Pollyannaism

I didn’t even know this was a thing. Until today.

I started some mental meandering on who the most classic optimist is/was. Pollyanna (from the 1913 novel by Eleanor H. Porter) is the archetype. But I had no idea that there is a whole “principle” bearing this character’s name. Ladies and gentlemen, may I present the Pollyanna Principle (courtesy of the all-knowing Wikipedia): 

The Pollyanna principle (also called Pollyannaism or positivity bias) is the tendency for people to remember pleasant items more accurately than unpleasant ones. Research indicates that, at the subconscious level, the mind has a tendency to focus on the optimistic while, at the conscious level, it has a tendency to focus on the negative. This subconscious bias towards the positive is often described as the Pollyanna principle.

The positivity bias pertains mostly to how we remember past events… we tend to remember them more positively than we anticipate the future (on a conscious level, anyway). I was struck by how true I find that to be in my own life. My pessimism seems largely contained to my feelings on the future. (Though I’ve been known to overanalyze things in my immediate past… i.e. “I hope that I didn’t sound too mean/rude/dumb.”)

It made me think about more of Paul’s words to the Philippians. In chapter 3, he speaks at length about our righteousness, obtained by faith in Jesus, not our flesh. He goes on to say that he hasn’t achieved righteousness but presses on, trying to take hold of it with every fiber of his being:

But one thing I do: forgetting what lies behind and straining forward to what lies ahead, I press on toward the goal for the prize of the upward call of God in Christ Jesus. — Philippians 3:13b,14 ESV

I find it encouraging that Paul is committed to forgetting what’s behind him (his legalistic righteousness) and he strains for what lies ahead. He’s determined that the goal (the righteousness of Christ) is more important that all that’s gone before, and worth every bit of his sufferings. Yet, he also acknowledges that it will be an effort, a struggle to lay hold of it. Even if my propensity to see things negatively colors my view of the future (pessimism), I want to strain toward it, because God will accomplish His work in my life (faith, not optimism).

I’d like to adopt Paul’s view in my daily life, not Pollyanna’s. I’d like to forget what’s behind me instead of remembering it more positively than it actually occurred.

And I’d like to consciously pursue the future without concern for the positive or negative, but with faith.

[Tweet “Strain forward with faith, not just optimism. #thinkonthesethings #write31days”]

This post is part of a 31 day series entitled “Think on these things: Learning optimism.” For a full catalog of all the posts, visit the first page in the series by clicking here.