The New York Times – By: OLIVER BURKEMAN – August 4, 2012 – The Power of Negative Thinking
Oliver Burkeman in his New York Times opinion piece lashes out at the Positive Psychology movement with its empty affirmations and lala-land hopefulness with an abrupt swing to the opposite pole. His core message is clearly valuable: that a sense of hope, strength and well-being are more attainable when we feel able to experience and navigate through the ‘failures’ with which this life will inevitably confront us. Denying or replacing negative thinking with positivity does not render us stronger; our humanity cannot be reduced to drink-the-coolaid-style optimism. That said, it seems a shame that Burkeman feels compelled to make his point in the fairly extreme, opposing-camp manner. To use an old cliché, the truth probably lies somewhere in the middle.
Oliver Burkeman is the author of the forthcoming book “The Antidote: Happiness for People Who Can’t Stand Positive Thinking.”