Do You Want to Be More Positive?

Try seeing the world through a new lens

Is the world getting better or worse?

2017 was considered the worst year ever until 2018 came along. We will probably think the same of 2019.

So, when a survey asked people if they thought the world was getting better or worse, the results were unsurprisingly devastating. Hardly anyone has a positive outlook — only 10% in Sweden and 6% in the US believe the world is in better shape than it was.

The late Swedish academic Hans Rosling was concerned about this distortion — statistical facts offer a different, more positive view. But, the constant news reports on violence, natural catastrophes, terrorist attacks, and wars tint our vision.

As Hans Rosling said, “There’s no room for facts when our minds are occupied by fear.”

Maybe it’s not reality that is broken — what we need is a new lens.

The bright and dark sides of perception

The world’s been coming to an end for a long time.

The hundred years’ war was supposed to erase humanity from the face of the earth, seven centuries ago. People thought the same about World War I. And then came World War II. Something similar…