“If they can make penicillin

out of moldy bread, they can

sure make something out of
you.” ~Muhammad Ali

They're like night and day: Optimists manage to maintain a sunny

Task 1. Write the letters ‘O’ for
outlook, even in the worst of times; pessimists assume the darkest
possible outcomes, even when things are going their way. As the ‘optimist’ or P for ‘pessimist’
saying goes, "Optimists are said to cope, pessimists do nothing but into the gaps to complete the
mope." So which type are you? This class will help you find out. quotes.

"The o sees the doughnut, the p sees the

hole."

”A(n) p sees the difficulty in every

opportunity; a(n) o sees the opportunity in
every difficulty.” ~Winston Churchill

” o: A proponent of the doctrine that

everything is beautiful, including what is
ugly.” ~Ambrose Bierce

“p complains about the noise when

opportunity knocks.”

”The o proclaims (=says) that we live in the

best of all possible worlds; and the p fears
this is true.”
~James Branch Cabell
”I became a(n) p when I discovered that I
wasn't going to win any more games by
being anything else.”
~Earl Weaver
The nice part about being a(n) o is that you
are constantly being either proven right or
pleasantly surprised. ~George F. Wil

Task 3. Now make up

statements of your own,
3 for optimists and 3 for
pessimists.
1. You start work/school at 08.30, this morning you wake up at
08.45. What’s your first reaction?
a) I am calling in to say I`am sick. This day is ruined.
b) "OH MY GOD!! My boss/teacher is going to kill me."
c) "Well, it could be worse. I could haven woken up at 09.00. I
am calling to tell them that I will be late."
d) They’ll understand, everybody oversleeps sometimes, and
this is the first time I will be late.
2. Your girlfriend/boyfriend calls you at the middle of the day and
says you have to be home early because (s)he has something
important to say.
a) No! (s)he`ll have some horrible news to tell.
b) (S)he is breaking up with me.
c) Great, (s)he`ll have some wonderful news to tell.
d) She might have organized a surprise birthday party for me.
3. How do you see your life in ten years?
a) I am dead. Probably caused by suicide.
b) The world has come to an end, and I am one of the few
survivors. But I’d rather be dead.
c) I have a wonderful family and a good job.
d) I moved forward during these ten years. I haven’t achieved
everything I want, but I know that I will get there in the end.
4. You have just became unemployed. What`s your reaction?
a) I will not be able to find a job in this crisis.
b) A lot of my friends are unemployed, my chances are not
good either.
c) It`s a great opportunity to take care of some things at home.
d) I will find a new job sooner or later, I just have to keep trying.
5. You and your girlfriend/boyfriend had a fight. How do you see
the outcome?
a) This fight just proves that we shouldn’t be together.
b) We always have fights because (s)he doesn’t accept that I’m
right.
c) Every couple has a fight once in a while. It’s nothing to worry
about.
d) It’s good to have a fight sometimes. At least we could talk
about the things that we never talk about otherwise.
6. What`s your motto in life?
a) Murphy’s Law is correct.
b) Never try, `cause trying is the first step to a failure.
c) I have to get up when I’ve fallen. True, life is hard, but we’re
here to meet the challenges every day brings.
d) Nothing is impossible if you put your mind to it.
7. Whats the most important for success?
a) Luck.
b) A good family background.
c) Your own ambition.
d) Your own ambition and some luck.
Task 5. Fill in the gaps with the
phrases below to find out about the
defining characteristics of the two
attitudes.
COMING OUT OF THE NEGATIVE, TURNING
OUT WRONG, A PASSING PHASE, AS BAD, IT
DOESN'T MATTER, POSITIVITY, THEY WILL
NEVER REACH
The Pessimist :(
The Pessimist always views the world AS
BAD, where everything will end up
TURNING OUT WRONG for them, they can
never win. They believe that DOESN'T
MATTER what they do, something will
always push them back to the bottom of
the pile, and, THEY WILL NEVER REACH the
top of it. They're being destroyed most
definitely, but it isn't by the world, or who
is in it, it's by themselves.
The Optimist :)
The Optimist views the POSITIVITY in the
world. No matter what happens they
know that this is simply A PASSING PHASE
that will soon turn around. There is
always something positive COMING OUT
OF THE NEGATIVE, and believe in the good
of the world.
Task 6. Fill in the gaps with the phrases
below to be able to read the text about
the optimism-pessimism controversy.
REACH. POSITIVE ATTITUDE, REALISTIC, HAS A
CHANCE, DON'T GIVE UP, RUNS INTO
OBSTACLES, RAGE, KEEPS TRYING, SELF-
FULFILLING PROPHECY, PUZZLES
WHO IS RIGHT, OPTIMISTS OR
PESSIMISTS?
Yet the question continues to RAGE: Who is
being realistic, an optimist or a pessimist?
Surprise! The answer is both are REALISTIC.
Why? Because their disposition
(=optimism or pessimism) is a , SELF-
FULFILLING PROPHECY. For example, a
young man decides to become a stand-up
comic. His friends think he's nuts, but he's
an optimist. Because he thinks he HAS A
CHANCE, he keeps trying. And because he
KEEPS TRYING, his chances keep
increasing. True, he , RUNS INTO OBSTACLES
(=difficulties), but he's an optimist, so
hurdles (=difficulties) are not problems,
but PUZZLES. that need to be solved.
Because of his POSITIVE ATTITUDE, he
doesn't give up. And do you know what
happens to people who DON'T GIVE UP?
They REACH their goal!
QUIZ EVALUATION
‘A’ and ‘B’ answers mean 0 points, ‘C’ and ‘D’ answers mean 1 point.

0-2 points
Pessimist
You always expect the worst. This way, when things really do go wrong, you won't be too let down, because you
were expecting them to happen. But this attitude will make it very difficult for you to keep your piece of mind in
difficult times or to succeed in life. You should look on the bright side of life every now and then.

3-5 points
Hesitant optimist
You haven’t quite made up your mind about how you want to deal with hurdles in your life. Sometimes you are
stronger, but sometimes you let your negative circumstances get to you and pull you down. You should make
yourself look on the bright side of things more often, and remind yourself that whenever you did that, you got
over your problems.

6-7 points
Optimist
You`re always looking at the bright side of things. Things may not be going so great right now, but you know the
sun`ll come up tomorrow! You believe that if you persevere and don’t give up, it’ll have its good results sooner or
later.
SOLUTIONS

Task 1.

"The optimist sees the doughnut, the pessimist sees the hole."
”A pessimist sees the difficulty in every opportunity; an optimist sees the opportunity in every difficulty.” –-
Winston Churchill
”Optimist: A proponent of the doctrine that everything is beautiful, including what is ugly.”
--Ambrose Bierce
“Pessimists complain about the noise when opportunity knocks.”
”The optimist proclaims that we live in the best of all possible worlds; and the pessimist fears this is true.”
--James Branch Cabell
”I became an optimist when I discovered that I wasn't going to win any more games by being anything else.”
--Earl Weaver
The nice part about being a pessimist is that you are constantly being either proven right or pleasantly surprised.
~George F. Wil

Task 2.

The pessimist
2. I'll be stuck in this lousy job forever.
3. Life sucks.
4. I'll never lose weight.
7. Life is a struggle.
8. Good things don't last.
10. It's just not my day.
11. I don't expect much, so I won't be disappointed.

The Optimist
1. I failed this test, but next time I'll prepare more, and I'll succeed.
5. Everything will be okay in the end.
6. I feel I can do it, I just need time.
9. I think the glass is half full!

Task 5.

AS BAD, TURNING OUT WRONG, IT DOESN'T MATTER, THEY WILL NEVER REACH, POSITIVITY, A PASSING PHASE, COMING
OUT OF THE NEGATIVE

The Pessimist :(
The Pessimist always views the world as bad, where everything will end up turning out wrong for them, they can
never win. They believe that it doesn't matter what they do, something will always push them back to the bottom
of the pile, and they will never reach the top of it. They're being destroyed most definitely, but it isn't by the world,
or who is in it, it's by themselves.

The Optimist :)
The Optimist views the positivity in the world. No matter what happens they know that this is simply a passing
phase that will soon turn around. There is always something positive coming out of the negative, and believe in
the good of the world.

Task 6.

RAGE, REALISTIC, SELF-FULFILLING PROPHECY, HAS A CHANCE, KEEPS TRYING, RUNS INTO OBSTACLES, PUZZLES,
POSITIVE ATTITUDE, DON'T GIVE UP, REACH

WHO IS RIGHT, OPTIMISTS OR PESSIMISTS?

Yet the question continues to rage: Who is being realistic, an optimist or a pessimist? Surprise! The answer is
both are realistic. Why? Because their disposition (optimism or pessimism) is a self-fulfilling prophecy. For
example, a young man decides to become a stand-up comic. His friends think he's nuts, but he's an optimist.
Because he thinks he has a chance, he keeps trying. And because he keeps trying, his chances keep increasing.
True, he runs into obstacles, but he's an optimist, so hurdles are not problems, but challenges or puzzles that
need to be solved. Because of his positive attitude, he doesn't give up. And do you know what happens to people
who don't give up? They reach their goal!