Why you should (almost) always look on the bright side of life
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Business | Bartleby<br>Why you should (almost) always look on the bright side of life<br>The benefits—and dangers—of optimism<br>Share
Illustration: Paul Blow
May 21st 2026|4 min read
It pays to be an optimist. Upbeat types tend to be in better health. A meta-analysis by Alan Rozanski, a cardiologist, and his co-authors found that optimism was associated with a lower risk of cardiovascular events. They also tend to be resilient. Optimists are likely to see setbacks as temporary and attributable to external circumstances, whereas pessimists regard reverses as a verdict on their own enduring weaknesses.
This article appeared in the Business section of the print edition under the headline “Almost always look on the bright side of life”
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