On the other side of the coin, can someone be too realistic? Does that mean you can't possibly accept anything without any cold hard facts to support it? And if that's the case, then where does love fit into all of this? Isn't falling in love completely optimistic? Even die-hard realists fall sometimes...
If you look up optimism in the Thesaurus, it says to be hopeful, Pollyannaish, positive, upbeat.
The dictionary defines optimism as a tendency to expect favorable outcome, to believe that good must ultimately prevail over evil.
The Thesaurus says other words for realistic are practical, pragmatic, rational, down-to-earth, businesslike, levelheaded, sober. The definition of realism is to regard things in their true nature, to deal with things as they are. A policy of dealing with life based on facts, not ideals.
Being creative, living a creative life and moving forward on a creative career path, I struggle with these two concepts every day. On one hand, I need to be stupidly optimistic (or a dreamer). On the other hand, my life demands more realism now than it ever has. And let's face it: I'm a dreamer. Always have been. I believe that people need to dream. Without dreams, there's no hope.
My son came home the other day (dreamer that he is). He told me that he saw a poster at school and it said, "A dream is just a dream without action."
So maybe the answer is:
First you dream,
Then you act,
Stay optimistic,
While remaining realistic?
Hmmm.
