Episode 161: Optimism In Today’s World?! Seriously!? Why You Want To Practice Optimism And How

The Evolved Caveman w/ Dr. John Schinnerer

At some level, all 7.3 billion people on this planet want the same thing — happiness. So why is happiness seemingly so elusive? What IS happiness? And how do we get more of it in our daily lives?

One tool for greater happiness is realistic optimism. This is done by changing your explanatory styles. In other words, learn to choose the interpretation of each situation in a way that serves you best.

Some of the topics covered:

Why is optimism good for you?

What are the explanatory styles?

How do we best interpret a good outcome to increase our happiness? A bad outcome?

In a world filled with pain and suffering, how do we sustain happiness?

Dan Tomasulo on the podcast awhile back about the change to Marty Seligman’s seminal work on learned helplessness. He recently updated that work with the realization that helplessness is not learned; it is actually our default state at birth. And we must learn how to help ourselves. How did this come about?
Henry Edwards Bio:

Henry’s mission is to accentuate human goodness and moral progress to promote greater wellbeing. For the past 30+ years he has taught a variety of subjects—history, English, social sciences, math, science—at all levels. In his teaching and writing he promotes a realistic—and optimistic—view of the world based on broad trends supported by data. Henry’s book The Daily Better: 365 Reasons for Optimism (available on Amazon) was published in November 2019, and he is currently working on his next book Positive Psychology for Teens. He is on faculty at the University of Pennsylvania's Master of Applied Positive Psychology program and is the Wellbeing Director at The New School of Northern Virginia. His volunteer work has included co-leading a support trip to a school and orphanage in Kenya and leading a 200-mile hike to raise $25,000 to benefit his school’s mountain campus.
**Please note: For the first time in two years, Dr. John is taking a break from releasing new podcast episodes during the summer months in 2022. New episodes of The Evolved Caveman will return in the Fall of 2022.
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Editing/Mixing/Mastering by: Brian Donat of B/Line Studios www.BLineStudios.com