Tip#188: Wear A Coat of Optimism – The Shawshank Redemption

Build an optimistic mindset and it's like having an invisible coat that will protect you from anything life throws at you.

An optimistic mindset is defined as having a positive default response to any challenge one faces in the workplace, career or life. One cinematic role model that inspires this empowering frame of mind is Andy Dufresne.

The Shawshank Redemption

Tim Robbins plays Andy Dufresne in the movie The Shawshank Redemption which also stars Morgan Freeman as Red. Both men are facing life imprisonment together in a story about hope in the 1940's.

This film embodies key elements of feeding and maintaining an optimistic mindset: the importance of goal setting, friendship and even the power of music. There is a scene where Dufresne defies the prison warden and guards by playing a moving Italian aria over the prison speakers for all the inmates to hear. You could see that he and the other inmates felt free just for that one blissful moment.

Dufresne had to face many emotional, psychological and physical challenges during his years in prison. But he knew that his key to freedom in mind and spirit was to keep his positive emotional energy alive. He created projects to work on like improving the prison library and carving chess pieces out of rocks.

Build Your Optimism

So believe that you too can build an optimistic mindset in order to face your own challenges. Envision short term and long term goals to give yourself daily purpose and drive. Cultivate friendships that will support you during your journey. And fill your heart with the things you love like music or movies to generate an internal flow of positive emotional energy. This is your fuel.

Remember the biggest challenge you will ever face are the negative thoughts in your own mind. Make it your ultimate goal to master your thoughts and make optimism your best friend and ally.

"He strolled, like a man in a park without a care or a worry in the world, like he had on an invisible coat that would shield him from this place."
Red about Dufresne when they meet in prison
The Shawshank Redemption

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Emmanuel Lopez
Motivational Specialist
www.motivatorman.com
© Emmanuel Lopez 2008