The Positivity of Negativity

Some days are good, some are bad. Some decisions are favourable, some are unfavourable.

But do we stop living our lives depending on the nature of the day, and do we really stop moving ahead considering its effects? No! We don’t. We may change the path, we may change the direction, but we move, we move ahead.

Then why do we start giving up on the sanguinity of life with each progressing failure?

Fail again, Fail better; a message, a concept, many of you might have heard before or come across and ignored just for the heck of it. But sometimes, some messages and suggestions hold a deeper meaning than intended to be perceived.

It is basically a thumbnailed version of the actual quote, “Ever tried. Ever failed. No matter. Try again. Fail again. Fail better,” by Playwright Samuel Beckett, who very practically tries to link something as demotivating as a failure with commitment, persistence and the drive to achievement; which is exactly what our entire life’s agenda is built upon, finding the light in darkness and motivating oneself to keep treading.

We often talk about maintaining a positive attitude and being optimistic in life, but do we really understand in all ways always what optimism and positivity are all about? Probably yes and no!

It is only because of pessimism that optimism prevails, and it is only because of failures that success entails.

Probably yes, probably no, depending upon the degree of efforts one puts in to achieve a certain something. Because at the end of the day, a person who has never witnessed failure, so to say, who has never come across a gloomy night does not really know the value of a bright sunny morning. It is only because of pessimism that optimism prevails, and it is only because of failures that success entails.

A look at it in the context of an everyday life incident. We, humans, are social animals and in result, we like to hang out with other people; people who we call our “friends” who fall in the category of “extended family”. But can we put every third person that we come across in the same category? No! That’s because there are only a few who we actually connect with at a deeper level. A level we only knew existed after meeting the wrong ones.

That’s the beauty of positivity; it teaches one about life and its assets by throwing them in the bosom of negativity. It teaches one to transform setbacks into a source of cultivating resilience. It teaches one the value of embracing the positives of negatives.

Although, the transformational journey from pessimism to optimism, from negativity to positivity, from darkness to light is also linked to developing a creative mindset. Negative energies when breathed out in the form of creativity and art result into the fabrication of incredibly unique creations, in return transporting an individual to a state of desired satisfaction and thus, regained optimism in life.

Kurt Vonnegut famously wrote, “We are what we pretend to be, so we must be careful about what we pretend to be.“

Each and every phenomenon, each and every human activity is connected to the other in one form or the other; be it negative energies, or a negative influence, be it social taboos or empowerment, be it a phenomenon as devastating as death or as miraculous as birth, be it failures in life or success, be it a vicious cycle of lies or an entangled truth, be it the testing hard times or the satisfactory good ones, each and every incident holds a repelling effect in our lives making way for what follows.

If there are sorrows then joys will follow, if there are tears then smiles will follow, if the times are difficult then a solution will follow; all we should strive to do is keep marching, keep treading, the rest will follow. It will automatically follow, you never know, I never know.

“Asking people to spend just a minute imagining a close friend standing up at their funeral and reflecting on their personal and professional legacy helps them to identify their long-term goals and assess the degree to which they are progressing toward making those goals a reality,” Richard Wiseman wrote in his book, 59 Seconds: Change Your Life in Under a Minute.

Thus, pressing the very issue I started with, Why do we still choose to give up on sanguinity with progressive failures?

And interestingly, what you do is not always what you are. Here’s why!