Optimism & Zest

“Just coloring inside the lines won’t help you succeed. More esoteric character strengths like optimism and zest are things that can be taught and are also predictive of success.”
– Paul Tough

Quote from this 99U Article: Your IQ Doesn’t Matter & Other Lessons About Creativity From Children

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  1. Joanna, thank you! As someone who stgeuglrd for more than a year (way longer than I should have tried to tough it out on my own) with ptsd and depression, I can so identify with this entry. The grief, the sadness, the fear, chest pounding-ness, a heavy heart, overthinkasarusing everything, it was bleak. Like you, I can say that now, looking back.I am so happy you had a support group, so happy one morning you woke up and it was over, but as someone who needed intensive weekly one-on-one therapy and weekly group therapy I want to tell anyone out there whose reading this, that sometimes you don’t wake up and it’s over. Sometimes you have to go get help (and I am sure other have or will mention this) the hardest thing I’ve ever done was drive to my first appointment, but it truly saved my life (and yes, I’m tearing up thinking about it.)Thank you for being brave and telling your story. Mental illness needs to no longer carry the stigmas it once did. There is help and it does get better. (Sidenote: a more humorous equally helpful post on this subject is by rob delaney, I don’t have the link, but reading that more than a year ago is what convinced me that if I didn’t get help, I wouldn’t last much longer.)Thanks again!