‘Academic’ Intelligence: The Half- Empty Glass

Even though you will probably maintain, and righty so, that the topic to be discussed below will normally require the title of ‘Dr’ before the name of the author, I shall endeavour to do my utmost best to at least partially quench your academic thirst on the said topic.

The reason I have decided to elaborate on the effect of pessimism on everyday life is that I believe myself to be quite competent on subject.

Despite the fact that I had never done any academic research or written any papers on the subject, I had managed to very closely monitor my metamorphosis over the years.

During my high school period and throughout my bachelor’s degree, I had developed a defensive mechanism which I then lovingly referred to as ‘realism’.

‘Realism’, or pessimism as everyone else calls it, operates on quite a simple formula:

You want to get from A to B.

A_______            ________B

      \         /

       \      /

         \o/          

Owing to the fact the it is highly unlikely, realistically, to be able to do that, you dub the journey as impossible.

You then choose a less rewarding but much easier journey from C to D.

C___________________D

The above journey is, realistically, quite possible. You convince yourself that B is no longer, and it will no longer be, you destination of choice, claiming that you have lost any and all interest in it.

_____________________________________________________________________

‘Realism’, then, will always force you to empty your glass and refill it again only to do the same when ‘things get rough’.

This leads to a defeatist state of mind which abhors challenges and seeks the easiest and less confrontational way our of a tight spot.

It further stifles creativity and suffocates any desire to improve. Finally, and most importantly, it forces you to focus not on what you have but on what you do not have and have not achieved.

This can be extremely hazardous as it might potentially lead to depression which will, in turn, adversely affect your private and professional life.

Being ‘realistic’ often obliterates your self- esteem to a point where you see yourself as mere pawn which is being moved around and directed by external forces.

In the light of the above, it might sound unnecessarily philosophical to many, but ‘reality’ is quite relative and is, thus, quite subjective.

Consequently, all you have to do is build your own reality based on your values and beliefs and subject everything around you to it in a way in which B will remain a desirable and viable options.

The way to tackle ‘realism’ then is to accept that every challenge that you are faced with is yet another building block that you need for perfecting your reality.

Adopting such a lifestyle will resuscitate your ambitions and remind you that it is a lot more important to consider and cherish what you have rather than what you do not ; the former is an already existing and stable block of your reality which needs to be maintained and fostered whilst the latter is one that is yet to be fought for, obtained and fitted into your desired reality.

The abovementioned is not as complex as it might sound. As many other things in your life, such as a change in your diet, it is a mere transition from one mindset to another.

Everyone has a B in his bonnet; it is high time we accepted that reality and acted on it.