Optimism and success. Do you think there's a correlation?

I fully believe attitude can impact your success. And more so on the negative end. Based on observation, people that go about life complaining/feeling sorry for themselves/generally spewing negativity into the world don't have success fall into their laps, regardless of background or smarts.

There is probably a similar effect at the opposite end of the scale - many of the most successful people in the world have had to endure failure after failure after failure to get where they are, and it's possible that a relentless sense of optimism helped push them through.

I don't think a normal level of skepticism/cynicism would hold a person back, as long as they aren't too big of a dick.

sounds cliche but no matter how smart you are and how hard you work, if you don't believe in yourself then there will always be a limit on what you're capable of. so yes optimism helps leads to success, then they play off each other (more success leads to more optimism, more optimism can help with more success)

Yeah, I definitely believe optimism impacts success. Thinking about entrepreneurship in particular: you have to be extremely optimistic in my opinion to be able to see your business come to motion. Say you start a business, spend tons of time getting it started, and you don't get any sales, and your initial marketing campaign was a bust. You have to be pretty optimistic, after spending all that money on marketing, to think that spending even more money on marketing and spending more time improving aspects of your business will eventually net a return. To be able to identify a niche in which there's a problem or a lack of proper execution of a business model, and think you can improve upon it and make money, requires at least some degree of optimism.

I feel like, in finance, maybe optimism is a little less important sometimes. But it's important to make a distinction between attitude and how one thinks about things. It probably helps most people to be naturally upbeat, simply because it tends to make people like you more, and probably helps your overall drive to get things done. On the other hand, if you're investing, being skeptical in your thinking helps a lot.

I am naturally optimistic given that my parents are the sort of warm, down to earth and caring type of people. They are self-made millionaires and serial enterprenuers. They had their fair share of struggle/ rags-to-riches experience, but it did not make them bitter nor arrogant; and that sort of up bringing shapes my world view.

And in that context, I am a bit more optimistic; but this has been viewed as arrogance by some who feels that I didn't have to try as hard as others. Case in point, in a business environment, I am more likely to be the guy who would say that "this is a great project; even though we have a few challenges, we can definitely find ways to work around that."

But optimism should not translate to being naive. To be successful, you still need a healthy dose of caution and skepticism; and to do things after you have taken "calculated risks" into accounts. Another way is to bring in a partner who is slightly more sensitive and more cautious into the project that can help to balance out your slightly optimistic view of things.

I think the picture we paint of "optimists" is a little misleading. Michael Jordan was technically an "optimist". No, he wasn't cheerful or upbeat, but I'm certain he believed that each shot he took would go in.

So maybe by optimistic we really mean a kind of delusional certainty. It gives you the confidence not to hesitate or second-guess yourself, and increases your focus/will to execute-which all contribute to overall success.

Thoughts?

Personally, I think life is about balance and not letting yourself get too high or low. I know it's cliche but I heard the saying 'Happiness = Reality - Expectations' for the first time a few years ago and I've tried to internalize that as best as I can. I think successful people can manipulate this equation based on the set of cards they are dealt. I.e., constantly try to improve their reality while managing expectations. Not to say that you shouldn't shoot for the stars, but just keep it in perspective.

Great question. Not so easy to answer, but I'll give it a shot.

Optimism on its own won't make you successful, and I know plenty of successful people who are not optimists at all. It depends on what you do. Optimism has a definite place in RE development, because it's really easy to obsess over the worst-case of every problem until you're paralyzed. On the other hand, I know some talented developers who want to do every deal, and tend to always believe that everything will work out. They are successful, but mostly because the market has saved them. They tend not to be disciplined about managing risks, and I expect they won't survive the next recession.

In my experience, there are other traits that correlate more strongly with success. I'll preface by saying that for each of these traits, I know someone who is highly successful and also the polar opposite. These are just general observations.

1. Self-awareness. Knowing what you're good at, what you're bad at, and understanding how people perceive you is perhaps the most important quality you can have.
2. Kindness. What goes around comes around. If you have great deal and everybody gets rich, but you're a dick, people won't want to work with you again. I have declined great deals because I didn't like the person pitching. I have told my friends not to work with people who are difficult. It's basic, but often overlooked - don't be a dick.
3. Exceptional listening skills. Much of business is understanding the person across the table. If you speak more than you listen, you're doing it wrong.
4. Humility. You don't know as much as you think you do. The market saves us all in good times, and makes us think we are geniuses when things go well. Regular gut checks are a great way to protect against downside risk.
5. Intellectual curiosity. The world, and the means to measure it, change faster than we do. Never give up your hunger to understand the world, and to adapt. If you think you have it all figured out, you are already dead.
6. Generosity. Again, what goes around comes around. Be generous with your time, your advice, and your money. We are all primates, with a strong ingrained sense of fairness and justice. People want to be generous to other generous people. Studies have proven that people will accept a worse outcome for themselves if it means punishing someone they see as not being fair, or not reciprocating to positive social signals.