--- title: "Meaning & Key Takeaway of: Part of the problem with positive…" description: "\"“Part of the problem with positive thinking, and many related approaches to happiness, is exactly this desire to reduce big questions to one-size-fits-..." image: "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/8f2/oliver-burkeman-14344_happiness_part-of-the-problem-with-positive-thinki_1251752.png" --- # Part of the problem with positive thinking, and many… ![“Part of the problem with positive thinking, and many related approaches to happiness, is exactly this desire to reduce big questions to one-size-fits-all self-help tricks or ten point plans.” quote by Oliver Burkeman](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/8f2/oliver-burkeman-14344_happiness_part-of-the-problem-with-positive-thinki_1251752.png) [Download](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/8f2/oliver-burkeman-14344_happiness_part-of-the-problem-with-positive-thinki_1251752.png) [Open image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/8f2/oliver-burkeman-14344_happiness_part-of-the-problem-with-positive-thinki_1251752.png) > ““Part of the problem with positive thinking, and many related approaches to happiness, is exactly this desire to reduce big questions to one-size-fits-all self-help tricks or ten point plans.”” [Oliver Burkeman](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/oliver-burkeman/) ## About This Quote This interpretation was drafted with AI assistance. It is one reading of the quote, not the author's own explanation. Positive thinking often tries to simplify deep existential questions into generic self‑help formulas, which can be limiting. **In simple terms:** Simplifying deep questions into generic tips can be limiting. Key Takeaway Seek nuanced, personal approaches to meaning. Themes meaning existentialism self‑help Mood thoughtful critical Type philosophical inspirational When to use this quote - career planning - personal development - therapy - life coaching Key Concepts philosophy of happiness critical thinking Questions to Reflect On - What deeper questions do you avoid with quick fixes? - How can you integrate practical advice with deeper reflection? A Different Perspective Risk of dismissing useful practical tools in favor of complexity. ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ No ratings yet [Approaches Happiness](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/approaches-happiness-3947136/) [Happiness](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/happiness/) [Positive](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/positive/) [Positive thinking](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/positive-thinking/) [Problem Positive](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/problem-positive-2349216/) [Reduce Big](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/reduce-big-3947137/) [Thinking](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/thinking/) ## Related quotes > [When you look at a problem with positive frame of mind, you become a powerful source of energy that transforms obstacle into great success.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anil-sinha/when-you-look-at-a-problem-with-positive-frame-of-mind-you-become-a/) [Anil Sinha](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anil-sinha/) > [“The solution to any problem is a positive attitude.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/lailah-gifty-akita/the-solution-to-any-problem-is-a-positive-attitude/) [Lailah Gifty Akita](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/lailah-gifty-akita/) > [Each problem has a positive side.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/og-mandino/each-problem-has-a-positive-side/) [Og Mandino](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/og-mandino/) > [Stop thinking too much. .each problem has a positive side](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/sniper-alpacino/stop-thinking-too-much-each-problem-has-a-positive-side/) [Sniper Alpacino](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/sniper-alpacino/) > [“And here lies the essential between Stoicism and the modern-day 'cult of optimism.' For the Stoics, the ideal state of mind was tranquility, not…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/oliver-burkeman/and-here-lies-the-essential-between-stoicism-and-the-modern-day-cult/) [Oliver Burkeman](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/oliver-burkeman/) > [Positive thinking evokes more energy, more initiative, more happiness.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anonymous/positive-thinking-evokes-more-energy-more-initiative-more-happiness/) [Anonymous](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anonymous/) > [Through positive thinking and related approaches, we seek the safety and solid ground of certainty, of knowing how the future will turn out, of…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/oliver-burkeman/through-positive-thinking-and-related-approaches-we-seek-the-safety/) [Oliver Burkeman](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/oliver-burkeman/) > [“There is something called positive thinking that people often confuse with hope. But it is different. Positive thinking is a state of mind, while…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/stevan-v-nikolic/there-is-something-called-positive-thinking-that-people-often-confuse/) [Stevan V. Nikolic](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/stevan-v-nikolic/) > [“i hope that whoever you are wherever you are and no matter how you are feeling you will always have something to smile about.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/sanober-khan/i-hope-that-whoever-you-are-wherever-you-are-and-no-matter-how-you/) [Sanober Khan](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/sanober-khan/) > [Positive thinking is so firmly enshrined in our culture that knocking it is a little like attacking motherhood or apple pie.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/srikumar-rao/positive-thinking-is-so-firmly-enshrined-in-our-culture-that-knocking/) [Srikumar Rao](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/srikumar-rao/) > [Dwelling on the negative simply contributes to its power.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anonymous/dwelling-on-the-negative-simply-contributes-to-its-power/) [Anonymous](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anonymous/) > [“Instead of worrying about what you cannot control, focus your energy on what you can create.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/roy-bennett/instead-of-worrying-about-what-you-cannot-control-focus-your-energy/) [Roy Bennett](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/roy-bennett/) > [My parents were always really positive and had me thinking I could do whatever I wanted to in wrestling or in life.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/cael-sanderson/my-parents-were-always-really-positive-and-had-me-thinking-i-could-do/) [Cael Sanderson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/cael-sanderson/) > [POSITIVE THINKING is not about expecting the BEST to HAPPEN. It's about expecting that whatever will happen it is for the best! :)](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jhoni-czhang/positive-thinking-is-not-about-expecting-the-best-to-happen-it-s/) [JHONI (Czhang](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jhoni-czhang/) > [“We all have negative thoughts now and then, but we can choose not to dwell there and not to let them control us.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/roy-t-bennett/we-all-have-negative-thoughts-now-and-then-but-we-can-choose-not-to/) [Roy T. Bennett](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/roy-t-bennett/) ## More by Oliver Burkeman > [Ceaseless optimism about the future only makes for a greater shock when things go wrong; by fighting to maintain only positive beliefs about the…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/oliver-burkeman/ceaseless-optimism-about-the-future-only-makes-for-a-greater-shock/) [Oliver Burkeman](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/oliver-burkeman/) > [“And here lies the essential between Stoicism and the modern-day 'cult of optimism.' For the Stoics, the ideal state of mind was tranquility, not…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/oliver-burkeman/and-here-lies-the-essential-between-stoicism-and-the-modern-day-cult/) [Oliver Burkeman](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/oliver-burkeman/) > [“By the second day, the song lyrics had faded, but in their place came darker irritations. Gradually, I started to become aware of a…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/oliver-burkeman/by-the-second-day-the-song-lyrics-had-faded-but-in-their-place-came/) [Oliver Burkeman](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/oliver-burkeman/) > [Through positive thinking and related approaches, we seek the safety and solid ground of certainty, of knowing how the future will turn out, of…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/oliver-burkeman/through-positive-thinking-and-related-approaches-we-seek-the-safety/) [Oliver Burkeman](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/oliver-burkeman/) > [“All these counterproductive ways of thinking about failure manifest themselves most acutely in the phenomenon of perfectionism. 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It wasn't reading books or watching YouTube talks about How To…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/oliver-burkeman/what-made-leonardo-da-vinci-thomas-edison-and-albert-einstein-such/) [Oliver Burkeman](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/oliver-burkeman/) > [“Perhaps you don’t need telling that self-help books, the modern-day apotheosis of the quest for happiness, are among the things that fail to make…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/oliver-burkeman/perhaps-you-don-t-need-telling-that-self-help-books-the-modern-day/) [Oliver Burkeman](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/oliver-burkeman/) > [Who says you need to wait until you 'feel like' doing something in order to start doing it? The problem, from this perspective, isn't…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/oliver-burkeman/who-says-you-need-to-wait-until-you-feel-like-doing-something-in/) [Oliver Burkeman](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/oliver-burkeman/) > [“Incremental theory’ people are different. Because they think of abilities as emerging through tackling challenges, the experience of failure has a completely different meaning…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/oliver-burkeman/incremental-theory-people-are-different-because-they-think-of/) [Oliver Burkeman](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/oliver-burkeman/) > [It is illuminating to note, here, how the daily rituals and working routines of prolific authors and artists - people who really do get…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/oliver-burkeman/it-is-illuminating-to-note-here-how-the-daily-rituals-and-working/) [Oliver Burkeman](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/oliver-burkeman/) > [“Pilots were not excused all these rigorous new checks, and when Woodie Menear’s turn came, the security screener expressed concern about the presence of…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/oliver-burkeman/pilots-were-not-excused-all-these-rigorous-new-checks-and-when-woodie/) [Oliver Burkeman](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/oliver-burkeman/) > [“...no matter how much success you may experience in life, your eventual story - no offence intended - will be one of failure. Your…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/oliver-burkeman/no-matter-how-much-success-you-may-experience-in-life-your-eventual/) [Oliver Burkeman](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/oliver-burkeman/) > [The routines of almost all famous writers, from Charles Darwin to John Grisham, similarly emphasise specific starting times, or number of hours worked, or…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/oliver-burkeman/the-routines-of-almost-all-famous-writers-from-charles-darwin-to-john/) [Oliver Burkeman](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/oliver-burkeman/) [Explore all 47 Oliver Burkeman quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/oliver-burkeman/) ## More Happiness quotes > [Life is full of change. That's how we learn and grow.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anonymous/life-is-full-of-change-that-s-how-we-learn-and-grow/) [Anonymous](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anonymous/) > [Remember that your natural state is joy.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/wayne-dyer/remember-that-your-natural-state-is-joy/) [Wayne Dyer](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/wayne-dyer/) > [Balance suggests a perfect equilibrium. There is no such thing. That is a false expectation… There are going to be priorities and dimensions of…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/denise-morrison/balance-suggests-a-perfect-equilibrium-there-is-no-such-thing-that-is/) [Denise Morrison](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/denise-morrison/) > [“WE CAN'T ALWAYS CONTROL OUR CIRCUMSTANCES BUT WE CAN CONTROL OUR ATTITUDE. WE MUST BE MORE CONCERNED WITH WHAT WE DO WITH WHAT HAPPENS…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/marvin-j-ashton/we-can-t-always-control-our-circumstances-but-we-can-control-our/) [MARVIN J. ASHTON](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/marvin-j-ashton/) > [I can skate beautifully. While performing on ice I always try to please the audience and to win as well. Being artistic is very…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/evgeni-plushenko/i-can-skate-beautifully-while-performing-on-ice-i-always-try-to/) [Evgeni Plushenko](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/evgeni-plushenko/) > [Sometimes we wish for the feel but we never understand that we have to give a lot to get the feel !](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/robert-reynolds/sometimes-we-wish-for-the-feel-but-we-never-understand-that-we-have/) [Robert Reynolds](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/robert-reynolds/) > [Sing like no one's listening, love like you've never been hurt, dance like nobody's watching, and live like its heaven on earth.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/mark-twain/sing-like-no-one-s-listening-love-like-you-ve-never-been-hurt-dance/) [Mark Twain](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/mark-twain/) > [“It was beautiful. He thought he had never seen anything so beautiful in all his life; that, having seen it, he could die content,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/mira-grant/it-was-beautiful-he-thought-he-had-never-seen-anything-so-beautiful/) [Mira Grant](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/mira-grant/) > [The happy have whole days,](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/colley-cibber/the-happy-have-whole-days/) [Colley Cibber](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/colley-cibber/) > [I have observed this in my experience of slavery, - that whenever my condition was improved, instead of its increasing my contentment, it only…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/frederick-douglass/i-have-observed-this-in-my-experience-of-slavery-that-whenever-my/) [Frederick Douglass](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/frederick-douglass/) > [I've got nothing to do today but smile.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anonymous/i-ve-got-nothing-to-do-today-but-smile/) [Anonymous](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anonymous/) > [Her dignity consists in being unknown to the world; her glory is in the esteem of her husband; her pleasures in the happiness of…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jean-jacques-rousseau/her-dignity-consists-in-being-unknown-to-the-world-her-glory-is-in/) [Jean-Jacques Rousseau](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jean-jacques-rousseau/) > [The size of a man's understanding might always be justly measured by his mirth.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/samuel-johnson/the-size-of-a-man-s-understanding-might-always-be-justly-measured-by/) [Samuel Johnson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/samuel-johnson/) > [Positive thinking evokes more energy, more initiative, more happiness.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anonymous/positive-thinking-evokes-more-energy-more-initiative-more-happiness/) [Anonymous](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anonymous/) > [When you have a choice, choose happy!](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/pancho-barnes/when-you-have-a-choice-choose-happy/) [Pancho Barnes](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/pancho-barnes/) [Browse all 40,288 Happiness quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/happiness/) ```json { "@context": "https://schema.org", "@graph": [ { "@type": "Quotation", "text": "“Part of the problem with positive thinking, and many related approaches to happiness, is exactly this desire to reduce big questions to one-size-fits-all self-help tricks or ten point plans.”", "creator": { "@type": "Person", "name": "Oliver Burkeman" }, "isPartOf": { "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#website" }, "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/oliver-burkeman/part-of-the-problem-with-positive-thinking-and-many-related/", "about": { "@type": "Thing", "name": "Happiness" }, "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/oliver-burkeman/part-of-the-problem-with-positive-thinking-and-many-related/#quotation", "image": { "@type": "ImageObject", "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/8f2/oliver-burkeman-14344_happiness_part-of-the-problem-with-positive-thinki_1251752.png", "contentUrl": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/8f2/oliver-burkeman-14344_happiness_part-of-the-problem-with-positive-thinki_1251752.png", "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/8f2/oliver-burkeman-14344_happiness_part-of-the-problem-with-positive-thinki_1251752.png", "width": 1080, "height": 1080, "caption": "“Part of the problem with positive thinking, and many related approaches to happiness, is exactly this desire…” — Oliver Burkeman", "creditText": "SMS4Smile Quotes", "creator": { "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#organization" } } }, { "@type": "BreadcrumbList", "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": "Oliver Burkeman", "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/oliver-burkeman/" }, { "@type": "ListItem", "position": 4, "name": "“Part of the problem with positive...", "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/oliver-burkeman/part-of-the-problem-with-positive-thinking-and-many-related/" } ], "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/oliver-burkeman/part-of-the-problem-with-positive-thinking-and-many-related/#breadcrumb" }, { "@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 } } ] } ```