Positive thinking can hurt us, churches, and corporations just like negative thinking can as said by Barbara Ehrenreich in Bright Side: How the Relentless Promotion of Positive Thinking Has Undermined America. I never thought about pessimism as ever having a positive connotation until Mr. Polking asked me about it. Pessimism doesn’t always have a negative connotation; it helps us in our survival and instincts. Ehrenreich agrees with this by saying, “Realism--to the point of defensive pessimism--is a prerequisite not only for human survival but for all animal species” (200). Humans and animals …show more content…
Catholics are most known for displaying this behavior, but is that changing? Is there a new church revolution like there was in the 1500’s? In a way, yes. Megachurches are becoming more and more popular. They often preach positive thinking; rarely mentioning sinners and damnation, “Gone is the threat of hell and the promise of salvation, along with the grim story Jesus’ torment on the cross…” (124). These megachurches are revolutionizing into something the world has never seen. Some say “...the megachurch looks like a corporate office building or headquarters; its pastor is more likely to wear a business suit than clerical robes; religious symbols and icons have been stripped away” (145). I’ve never noticed this about new churches popping up until Bright Side mentioned it. The book also mentions how corporations are straying away from their own traditions as …show more content…
But with this new idea of CEO came workers and CEOs who were unfamiliar with each other. This detachment lead to easy firing and laying off workers. Soon enough, those who underperformed or whose branch was no longer relevant, lost their jobs. The life as they knew it fell apart around them, but some didn’t let this bring them down because “The purveyors of positive thinking did not slink off into the night like foreclosed-upon homeowners...they seemed to redouble their efforts” (192). By thinking positive, they got to keep up their lifestyle and income too. When they could’ve fallen into anger and despair, they rose