“The Pessimist Sees Difficulty In Every Opportunity. The Optimist Sees Opportunity In Every Difficulty.” – Winston Churchill

Success in life and at work is all about perspective. Churchill’s quote is worth its weight in gold.

If you see everything as a challenge and an obstacle, you will be indecisive, and it will lead to inaction or make a half-hearted attempt, and the worst fears will come true.

A sunny outlook and a can-do attitude can help you get to high altitudes.  Optimism can be your jet fuel. The Power of Positive Thinking can get you farther.

Suppose you are the project manager and if you enter every project with a pessimistic outlook each problem looks more significant than it is and your negativity will seep into the ongoing activities and devolve into crises.

Similarly, if you feel the stock market will crash anytime now and never invest your money, instead of perhaps dollar-cost-averaging into the market, your inaction and inability to take action will inhibit any growth of your nest egg.

Or assume you go to a job interview with the attitude, “Why would they hire a guy (or girl) like me. I am a nobody,” your thought will materialize into that result.

Optimistic people, on the other hand, tend to have an approach to life and work that is positive, energetic, and an ability to see every mishap as progress and a step closer to success.

Do you see the successful baseball sluggers who tend to look at each strike as a step closer to the next homer?

Or the entrepreneurs who change the world – despite skeptics who question their vision, product, and approach. We would not be enjoying many of the products and services if the entrepreneurs succumbed to negativity and saw difficulty in every opportunity.

So, a simple lesson for us is to stop being a pessimist who sees the difficulty in every opportunity and instead embraces every struggle as an opportunity.  Treat each setback as a milestone and a mark of your mettle to bounce back.  Onwards and upwards.

Agree? Disagree? Thoughts?