But we don't have the luxury of pessimism. We have a moral obligation to create a better world. Staying optimistic is not effortless though. It requires intentional, proactive work. Here are some of the practices that I follow to keep my optimism sharp.
Pessimism is pointless
I can't think of a single benefit of pessimism. Pessimism is inherently harmful. "But you can't be optimistic and think positive 24/7". No shit, nobody is asserting that you should only think happy thoughts. You can be grounded in reality while understanding that pessimism serves no benefit.
Stay Productive
Bezos has a quote that's loosely summarized as "stress is the result of not taking action". I witnessed this first hand when a friend was dooming about the rise of fascism in America, until they started volunteering with a local political campaign. Productivity restores a sense of control and builds positive feedback loops.
Study history and futurism
Studying history and futurism gives me a macro understanding of time that enables a feeling of "this too shall pass". Humanity has been through worse. We are extremely resilient.
Curate feeds and social networks
I consume a dozen different news feeds everyday. I am strict about managing the content that appears in those feeds. For example, I follow a lot of founders, creators, and optimism-specific channels. I can even enjoy following the content of haters and critics, but I try to limit it to the ones who are productive about it.
I am intentional about who I spend time with. People are the average of the people that they spend the most time around. I don't want to spend time around doomers, complainers, and nihilists. We all have a moral obligation to lead, follow, or get out of the way. People who refuse to do any of the three are harmful. This does not have to make relationships into transactional formulas that measure people's optimism levels. You can still have empathy and care for pessimists, but not at the expense of your own optimism.
Success is likelier than it seems
Individuals can change the world. Individuals today have more power than at any other point in history. Most people don't realize their own strength.
"Everything around you that you call life was made up by people that were no smarter than you and you can change it, you can influence it, you can build your own things that other people can use." - Steve Jobs
Practice radical imagination
We must actively envision a world that is just. Everything is possible. Our default mode of thinking needs to reflect the reality that we can change anything within the laws of physics.
Trying and failing is still better than pessimism
The worst case scenario is that we try and fail. This is always a better alternative than not trying at all.
Lastly
No dooming before bed.