A lot of us are fickle friends to our optimism. It's easy to relish the brighter side of things when everything is going your way. But on those other days — your car broke down, your kid is sick (again) — finding a silver lining can feel futile.
Regardless of your situation, optimism can always come in handy, says behavioral scientist and psychologist Deepika Chopra, author of The Power of Real Optimism, a book published in March.
Unlike pessimism, whose evolutionary purpose was to help humans survive by constantly imagining worst-case scenarios, optimism can be more helpful in solving problems in our modern world, Chopra says.
"Optimism is what we need to stay engaged and keep deeply caring," especially during hard times, she says. It keeps us "deeply rooted in reality, but at the same time, holds space for hope."
And the best part is that anyone can train to see the glass as half-full, says Chopra. "Optimism is a muscle. We just have to work it out."
The quiz: How optimistic are you?
The first step in honing this mindset is to figure out your starting point, Chopra says. For her book, Chopra created a quiz, inspired by a questionnaire developed by the psychologist Martin Seligman, to give readers a general sense of their optimism.
Take the quiz below to see where you land on the spectrum, then scroll down to get tips on how to become more optimistic.
Loading...
3 ways to become a more optimistic person
If your quiz score is a surprise to you, don't worry, Chopra writes in her book. Whether you lean more optimistic or pessimistic, there are exercises you can do to build a little more sunshine into your life. She shares three evidence-backed strategies below.
Make a daily "ta-da list"
Self-gratitude is an important part of becoming more optimistic — if you believe in yourself, it's easier to imagine greater success in your future, says Chopra.
To encourage this positive emotional response, Chopra recommends a tool called a "ta-da list." It's a list of all your accomplishments of the day, no matter how big or small.
Include all the things you crossed off your to-do list — like launching a big project or doing the laundry. Don't forget the unexpected or less tangible things too, like remembering to drink enough water or setting a successful boundary at work, Chopra says.
"By reminding yourself of all the things you do to make your life better, you can draw strength for the future and build a more optimistic outlook," she writes in her book.
Schedule "worry time"
The human brain is future-oriented, Chopra says. Unfortunately, that means we tend to worry a lot about what might happen, including things that are unlikely or impossible to prevent.
Those worries can eclipse our vision of the future, so we end up focusing mostly on the bad stuff that might happen, rather than looking toward the good.
To avoid being overwhelmed, Chopra recommends scheduling "worry time" into your day. This exercise, widely used in clinical psychology, "can help people get comfortable with uncertainty and render them more capable of coming up with solutions," Chopra writes in her book.
Find 15 minutes when you have energy and won't be distracted. Pick a place to worry that you don't normally associate with relaxation, like an office or a coffee shop — not your bedroom.
Throughout the day, jot down any worries that are bothering you, particularly the ones that keep popping up. Then, use your designated worry time to go down the list and ask yourself if you can control or change the worry.
If you can't, ask yourself if you can let the worry go. An important part of optimism, Chopra says, is feeling like you have some ability to take action for a better future.
Practice daily affirmations with the 7/10 rule
Affirmations have been shown in psychology to have a measurable positive impact on stress levels and optimism. Generally, the idea is that if you feel more positively about yourself, you're able to believe in a better future you — and a better future for you, Chopra says.
But if you're choosing affirmations you don't actually believe, Chopra says, they can be ineffective — or even make you feel worse about yourself.
That's why Chopra says to follow the "7/10 rule" for affirmations. Choose a statement you're at least 70% confident about, not something you believe in only 1/10 or 3/10. Then work up to the idea you hope to believe.
For example, maybe you got your dream job but are struggling with impostor syndrome. Rather than saying an affirmation like, "I am the very best in my field," you might start with an affirmation you can fully get behind, like: "I'm a hard worker that adds value to my team."
Make a habit of repeating those positive, specific affirmations on a daily basis. The more you say something, Chopra says, the more your brain will start to seek out information that confirms it — until something you believed 7/10 becomes something you believe 10/10. Then, keep building new positive affirmations from there.
When you go from thinking of yourself negatively to instead believing in a lovable, competent person, it's a lot easier to feel hopeful about where you're going next, Chopra writes in her book.
This story was edited by Malaka Gharib. We'd love to hear from you. Leave us a voicemail at 202-216-9823, or email us at LifeKit@npr.org.
Listen to Life Kit on Apple Podcasts and Spotify, and sign up for our newsletter. Follow us on Instagram: @nprlifekit.
Copyright 2026 NPR
