is
the one person in the world for you and you
couldn’t get along without him or her?
11. If a better job at more money was offered
in a distant city, would you take a chance?
12. Do you think that when you retire you
will be able to do pretty much what you want?
13. To the praises of others do you generally
say. “Yes. but”? For instance, to the comment.
“What a beautiful desk." would you reply.
Continu'd on (mgr 31
7