--- title: "3 Optimist Quotes By Martin Seligman" description: "3 Optimist quotes by Martin Seligman. Plus more from Martin Seligman and more Optimist sayings from other authors." image: "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/75e/martin-seligman-5268_believe_the-defining-characteristic-of-pessimist_838959.png" --- > [The defining characteristic of pessimists is that they tend to believe that bad events will last a long time, will undermine everything…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/martin-seligman/the-defining-characteristic-of-pessimists-is-that-they-tend-to/) [Martin Seligman](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/martin-seligman/) [Image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/75e/martin-seligman-5268_believe_the-defining-characteristic-of-pessimist_838959.png) > [If you were an optimistic teen, then you'll be an optimist at 80. People's reactions to bad events are highly stable over…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/martin-seligman/if-you-were-an-optimistic-teen-then-you-ll-be-an-optimist-at-80/) [Martin Seligman](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/martin-seligman/) [Image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/12b/martin-seligman-5268_bad_if-you-were-an-optimistic-teen-then-you_1339996.jpg) > [Life inflicts the same setbacks and tragedies on the optimist as on the pessimist, but the optimist weathers them better.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/martin-seligman/life-inflicts-the-same-setbacks-and-tragedies-on-the-optimist-as-on/) [Martin Seligman](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/martin-seligman/) [Image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/5c3/martin-seligman-5268_failure_life-inflicts-the-same-setbacks-and-trag_2874107.png) ## Other authors on Optimist - [Mark Twain 12 quotes](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/optimist/mark-twain/) - [ ![](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/wp-content/uploads/sms4s/authors/processed/b024/author-william-arthur-ward-95178.jpg) William Arthur Ward 7 quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/optimist/william-arthur-ward/) - [ ![](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/wp-content/uploads/sms4s/authors/processed/b020/author-robert-breault-79554.jpg) Robert Breault 7 quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/optimist/robert-breault/) - [ ![](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/wp-content/uploads/sms4s/authors/processed/b006/author-christian-d-larson-23694.jpg) Christian D. Larson 7 quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/optimist/christian-d-larson/) - [ ![](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/wp-content/uploads/sms4s/authors/processed/b025/author-winston-churchill-96197.jpg) Winston Churchill 6 quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/optimist/winston-churchill/) - [ ![](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/wp-content/uploads/sms4s/authors/processed/b025/author-zig-ziglar-97426.jpg) Zig Ziglar 5 quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/optimist/zig-ziglar/) - [ ![](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/wp-content/uploads/sms4s/authors/processed/b018/author-nelson-mandela-70785.jpg) Nelson Mandela 5 quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/optimist/nelson-mandela/) - [Helen Keller 5 quotes](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/optimist/helen-keller/) ## More by Martin Seligman > [It used to be that whenever I introduced myself to people and told them I was a psychologist, they would shrink away from me.…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/martin-seligman/it-used-to-be-that-whenever-i-introduced-myself-to-people-and-told/) [Martin Seligman](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/martin-seligman/) > [I have never worked on interrogation; I have never seen an interrogation, and I have only a passing knowledge of the literature on interrogation.…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/martin-seligman/i-have-never-worked-on-interrogation-i-have-never-seen-an/) [Martin Seligman](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/martin-seligman/) > [I'm trying to broaden the scope of positive psychology well beyond the smiley face. Happiness is just one-fifth of what human beings choose to…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/martin-seligman/i-m-trying-to-broaden-the-scope-of-positive-psychology-well-beyond/) [Martin Seligman](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/martin-seligman/) > [It's a matter of ABC: When we encounter ADVERSITY, we react by thinking about it. Our thoughts rapidly congeal into BELIEFS. These beliefs may…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/martin-seligman/it-s-a-matter-of-abc-when-we-encounter-adversity-we-react-by-thinking/) [Martin Seligman](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/martin-seligman/) > [One of the things psychologists used to say was that if you are depressed, anxious or angry, you couldn't be happy. Those were at…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/martin-seligman/one-of-the-things-psychologists-used-to-say-was-that-if-you-are/) [Martin Seligman](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/martin-seligman/) > [It is the combination of reasonable talent and the ability to keep going in the face of defeat that leads to success.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/martin-seligman/it-is-the-combination-of-reasonable-talent-and-the-ability-to-keep/) [Martin Seligman](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/martin-seligman/) > [Psychology is much bigger than just medicine, or fixing unhealthy things. It's about education, work, marriage - it's even about sports. What I want…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/martin-seligman/psychology-is-much-bigger-than-just-medicine-or-fixing-unhealthy/) [Martin Seligman](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/martin-seligman/) > [What humans want is not just happiness. They want justice; they want meaning.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/martin-seligman/what-humans-want-is-not-just-happiness-they-want-justice-they-want/) [Martin Seligman](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/martin-seligman/) > [I have spent most of my life working with mental illness. I have been president of the world's largest association of mental-illness workers, and…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/martin-seligman/i-have-spent-most-of-my-life-working-with-mental-illness-i-have-been/) [Martin Seligman](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/martin-seligman/) > [Finding permanent and universal causes for misfortune is the practice of despair...](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/martin-seligman/finding-permanent-and-universal-causes-for-misfortune-is-the-practice/) [Martin Seligman](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/martin-seligman/) > [We deprive our children, our charges, of persistence. What I am trying to say is that we need to fail, children need to fail,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/martin-seligman/we-deprive-our-children-our-charges-of-persistence-what-i-am-trying/) [Martin Seligman](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/martin-seligman/) > [One of my worries about America is the epidemic of depression we've been in. One of the possibilities about that is that the 'I'…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/martin-seligman/one-of-my-worries-about-america-is-the-epidemic-of-depression-we-ve/) [Martin Seligman](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/martin-seligman/) > [The Fundamentalist Religions simply seem to offer more hope for a brighter future than do the more liberal, humanistic ones.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/martin-seligman/the-fundamentalist-religions-simply-seem-to-offer-more-hope-for-a/) [Martin Seligman](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/martin-seligman/) > [If the point of the inner-child movement is to cure adult problems, it doesn't work. Reliving childhood traumas gives you a nice afterglow, but…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/martin-seligman/if-the-point-of-the-inner-child-movement-is-to-cure-adult-problems-it/) [Martin Seligman](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/martin-seligman/) > [I don't mind being wrong, and I don't mind changing my mind.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/martin-seligman/i-don-t-mind-being-wrong-and-i-don-t-mind-changing-my-mind/) [Martin Seligman](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/martin-seligman/) ```json { "@context": "https://schema.org", "@graph": [ { "@type": "ItemList", "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/optimist/martin-seligman/#itemlist", "name": "3 Optimist Quotes By Martin Seligman", "numberOfItems": 3, "itemListElement": [ { "@type": "ListItem", "position": 1, "item": { "@type": "Quotation", "text": "The defining characteristic of pessimists is that they tend to believe that bad events will last a long time, will undermine everything they do, and are their own fault. The optimists, who are confronted with the same hard knocks of this world, think about misfortune in the opposite way. They tend to believe that defeat is just a temporary setback or a challenge, that its causes are just confined to this one case.", "creator": { "@type": "Person", "name": "Martin Seligman" }, "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/martin-seligman/the-defining-characteristic-of-pessimists-is-that-they-tend-to/", "image": { "@type": "ImageObject", "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/75e/martin-seligman-5268_believe_the-defining-characteristic-of-pessimist_838959.png", "contentUrl": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/75e/martin-seligman-5268_believe_the-defining-characteristic-of-pessimist_838959.png", "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/75e/martin-seligman-5268_believe_the-defining-characteristic-of-pessimist_838959.png", "width": 1080, "height": 1080, "caption": "“The defining characteristic of pessimists is that they tend to believe that bad events will last a long…” — Martin Seligman", "creditText": "SMS4Smile Quotes", "creator": { "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#organization" } } } }, { "@type": "ListItem", "position": 2, "item": { "@type": "Quotation", "text": "If you were an optimistic teen, then you'll be an optimist at 80. People's reactions to bad events are highly stable over a half century or more.", "creator": { "@type": "Person", "name": "Martin Seligman" }, "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/martin-seligman/if-you-were-an-optimistic-teen-then-you-ll-be-an-optimist-at-80/", "image": { "@type": "ImageObject", "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/12b/martin-seligman-5268_bad_if-you-were-an-optimistic-teen-then-you_1339996.jpg", "contentUrl": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/12b/martin-seligman-5268_bad_if-you-were-an-optimistic-teen-then-you_1339996.jpg", "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/12b/martin-seligman-5268_bad_if-you-were-an-optimistic-teen-then-you_1339996.jpg", "width": 1080, "height": 1080, "caption": "“If you were an optimistic teen, then you'll be an optimist at 80. People's reactions to bad events are…” — Martin Seligman", "creditText": "SMS4Smile Quotes", "creator": { "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#organization" } } } }, { "@type": "ListItem", "position": 3, "item": { "@type": "Quotation", "text": "Life inflicts the same setbacks and tragedies on the optimist as on the pessimist, but the optimist weathers them better.", "creator": { "@type": "Person", "name": "Martin Seligman" }, "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/martin-seligman/life-inflicts-the-same-setbacks-and-tragedies-on-the-optimist-as-on/", "image": { "@type": "ImageObject", "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/5c3/martin-seligman-5268_failure_life-inflicts-the-same-setbacks-and-trag_2874107.png", "contentUrl": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/5c3/martin-seligman-5268_failure_life-inflicts-the-same-setbacks-and-trag_2874107.png", "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/5c3/martin-seligman-5268_failure_life-inflicts-the-same-setbacks-and-trag_2874107.png", "width": 1080, "height": 1080, "caption": "“Life inflicts the same setbacks and tragedies on the optimist as on the pessimist, but the optimist weathers…” — Martin Seligman", "creditText": "SMS4Smile Quotes", "creator": { "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#organization" } } } } ] }, { "@type": "CollectionPage", "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/optimist/martin-seligman/#webpage", "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/optimist/martin-seligman/", "name": "Optimist Quotes by Martin Seligman", "isPartOf": { "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#website" }, "mainEntity": { "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/optimist/martin-seligman/#itemlist" }, "primaryImageOfPage": { "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/75e/martin-seligman-5268_believe_the-defining-characteristic-of-pessimist_838959.png" }, "description": "3 Optimist quotes by Martin Seligman. Plus more from Martin Seligman and more Optimist sayings from other authors.", "breadcrumb": { "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/optimist/martin-seligman/#breadcrumb" } }, { "@type": "BreadcrumbList", "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/optimist/martin-seligman/#breadcrumb", "itemListElement": [ { "@type": "ListItem", "position": 1, "name": "Home", "item": "https://sms4smile.com/" }, { "@type": "ListItem", "position": 2, "name": "Quotes", "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/" }, { "@type": "ListItem", "position": 3, "name": "Topics", "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/categories/" }, { "@type": "ListItem", "position": 4, "name": "Optimist", "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/optimist/" }, { "@type": "ListItem", "position": 5, "name": "Martin Seligman", "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/optimist/martin-seligman/" } ] }, { "@type": "WebSite", "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#website", "name": "SMS4Smile Quotes", "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/", "publisher": { "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#organization" } }, { "@type": "Organization", "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#organization", "name": "SMS4Smile Quotes", "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/", "logo": { "@type": "ImageObject", "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/wp-content/themes/sq/assets/icons/icon-512.png", "width": 512, "height": 512 } } ] } ```