The Power of Optimism

Dear Friends,

The mission of the Life is Good Playmakers is to spread the power of optimism to help kids heal from the early childhood trauma often associated with growing up amidst poverty, violence, and severe illness.

We work towards this mission by supporting the childcare professionals – we call them Playmakers - who dedicate their careers to building healing, life-changing relationships with the children in their care.  

We believe that optimism is the single most important trait that a child can have in order to be resilient and to lead a good life. Playmakers work hard to ensure that nothing destroys the inherent optimism of children. Nothing.

Now if you ask people what they believe to be the single most important trait that a child can have, optimism is not at the top of most people’s list. I know this because I’ve had the privilege and pleasure of asking this question to thousands of childcare professionals from across the country and around the world. 

Now in the service of full disclosure, I haven’t actually kept a record of the top answers to this provocative and important question. However, if my memory serves me, I’m pretty sure that traits like love, courage, compassion, and gratitude top the list. Is optimism really more important than love? Or compassion? Or courage? Or gratitude? I think it is and here’s why:

At the Life is Good Playmakers, we define optimism as a person’s capacity to see, feel, and focus on the goodness and value in themselves, others, and in the world around them.

By this definition, optimism is a prerequisite for love, compassion, courage, and gratitude. Without the capacity to see, feel, and focus on the goodness in others, how can a person consistently act with love and compassion? Without the capacity to see, feel, and focus on the goodness in one’s self, how can a person consistently act with authenticity and courage? And without the capacity to see, feel, and focus on the goodness in the world around them, how can a person act with gratitude? Every positive, pro-social human trait is rooted in optimism.

A wise person once said, “the most important thing is to keep the most important thing the most important thing.” Optimism – in my experience - is the most important thing. The problem is that in times when we need optimism most, optimism is most difficult to come by. When things are going our way, optimism – as an emotional state - is easy to come by. However, when things fall apart and life gets overwhelmingly difficult, an emotional state of optimism can dry up faster than a drop of water on desert sand. If we want optimism to be accessible to children even in life’s darkest hours, we must help them develop optimism as a trait of character and not just as a state of mind. Optimism as a state of mind is fleeting. Optimism as a trait of character is lasting.

Thank you for your interest in the wellbeing of children and for helping our Playmakers build the types of relationships and environments that allow the seeds of optimism to take root and flourish. I can’t think of a more important endeavor.

Love and Peace,

Steve Gross

Founder and Chief Playmaker