"Positivity"

What does "positivity" mean to you? There is obviously some line between being happy and "thinking positive". Do you believe that you can make things happen or make things turn around by "thinking positively"?

I was listening to an interview with author Barbara Ehrenreich on NPR. She had lots of interesting things to say. I haven't read her, but the interview was about her book, Bright-sided, "How the Relentless Promotion of Positive Thinking Has Undermined America".

This got me thinking about numerous questions about the truth and the value behind the "power of positive thinking", and also people's perception of what is positive, and their reaction to negativity. Do you fanatically try to exclude negativity, and "negative people" from your life? Has it helped? Or does it take more energy to force yourself to remain positive than is worth it? Is it best to just "flow" along?

As a simple day to day example of being "positive", it's common especially in America for people to greet absolute strangers. Americans are known to be cheerful, friendly, upbeat and all the "good stuff". When I go to pick up coffee, the barista routinely asks me "How are you?" or "How's your day going?" Sometimes I routinely respond with a "fine" or "good", actually mostly, cause I am preoccupied anyway. Sometimes I say something more about the day. This takes me to the question of how often people really want to know how one's day is going. I understand that these questions, at this point, are often just synonymous with saying "hello" or "hi". But my question is directed towards you, the reader. How often do you respond to this question literally? And when you ask someone "How are you?" do you really want an honest reply from the other person? If the person at the other end were to start out answering your question with "Shitty, I seem to be coming down with something, my wife just lost her job, and our dog hurt himself", or something like that, would you think "I'd rather not have heard that"?

I don't expect people to be "positive" all the time. I feel stifled myself if I am not able to express negative criticism when I want to, say something sarcastic once in a way or laugh when something silly happens. At the same time, I hate constant complainers. It's perhaps the fact that they "are" a certain way (unhappy mostly) that's bothersome to me, rather than the fact that they are "expressing" it. But I am not one of those people who'll necessarily and aggressively *try* to find something positive in *everything* (I have known such people), or say positive affirmations to myself everyday. I accept the fact that there are some things in the world that are "negative" through and through...

That said, dear reader, do you mostly carry on day to day conversations completely honestly? Or do you find yourself restricting your expressions at times, due to pressure to be a "positive" person? How does this differ, depending on whether you're in a social setting or a professional setting? I imagine it could differ based on who the person at the other end is, how close you are to them, etc.

Lastly about your view of success and your means to get it- what's your usual path to success in any mission you set out on? Do you think perseverance alone is enough, or do you think it's necessary to "think positively" or believe that "you just need to want something to have it"?

(Or if you're one of those people who think everything is predestined, all these questions are moot :-))