Optimism: A Poor Economy’s Worst Enemy
George Francis, the nation’s oldest man died yesterday. He was 112. Gertrude Baines of Los Angeles remains the nation’s oldest living person at 114 years old. Reading about a person who has been alive since before 1900, made me reconsider how I felt about our current economy. Their long lives that stretched over two world wars, witnessed the rise of the US as the world’s greatest power, the race to space, the advent of flying as a common means of travel, the rise and fall of nations, of dictators, and tyrants. They’ve seen it all. And when I turn on the radio and hear about how bad things are and how bad they’re continuing to get, it’s nice to think about Gertrude and George and know that it will all be over at some point.
Highs and lows. That’s the way of the world. It’s the way things work in our everyday lives, and why should the world as a whole be any different? I mean, was there anyone with half a brain that really truly thought home prices in California would continue to rise exponentially every year forever until a 1500 square foot run down piece of crap 8 blocks from the beach was worth $20 million? Of course it wasn’t going to last. So when I read “U.S. Home Prices Drop 18% in October” on every newspaper front page today, I thought: “Well of course they dropped because they’d been increasingly over-valued for 8 years!!” I remember real estate agents back in 2003, intelligent people, trying to convince others (and perhaps themselves) that there was no real estate bubble. And why did so many people believe them? Money, of course. And I’m not trying to babble on about something we all know already and I’m not trying to make light of our economic situation. This is without question, an awful time where jobs and homes and retirement savings are all being lost, leaving people with little to nothing across the country. But I am trying to remind everyone to breathe. Breathe deeply. This isn’t the end of prosperity. This isn’t the end of the United States, and it’s not the end of the world. Times are tough now, but George and Gertrude would be the first to tell you that just like the years of our flourishing economy, our struggling economy won’t last forever either.
As you might be able to discern, I can be optimistic to an annoying degree at times. It can drive those that know me crazy. But I’m a Chicago Cubs fan. Talk about living with highs and lows. Optimism is in my blood, and I can’t help but retaliate in some way for all the negative vibes that are funneling into my head every day from the media. And so I hope this brief rant strikes a chord with those who might be in need of a reminder, that it’s not all gloom and doom for you or our country. Perhaps one day you’ll look back at this time in your life and think: that wasn’t such a bad time as it seemed then. After all, the Chargers ended up winning the Super Bowl that year and the Cubs won the World Series. It couldn’t have been as bad as I remember.
Written and posted by Andrew Brentan
January 2nd, 2009 at 3:59 pm
i’m the same way, i’m always optimistic! I always try to stay positive, but here lately its difficult when the market has one good day and 4 bad days.
but stay positive and stay motivated
January 3rd, 2009 at 8:51 am
I agree wholeheartedly. Sure, there’s a lot of doom and gloom now, but it’s not nearly as bad as it could be. Things were a lot worse in the ’30s. And there’s always money to be made, regardless of the economy.
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January 3rd, 2009 at 5:46 pm
i think Economy effect to country.and it will be strong if have strong economy.and i think in 2009 economy will be best
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January 5th, 2009 at 10:15 pm
I hope it gets better soon, but I’m keeping optimistic. I almost got laid off, but the layoffs stopped about three people before me. My husband did get laid off at his job, but it’ll start up again tomorrow, but who knows how long it’s going to last. One thing’s for sure, we’ll probably be unable to put money into the economy anytime soon. Right now we’re just trying to pay bills.
January 7th, 2009 at 3:57 pm
There are things to be optimistic if you are a real estate agent. In my area, we have have had a 30% drop in agents renewing their license. This means more of the pie for us still in the business. During this down time we can upgrade listing presentations and learn of new marketing ideas such as an upgraded website. Also, the decline in home prices have put the first time home buyer back into the market which will have a trickle up effect. Yes, things are bad but now is the time to take a breath and improve your business for when the market dose turn around.
January 7th, 2009 at 11:40 pm
I think one can be realistic and at the same time be optimistic. I dont think the economy is going to get better tomorrow. But at the same time I can be optimistic I can outlast the recession by planning carefully.
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January 8th, 2009 at 2:40 pm
I really don’t know what all the fuss is about I personally think this is probably the greatest time for oppurtunity since the industrial age. Their is already a great change of wealth happening.
January 9th, 2009 at 7:06 am
In 2009 economy will be best? So optimistic ))
I would like to agree with you saying that )) I can only “hope” that it will be better!
Greetings from Spain.
July 14th, 2009 at 8:55 am
I think without optimism the economy is going to crash even more!
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