We came across a post on Optimism and Leadership via a Guy Kawasaki Tweet. Alec Sorensen discusses the impact  optimism can have on the US economy and people’s perspective. Two lessons he mentions on optimistic leadership are:

1. Don’t ignore problems, but don’t over emphasize their impact
2. Focus your efforts on positive change and keep an eye out for new possibilities

I can imagine the cynics in the audience rolling their eyes, but there is a case for optimism and hope beyond campaign slogans and marketing messages. These messages are important for society to retain perspective and some sense of harmony.

Due to the credit crunch, we have seen the opportunity for optimism arise more often – by governments, companies and other groups. We recently attended a giant sing-along hosted by T-Mobile. When we spoke to members of the audience they appreciated the effort T-Mobile was making to cheer people up and show people that times were not as hard as they seem.

Having an optimistic view is about having a balanced view, not ignoring the problems in society, but not privileging them beyond their context. Instead, we focus on the things that are working well, look to create more things that are working well and hope to eventually outnumber the problems that will always occur. This post-modern view was popularised by David Cooperrider and is now practiced in many of the world’s leading companies.

Gillian Garner, has written an article about using this theory in the development of brands and company cultures. You can read the article here.