“Just stay positive” might be some of the most useless advice ever given when life is falling apart.
Because resilient optimism isn’t pretending everything is fine, ignoring reality, or slapping a silver lining on something that just plain sucks. It’s believing that even when we can’t control what happens, we still have agency over what we do next.
Michelle Gielan is a positive psychology researcher, bestselling author of Broadcasting Happiness, former CBS Morning News anchor, and author of Resilient Optimism: The Science of Sustaining a Positive Mindset in Tough Times. Her research explores how optimism impacts happiness, resilience, performance, productivity, and our ability to navigate stress, uncertainty, setbacks, and change.
In this episode, Michelle and Nicole unpack why optimism isn’t just a feeling — it’s a behavior.
We explore:
What resilient optimism is — and how it differs from toxic positivity
Why optimism is a behavior we can practice, not just a personality trait
How to hold two truths at once with a “yes, and” mindset
Why our brains naturally focus on threats and negative information
The five trainable behaviors of resilient optimists
How to recalibrate perspective without ignoring reality
Why strategic rest and recovery can improve performance
The impact of negative news, social media, and our information diet
Why relationships and social connection are critical to happiness and optimism
Optimism isn’t believing everything will work out exactly the way we want. It’s believing there’s still something worth doing before we know how the story ends.
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Connect with Michelle:
Book: https://www.resilientoptimism.com/
Substack: https://michellegielan.substack.com/
LI: https://www.linkedin.com/in/michellegielan/
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