Optimism and Wellbeing: Living Well Today and Believing in Tomorrow
By Victor Perton, The Optimism Man
Optimism strengthens our sense of wellbeing, and a sense of wellbeing strengthens our optimism. Believing that good things lie ahead enriches life today. Living well today gives us further reason to believe in tomorrow.
Wellbeing is a positive state encompassing health, happiness, meaning, purpose and belonging. It includes the freedom and opportunity to develop our potential, build fulfilling relationships and contribute to the lives of others. A sense of wellbeing is our personal experience of that state: how we feel about our lives and how we judge the quality of the life we are living.
Optimism is a belief that good things will happen and that things will work out in the end. That belief leaves room for hardship, uncertainty and disappointment. We can acknowledge what is painful, face what needs to change and still believe that good things lie ahead.
The science supports this relationship. Research links optimism with greater life satisfaction, purpose and healthier habits, constructive coping and better reported sleep. Research also shows that the relationship works both ways: optimism predicts later life satisfaction and positive feelings, and those aspects of wellbeing predict later optimism. Practical exercises, such as imagining your best possible self, which we include in our Habits of an Optimist, have improved both optimism and wellbeing. Together, these findings support my view that optimism and a sense of wellbeing reinforce each other.
A sense of wellbeing often finds expression in the words “life is good”. Optimism adds the belief that good things lie ahead. There is goodness to experience, meaning to discover, relationships to deepen and something worthwhile to contribute.
Optimists often fare better because they face problems more directly and adapt more readily when circumstances cannot be changed. Believing that a worthwhile outcome remains possible gives us a reason to seek support, persevere and take constructive action.
Our relationships matter too. We can nurture our own optimism and support others' optimism. Listen with interest. Offer encouragement. Help someone recognise a strength, a possibility or a next step.
Our Habits of an Optimist offer 20 everyday practices to strengthen optimism through how we think, speak, connect and act. They began during Melbourne’s COVID lockdowns through my collaboration with Nóirín Mosley and Jenny Boymal.
Smile and say hello. Ask, “What’s been the best thing in your day?” Ask others what makes them optimistic, and consider your own answer. Spend time with people who encourage you to see possibilities, and offer that encouragement in return.
Make time for gratitude, laughter, meditation and mindfulness. Enjoy nature and beautiful places. Practise kindness. Pay attention to your thoughts and words. Learn something new, recognise progress and imagine your best possible self. Then take a step towards that future.
Choose one habit and practise it for a week. Notice what changes in your attention, your conversations and your experience of the day.
Some governments and international governmental organisations certainly believe they can.
The OECD has established a Centre on Well-being, Inclusion, Sustainability and Equal Opportunity, and a Working Party on Well-being Statistics. Its approach considers people’s living conditions and their experience of life, using evidence to help shape better policy.
New Zealand introduced its Wellbeing Budget in 2019, although I question how deeply wellbeing shaped its spending decisions. Japan has worked with the OECD to develop measures of wellbeing and whether economic progress benefits people broadly. Wales has placed wellbeing duties in law, requiring designated public bodies to set objectives and report on progress while considering future generations.
Australia’s Measuring What Matters framework aims to measure wellbeing nationally. The Australian Capital Territory Government produces a Wellbeing Budget Statement, intended to link budget decisions with people’s quality of life.
For me, the test is whether these efforts help people live well and feel that life is going well. Can governments strengthen belonging, expand opportunity and give people good reasons to feel optimistic about their future?
Optimism and a sense of wellbeing deserve to be nurtured together. Connection, enjoyment and purpose give us reasons to look forward. Belief in the future encourages us to participate, persevere and care for ourselves and others.
What helps you feel that you are living well? And what makes you optimistic?