Are You an Optimist? | ASC President’s Message

Not sure why this didn’t post back correctly, so I am blogging what I re-blogged on the WordPress.com site, plus a bit of embellishment. Isn’t technology grand? 

Jana Sullinger MD on April 7, 2012 at 12:59 am said: Reblogged this on The Populist Cytologist and commented:

This is an excellent post that all in the field should read…regardless of whether you are a member of ASC or not (hmmm, that reminds me, did I forget to renew for the year?)

Is the glass half empty or half full? The pessimist would pick half empty, while the optimist would choose half full. (Photo credit: Wikipedia)

I must confess, being from Kansas, I have a tendency to be an optimist…to a fault. I think Dr. Howell has the “right stuff” to lead us into the future in a field which is rapidly changing. Her enthusiasm is evident, and that will inspire people to follow, and perhaps more importantly, to ACT. Sometimes “action” is as simple as having a little faith, and seeing the glass half full, instead of half empty. In these challenging times, it seems that we don’t have much control over anything, our economy, our work environment, the changes in our profession….but what we DO have control over is how we choose to REACT to those factors. Your actions, your perceptions….those are in YOUR control. Many in our profession have decided to retire, some have had to look for other work because of cutbacks…and others have entered a new profession entirely. Others, like Dr. Howell, have decided to act through leadership.

Ralph Waldo Emerson said that “nothing great was ever achieved without enthusiasm.”

A high school friend of mine recently posted on Facebook the classic quote about the glass of water being half full or half empty, and perhaps the examples below represent the spectrum of our community, and perhaps explains some of the feedback Dr. Howell has received:

The pessimist says that the glass is half empty.

The optimist says that the glass is half full.

The rationalist says that the glass is twice as tall as it needs to be.

The existentialist says that the glass does not matter.

The nihilist says that the glass is not there.

The realist tells everyone to shut up and drink the water.

The opportunist drinks the water while everyone is arguing about it, and states “I drank it, problem solved!”“

A pessimist sees the difficulty in every opportunity; an optimist sees the opportunity in every difficulty.”-Winston Churchill

I think that we have some difficult times ahead, but I believe that we have an opportunity to reshape our field by how we decide to look at that glass of water and what actions we take. Which of the above are you?

MY TO-DO’S: I am going to keep working, keep blogging, and keep CYTOPATHNET® and ThePopulistCytologist.com running for as long as I can. Oh…and I am going to renew my ASC membership!

Share YOUR TO-DO’S by posting below.

(Via Are You an Optimist? | ASC President’s Message: “Lydia Pleotis Howell MD, ASC President”.)