If You Want To Be An Optimist, Begin By Giving Thanks

I was catching up with a friend recently and he said I seemed more optimistic, more confident in the future. The comment stuck with me over the past few weeks. And as I’ve sat with it, evaluating what could be different, I’m left with one simple answer: I’m more grateful these days.

Over the last two years, and especially since starting this blog, I’ve felt more acutely inclined toward gratitude. Whether spurred on by the feedback I’ve gotten from so many of you, or by the dopamine hit I get every time I put these thoughts into the world, the result is the same. I’m grateful to live in a time when we can exchange ideas, build conversations and find new ways to work with each other.

It’s fitting that this thought has been with me at this particular time of year.

This week, we Americans will take our great national pause to celebrate one of our earliest traditions. We’ll gather with family and friends and share a moment of gratitude. I’ve always loved this holiday. Of course the food, right? But more than that it holds all the warm feelings that welcome the holiday season without the added pressure of gift giving. Sorry, that’s just not my love language.

Because I’m decidedly nerdy though, I usually take a bit of time each year to read some of the great thanksgiving proclamations issued by presidents over the years. Roll your eyes if you must, but there are some great ones out there: Washington’s first in 1789, Lincoln’s that preceded the Gettysburg Address in 1863, and in my own lifetime the words of George W. Bush in the wake of the 9/11 attacks.

Through so many of these proclamations across the years there is a theme: regardless of the circumstance of the time, we as a people endure and continue answering the call to aspire to something more. I contend that our national optimism and that aspirational spirit are both rooted in our ability to give thanks.

Take this lesser known excerpt from my personal favorite, number 30…

We will do well then to render thanks for the good that has come to us, and show by our actions that we have become stronger, wiser, and truer by the chastenings which have been imposed upon us. We will thus prepare ourselves for the part we must take in a world which forever needs the full measure of service. We have been a most favored people. We ought to be a most generous people. We have been a most blessed people. We ought to be a most thankful. people.

President Calvin Coolidge

Not so Silent Cal hits the nail on the head in this proclamation – issued just months after he assumed the presidency upon the death of President Harding. As the nation emerged from mourning, and before Coolidge first addressed Congress as President, he laid out the formula he saw as necessary for navigating the unknown future ahead: first, give thanks for all that we have (the blessings and the lessons); second, believe in a brighter future worthy of our effort; and then choose to serve purposes greater than ourselves.

The timing of this call to action is important to understand. Just two months prior, an earthquake struck Japan. It was devastating. The death toll topped 140,000 and two of the country’s largest cities were effectively erased from the map, washed away by ensuing tsunamis. That earthquake happened in Coolidge’s second month on the job. He called on the nation to assist, and they answered.

The government did what it could through the state department. But the truly overwhelming assistance from America flowed from the pockets of average people through the Red Cross. Individuals who believed enough in the possibilities of their own futures parted with precious coin to serve others around the world who they would never meet.

I don’t call into question the generosity of other peoples. And I don’t claim America as uniquely generous – though data may support that. I do assert that our tradition of giving thanks each year prepares us to be an optimistic people – and optimistic people shoulder immense burdens.

Our willingness to serve others, at home and abroad, is predicated on a belief that our brightest days remain ahead of us. That positivity requires a secure foundation. Our founders, and our leaders along the way have known this not-so-secret formula. They understood that a generous, optimistic people must maintain a mindset of gratitude.

That lesson is so very important for each of us in our personal lives. If we wish to think abundantly, and to develop the reserves of optimism so key to our successes, we have to ground ourselves in gratitude. So, if you’re looking to make that change this year – to become a more optimistic person – begin by giving thanks.

Then have some pie.