When Positive Thinking Goes Bad: Barbara Ehrenreich’s “Bright- Sided”
Barbara Ehrenreich is a kindred spirit of mine. She’s one of those curmudegonly skeptics who tends to see the world as a place that has become a very difficult place for ordinary people to navigate. Ehrenreich is the author of a huge number of fascinating, insightful books about American Culture and in her latest book, “Bright-Sided,” she turns her sharp intellect to the subject of the “positive thinking” movement. When I heard she had written this book, I was not-at-all surprised that she was taking this subject on. Here’s why:
1) I am a Realtor® here in Kenmore, WA. There isn’t a business in the world more saturated with “positive mental attitude” propaganda than Real Estate. In a very real sense, it was an uber-optimistic philosophy that deluded many of the smartest analysts and policy makers in America to believe that the real estate boom would go on forever. It’s also common for us real estate professionals to encounter homeowners who are incredibly unrealistic about the value of their homes these days. People simply can’t believe that the market would actually lose value. After all, for the last decade we’ve been bombarded with Wall Street’s version of reality: “You can have it all!”
Ehrenreich points out in the book that much of the “positive thinking” literature that we are all so familiar with, such as “Think and Grow Rich” by Napoleon Hill was intended for the world of a “corporate” salesmen and organizational men. The notion that all of our wants can materialize through our thoughts is exactly the sort of thing management wants its sales force to believe.
2) As some of you may know, for the last year I have been consulting as a financial counselor for a local Credit Union. My job has been to work with members to help them through these difficult economic times. One of my main observations in doing this work is: American Optimism has become one of the biggest problems for a lot of families today. A huge number of the people with whom I consult have been operating on the (false) belief that the economic trajectory of the U.S. would always move upward. Many tell me, “I thought I’d have a job by now!” Many have been out-of-work for over a year. And these folks are generally educated, skilled and hard-working. Unfortunately, by the time they speak with me they’ve burned through all their liquid savings, their retirement and have charged up huge credit card debt.
I highly recommend you read “Bright-Sided.” I believe we Americans need to recalibrate our sense of reality in what has become an extremely complex world. Ehrenreich was inspired to write this book because of her intimate encounter with breast cancer in 2000. She quickly grew tired of the pressure to be “positive” about her cancer. She also found herself confronting the huge myth that thinking positive thoughts actually helps on fight cancer. Contrary to popular belief, there is no evidence proving this.
Here’s an interesting video clip of an interview with Barbara on John Stewart’s Comedy Central about “Bright-Sided”:
Click on this picture to watch the video!
