--- title: "Meaning & Key Takeaway of: I try to be a realist and not a pessimist…" description: "\"I try to be a realist and not a pessimist or an optimist.\" — Yuval Noah Harari" image: "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/6d5/yuval-noah-harari-100_optimist_i-try-to-be-a-realist-and-not-a-pessimis_3058947.jpg" --- # I try to be a realist and not a pessimist or an optimist. ![“I try to be a realist and not a pessimist or an optimist.” quote by Yuval Noah Harari](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/6d5/yuval-noah-harari-100_optimist_i-try-to-be-a-realist-and-not-a-pessimis_3058947.jpg) [Download](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/6d5/yuval-noah-harari-100_optimist_i-try-to-be-a-realist-and-not-a-pessimis_3058947.jpg) [Open image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/6d5/yuval-noah-harari-100_optimist_i-try-to-be-a-realist-and-not-a-pessimis_3058947.jpg) > “I try to be a realist and not a pessimist or an optimist.” [Yuval Noah Harari](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/yuval-noah-harari/) ## About This Quote This interpretation was drafted with AI assistance. It is one reading of the quote, not the author's own explanation. He aims to view reality realistically without leaning toward optimism or pessimism. **In simple terms:** Adopt a balanced, factual outlook. Key Takeaway Ground decisions in evidence. Themes philosophy realism balance Mood analytical steady Type philosophical practical When to use this quote - policy making - personal planning Key Concepts cognitive bias critical thinking Questions to Reflect On - How to stay objective under stress? - When is optimism beneficial? A Different Perspective May neglect emotional motivations. ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ No ratings yet [Optimist](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/optimist/) [Pessimism](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/pessimism/) [Pessimist](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/pessimist/) [Realist](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/realist/) ## Related quotes > [There's a difference between being a realist and a pessimist and an optimist. I think I'm way more of a realist.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/quinta-brunson/there-s-a-difference-between-being-a-realist-and-a-pessimist-and-an/) [Quinta Brunson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/quinta-brunson/) > [First, I was an idealist (that was early - fools are born, not made, you know); next I was a realist; now I am…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ellen-glasgow/first-i-was-an-idealist-that-was-early-fools-are-born-not-made-you/) [Ellen Glasgow](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ellen-glasgow/) > [The merchant must be no more pessimist than optimist, since pessimism induces him to hold back his capital but optimism induces him to take…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/w-e-b-du-bois/the-merchant-must-be-no-more-pessimist-than-optimist-since-pessimism/) [W. E. B. Du Bois](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/w-e-b-du-bois/) > [The intelligent investor is a realist who sells to optimists and buys from pessimists.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/benjamin-graham/the-intelligent-investor-is-a-realist-who-sells-to-optimists-and-buys/) [Benjamin Graham](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/benjamin-graham/) > [Dear optimist, pessimist, and realist--while you guys were busy arguing about the glass of wine, I drank it! Sincerely, the opportunist!](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/lori-greiner/dear-optimist-pessimist-and-realist-while-you-guys-were-busy-arguing-2/) [Lori Greiner](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/lori-greiner/) > [“People who are too optimistic seem annoying. This is an unfortunate misinterpretation of what an optimist really is. An optimist is neither naive, nor…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/vera-nazarian/people-who-are-too-optimistic-seem-annoying-this-is-an-unfortunate/) [Vera Nazarian](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/vera-nazarian/) > [I'm a realist all the way. I'm too cynical to be an optimist. But I've lived too much of a charmed life so far…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anthony-jeselnik/i-m-a-realist-all-the-way-i-m-too-cynical-to-be-an-optimist-but-i-ve/) [Anthony Jeselnik](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anthony-jeselnik/) > [“Lately, a study has suggested that depressed people have a more accurate view of reality, though this accuracy is not worth a bean because…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anna-funder/lately-a-study-has-suggested-that-depressed-people-have-a-more/) [Anna Funder](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anna-funder/) > [I think I probably hoped for it a little bit, but I'm not an optimist. I'm a realist... or maybe even a pessimist.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/clay-aiken/i-think-i-probably-hoped-for-it-a-little-bit-but-i-m-not-an-optimist/) [Clay Aiken](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/clay-aiken/) > [I am neither a pessimist nor an optimist. I am a realist, and the reality in Iraq is that it has been very hard…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/david-petraeus/i-am-neither-a-pessimist-nor-an-optimist-i-am-a-realist-and-the/) [David Petraeus](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/david-petraeus/) > [Sometimes a pessimist is only an optimist with extra information.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/idries-shah/sometimes-a-pessimist-is-only-an-optimist-with-extra-information/) [Idries Shah](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/idries-shah/) > [But I am an optimist about Britain; and the difference between an optimist and a pessimist is not that the optimist believes the world…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/tony-blair/but-i-am-an-optimist-about-britain-and-the-difference-between-an/) [Tony Blair](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/tony-blair/) > [The difference between an optimist and a pessimist? An optimist laughs to forget, but a pessimist forgets to laugh.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/tom-bodett/the-difference-between-an-optimist-and-a-pessimist-an-optimist-laughs/) [Tom Bodett](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/tom-bodett/) > [The the question whether I am a pessimist or an optimist, I answer that my knowledge is pessimistic, but my willing and hope are…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/albert-schweitzer/the-the-question-whether-i-am-a-pessimist-or-an-optimist-i-answer/) [Albert Schweitzer](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/albert-schweitzer/) > [A pessimist is an optimist with experience](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/colleen-wilcox/a-pessimist-is-an-optimist-with-experience/) Colleen Wilcox ## More by Yuval Noah Harari > [“For similar reasons, archaic humans did not initiate any revolutions. As far as we can tell, changes in social patterns, the invention of new…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/yuval-noah-harari/for-similar-reasons-archaic-humans-did-not-initiate-any-revolutions/) [Yuval Noah Harari](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/yuval-noah-harari/) > [“Today the main source of wealth is knowledge. And whereas you can conquer oil fields through war, you cannot acquire knowledge that way.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/yuval-noah-harari/today-the-main-source-of-wealth-is-knowledge-and-whereas-you-can/) [Yuval Noah Harari](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/yuval-noah-harari/) > [“How do you cause people to believe in an imagined order such as Christianity, democracy or capitalism? First, you never admit that the order…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/yuval-noah-harari/how-do-you-cause-people-to-believe-in-an-imagined-order-such-as/) [Yuval Noah Harari](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/yuval-noah-harari/) > [I think the basic thing that happened is we have lost our story. Humans think in stories, and we try to make sense of…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/yuval-noah-harari/i-think-the-basic-thing-that-happened-is-we-have-lost-our-story/) [Yuval Noah Harari](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/yuval-noah-harari/) > [“Whereas chimpanzees spend five hours a day chewing raw food, a single hour suffices for people eating cooked food. The advent of cooking enabled…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/yuval-noah-harari/whereas-chimpanzees-spend-five-hours-a-day-chewing-raw-food-a-single/) [Yuval Noah Harari](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/yuval-noah-harari/) > [“the Chinese air-purification market is booming.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/yuval-noah-harari/the-chinese-air-purification-market-is-booming/) [Yuval Noah Harari](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/yuval-noah-harari/) > [“Whereas liberalism merged with the milder versions of nationalism to protect the unique experiences of each human community, evolutionary humanists such as Hitler identified…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/yuval-noah-harari/whereas-liberalism-merged-with-the-milder-versions-of-nationalism-to/) [Yuval Noah Harari](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/yuval-noah-harari/) > [“Corporations, money and nations exist only in our imagination. We invented them to serve us; why do we find ourselves sacrificing our lives in…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/yuval-noah-harari/corporations-money-and-nations-exist-only-in-our-imagination-we/) [Yuval Noah Harari](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/yuval-noah-harari/) > [“Small children in affluent societies often dislike showering, and it takes them years of education and parental discipline to adopt this supposedly attractive custom.…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/yuval-noah-harari/small-children-in-affluent-societies-often-dislike-showering-and-it/) [Yuval Noah Harari](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/yuval-noah-harari/) > [“Ever more scholars see cultures as a kind of mental infection or parasite, with humans as its unwitting host. Organic parasites, such as viruses,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/yuval-noah-harari/ever-more-scholars-see-cultures-as-a-kind-of-mental-infection-or/) [Yuval Noah Harari](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/yuval-noah-harari/) > [“Soviet Communism was a fanatical and missionary religion. A devout Communist could not be a Christian or a Buddhist, and was expected to spread…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/yuval-noah-harari/soviet-communism-was-a-fanatical-and-missionary-religion-a-devout/) [Yuval Noah Harari](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/yuval-noah-harari/) > [“Whereas religion asks us to believe in something, money asks us to believe that other people believe in something”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/yuval-noah-harari/whereas-religion-asks-us-to-believe-in-something-money-asks-us-to/) [Yuval Noah Harari](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/yuval-noah-harari/) > [“Terrorists are like a fly that tries to destroy a china shop. The fly is so weak that it cannot budge even a single…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/yuval-noah-harari/terrorists-are-like-a-fly-that-tries-to-destroy-a-china-shop-the-fly/) [Yuval Noah Harari](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/yuval-noah-harari/) > [“Yet what happens if the greedy shoemaker increases his profits by paying employees less and increasing their work hours? The standard answer is that…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/yuval-noah-harari/yet-what-happens-if-the-greedy-shoemaker-increases-his-profits-by/) [Yuval Noah Harari](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/yuval-noah-harari/) > [“A natural order is a stable order. There is no chance that gravity will cease to function tomorrow, even if people stop believing in…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/yuval-noah-harari/a-natural-order-is-a-stable-order-there-is-no-chance-that-gravity/) [Yuval Noah Harari](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/yuval-noah-harari/) [Explore all 1,200 Yuval Noah Harari quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/yuval-noah-harari/) ## More Optimist quotes > [I remain an eternal optimist about love. I believe in love.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jennifer-lopez/i-remain-an-eternal-optimist-about-love-i-believe-in-love/) [Jennifer Lopez](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jennifer-lopez/) > [“Oh, it was wicked of me to make him the troublesome thing I was. He should stay always what he was, the happy-go-lucky cheerful…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/v-c-andrews/oh-it-was-wicked-of-me-to-make-him-the-troublesome-thing-i-was-he/) [V.C. Andrews](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/v-c-andrews/) > [I'm a pessimist because of intelligence, but an optimist because of will.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/antonio-gramsci/i-m-a-pessimist-because-of-intelligence-but-an-optimist-because-of/) [Antonio Gramsci](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/antonio-gramsci/) > [I am an optimist, and I believe that people are inherently good and that if you give everyone a voice and freedom of expression,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/matt-mullenweg/i-am-an-optimist-and-i-believe-that-people-are-inherently-good-and/) [Matt Mullenweg](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/matt-mullenweg/) > [Both my wife and I are optimists and we look at the positives in life.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ben-fogle/both-my-wife-and-i-are-optimists-and-we-look-at-the-positives-in-life/) [Ben Fogle](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ben-fogle/) > [I am optimistic. But I also know that, with time, I'm beginning to fight issues of aging as well as long-term paralysis.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/christopher-reeve/i-am-optimistic-but-i-also-know-that-with-time-i-m-beginning-to-fight/) [Christopher Reeve](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/christopher-reeve/) > [“Tried be cheerful, tried be upbeat, tried not to let my feelings show, not to blame him, not to mind when day after day,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/kristan-higgins/tried-be-cheerful-tried-be-upbeat-tried-not-to-let-my-feelings-show/) [Kristan Higgins](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/kristan-higgins/) > [I am to positive to be doubtful too optimistic too be fearful and too determined too be defeated](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anonymous/i-am-to-positive-to-be-doubtful-too-optimistic-too-be-fearful-and-too/) [Anonymous](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anonymous/) > [The bottom line on attitude is that a good one helps to increase your possibilities. Pessimists usually get what they expect. So do optimists.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/john-c-maxwell/the-bottom-line-on-attitude-is-that-a-good-one-helps-to-increase-your/) [John C. Maxwell](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/john-c-maxwell/) > [“The optimist and the pessimist both die in the end, but each lives is life in a completely different way.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/paulo-coelho/the-optimist-and-the-pessimist-both-die-in-the-end-but-each-lives-is/) [Paulo Coelho](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/paulo-coelho/) > [I'm quite an optimist, quite happy in life, quite smiley.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/sally-hawkins/i-m-quite-an-optimist-quite-happy-in-life-quite-smiley/) [Sally Hawkins](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/sally-hawkins/) > [Nothing that's ever happened has taken away the optimist in me. It's always, "Whatever-let's go to Disneyland." Yes, I have my bleak, tortured-artist moments,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/mariah-carey/nothing-that-s-ever-happened-has-taken-away-the-optimist-in-me-it-s/) [Mariah Carey](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/mariah-carey/) > [An optimist is a man who plants two acorns and buys a hammock.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jean-de-lattre-de-tassigny/an-optimist-is-a-man-who-plants-two-acorns-and-buys-a-hammock/) Jean de Lattre de Tassigny > [If you weren’t an optimist, it would be impossible to be an architect.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/norman-foster/if-you-weren-t-an-optimist-it-would-be-impossible-to-be-an-architect/) [Norman Foster](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/norman-foster/) > [I'm such a pessimist. I find it impossible to enjoy anything, especially while it's happening. I'm thinking about how to get the next thing…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jacob-anderson/i-m-such-a-pessimist-i-find-it-impossible-to-enjoy-anything/) [Jacob Anderson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jacob-anderson/) [Browse all 951 Optimist quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/optimist/) ```json { "@context": "https://schema.org", "@graph": [ { "@type": "Quotation", "text": "I try to be a realist and not a pessimist or an optimist.", "creator": { "@type": "Person", "name": "Yuval Noah Harari" }, "isPartOf": { "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#website" }, "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/yuval-noah-harari/i-try-to-be-a-realist-and-not-a-pessimist-or-an-optimist/", "about": { "@type": "Thing", "name": "Optimist" }, "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/yuval-noah-harari/i-try-to-be-a-realist-and-not-a-pessimist-or-an-optimist/#quotation", "image": { "@type": "ImageObject", "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/6d5/yuval-noah-harari-100_optimist_i-try-to-be-a-realist-and-not-a-pessimis_3058947.jpg", "contentUrl": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/6d5/yuval-noah-harari-100_optimist_i-try-to-be-a-realist-and-not-a-pessimis_3058947.jpg", "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/6d5/yuval-noah-harari-100_optimist_i-try-to-be-a-realist-and-not-a-pessimis_3058947.jpg", "width": 1080, "height": 1080, "caption": "“I try to be a realist and not a pessimist or an optimist.” — Yuval Noah Harari", "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": "Yuval Noah Harari", "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/yuval-noah-harari/" }, { "@type": "ListItem", "position": 4, "name": "I try to be a realist...", "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/yuval-noah-harari/i-try-to-be-a-realist-and-not-a-pessimist-or-an-optimist/" } ], "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/yuval-noah-harari/i-try-to-be-a-realist-and-not-a-pessimist-or-an-optimist/#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 } } ] } ```