0:00:00.490,0:00:01.700 It's Tune-up Tuesday. 0:00:01.710,0:00:03.579 And this morning, we are looking on the bright side 0:00:03.589,0:00:06.139 of things to focus on how to practice optimism. 0:00:06.150,0:00:06.969 Psychologist, 0:00:07.179,0:00:07.280 Dr Deepika Chopra 0:00:07.530,0:00:12.510 is known as the optimism doctor and is here to help. Good morning doctor. 0:00:12.520,0:00:13.390 Good to see you. Good 0:00:13.550,0:00:15.300 morning. It's so good to be here. 0:00:15.310,0:00:18.399 Well, first of all, so what's the difference between 0:00:18.829,0:00:24.250 optimism and positivity? How do you differentiate those? 0:00:24.260,0:00:29.049 So, I feel like people are always so surprised when I say positivity is not the 0:00:29.215,0:00:33.145 first word that really comes to mind for me when I think about optimism. 0:00:33.405,0:00:38.465 The first two words that come to mind to me are resiliency and curiosity. 0:00:38.515,0:00:42.905 And so, I think there's this misconception of what being optimistic is. 0:00:42.916,0:00:47.986 And I think people just think that being optimistic is about being positive 24/7. 0:00:48.006,0:00:50.145 And in reality, that's not possible. 0:00:50.166,0:00:55.186 And so, a true optimist is really someone that is very keenly aware 0:00:55.195,0:00:59.541 of the setbacks and the roadblocks and the less than ideal situations. 0:00:59.641,0:01:02.692 But the caveat is they see them as temporary 0:01:02.701,0:01:05.181 and something that they have the ability to overcome, 0:01:05.191,0:01:09.611 even if they don't know how or when. So, it's really about this resiliency. 0:01:09.622,0:01:12.162 Yeah. It's interesting because it's more realistic, I guess 0:01:12.321,0:01:17.041 because you're dealing with robots. So, if you are optimistic, you're saying that 0:01:17.202,0:01:20.181 you will not only be mentally better but physically better. Yes. 0:01:20.192,0:01:22.552 So, there is just a host of research done. 0:01:22.561,0:01:26.232 I think we can all sort of agree that it makes sense that our 0:01:26.361,0:01:26.571 emotional 0:01:26.847,0:01:29.277 selves are better if we have a more optimistic mindset. 0:01:29.288,0:01:33.038 But what I think is so interesting is there's been a ton of research done and 0:01:33.248,0:01:36.197 optimistic people are sick less often. 0:01:36.208,0:01:41.917 They have better cardiovascular health; they live longer; they thrive longer. 0:01:41.928,0:01:46.657 So, not just in terms of how many years they live, they have better support system, 0:01:46.667,0:01:52.078 more able to reach their goals, and 0:01:52.087,0:01:55.038 they just experience more positive mood. 0:01:55.047,0:01:56.223 You make better decisions. 0:01:56.234,0:01:56.393 Yeah, 0:01:56.403,0:01:59.134 you make more actually optimistic people more 0:01:59.143,0:02:01.164 likely than not make more healthy decisions. 0:02:01.174,0:02:03.263 And I think it makes sense because they can kind of, 0:02:03.634,0:02:08.324 they can see who they are going to be in the future, and they kind of invest in that. 0:02:08.333,0:02:12.404 Would you say that we're born optimist or pessimists or is it a muscle 0:02:12.414,0:02:17.063 we can kind of work on to get better at? You hit the target word. 0:02:17.074,0:02:18.083 It's totally a muscle. 0:02:18.093,0:02:23.304 So, there is a lot of research to support that there is a, you know, genetic component, 0:02:23.313,0:02:27.330 but good news is it's only really up to 25%. 0:02:27.339,0:02:29.729 So, the remaining part really can be learned. 0:02:29.740,0:02:31.839 And so, I like to look at optimism as a 0:02:31.850,0:02:35.509 muscle and really this thing that's on a continuum. 0:02:35.520,0:02:38.190 And so, you know, you often hear, 0:02:38.360,0:02:42.570 you know, I just think I was born more pessimistic or I'm a pessimist or an optimist. 0:02:42.580,0:02:42.869 And 0:02:42.970,0:02:46.529 I actually feel we are all sort of neither. We're all both. 0:02:46.539,0:02:52.410 So, there are aspects of our life that we are more prone to being optimistic. 0:02:52.419,0:02:55.936 And I know, for me, you know, I'm known as the optimism doctor, but I gotta be honest, 0:02:55.945,0:02:57.975 I am not the most optimistic person. 0:02:58.095,0:02:58.735 And yeah, 0:02:58.746,0:03:03.626 my like Achilles Heel with optimism is really like medical stuff and health. 0:03:03.636,0:03:04.945 So, it depends on the different—yes— 0:03:05.115,0:03:06.235 the different thing. 0:03:06.606,0:03:10.656 May be optimistic about your kids and their future, but maybe your health is. Right. 0:03:10.666,0:03:13.255 Right. And so, that's where my work lies. 0:03:13.266,0:03:17.475 And so, I think we're all on a continuum, and the good thing is, you know, 0:03:17.485,0:03:21.475 we can grow on that continuum, and there are actual exercises we can do 0:03:21.781,0:03:21.981 to 0:03:22.091,0:03:22.432 increase. 0:03:22.731,0:03:22.861 In fact, 0:03:23.201,0:03:27.472 you created this deck of cards called "Things are looking up." 0:03:28.311,0:03:30.292 So, this is a deck of cards. 0:03:30.302,0:03:34.401 There's 52 of them, and they each have a science-based prompt 0:03:34.412,0:03:37.042 or an actionable item that actually tells you what to do. 0:03:37.052,0:03:40.341 So, they're not affirmation cards, and they all work to 0:03:40.352,0:03:43.802 increase your optimism and your resiliency and your joy. So, can we try this? 0:03:44.572,0:03:47.641 Yes. In fact, I'm gonna have you go first. 0:03:48.111,0:03:49.442 I gonna pick a card for you. 0:03:49.572,0:03:50.151 Ok. 0:03:51.820,0:03:51.880 Pick any card. 0:03:52.750,0:03:52.850 Pick any card. 0:03:53.169,0:03:53.740 Any card. 0:03:54.309,0:03:55.839 All right, I've seen this on 0:03:56.470,0:03:57.419 on the street. I 0:03:57.889,0:04:02.350 lost a bunch of money. Just for today, instead of making a to-do list, 0:04:02.360,0:04:06.570 make a ta-da list or and I did it list. So, what do you mean by that? 0:04:06.580,0:04:07.509 So, you know, 0:04:07.520,0:04:10.880 I think we get bogged down, and it can be very stressful for us to 0:04:10.889,0:04:14.639 constantly think about all the things we need to do or we have to do. 0:04:14.649,0:04:15.985 And oftentimes, I hear people at 0:04:16.135,0:04:18.144 the end of their day making a list for the 0:04:18.154,0:04:20.135 following day of all the things they have to do. 0:04:20.233,0:04:22.684 And I say, why not make a ta-da list? 0:04:22.695,0:04:25.244 These are all the things that I have accomplished today. 0:04:25.255,0:04:28.105 Gratitude for what you've done. Yeah. Gratitude for what you've done. 0:04:28.114,0:04:30.114 And you start to realize at the end, and 0:04:30.125,0:04:32.904 I'm talking about small things because those really matter. 0:04:32.915,0:04:36.024 You start to realize how accomplished you really are. 0:04:36.035,0:04:39.144 And it's really about this sense of self mastery and empowerment. 0:04:39.154,0:04:40.195 You've got to make a big ta-da list. 0:04:41.850,0:04:42.100 He's got a 0:04:42.230,0:04:42.399 lot of 0:04:42.609,0:04:42.649 things 0:04:42.820,0:04:43.070 going on. 0:04:43.500,0:04:43.839 It's really 0:04:44.239,0:04:44.359 important. 0:04:44.760,0:04:46.500 Thank you so much. Really appreciate this. 0:04:47.089,0:04:48.309 OK? Wait, there's more. 0:04:48.720,0:04:50.019 Unfortunately, we 0:04:51.079,0:04:51.320 are, we are... I am gonna 0:04:51.420,0:04:52.859 take my card for later. You know what 0:04:53.649,0:04:55.410 we're gonna do, we're gonna put this online. 0:04:55.739,0:04:56.429 Ok. So, everyone 0:04:56.549,0:04:57.589 can check it out. 0:04:59.709,0:05:01.760 Hey, thanks for watching our YouTube channel. 0:05:01.769,0:05:06.600 Find your favorite recipes, celebrity interviews, uplifting stories, shop 0:05:06.609,0:05:09.940 our favorite deals, and so much more with the Today App. 0:05:09.950,0:05:10.980 Download it now.