I've been using that "negative" rejection of automatic optimism since... ever, basically.
In certain scopes, it works really well. Especially in business or college. Think that the worst is going to happen, get ready for it, and get a very nice surprise when things always end better than you thought (and also learn a lot of damage control in the way).
However, when it comes to personal life, this can be very misleading. For example, when someone near you has a serious illness, paranoia strikes fast and you start to mourn things that haven't yet happened, and if things end well, all you've got is a real bad feeling that you could have avoided just by staying at that someone's side and conforting him/her.
I think this happens because losing money or getting bad grades is not that much of a big deal compared with certain losses in personal life (plus, you usually have less control in the latter case). I'd very much lose all my money than one of my best friends, maybe it's just me.
In certain scopes, it works really well. Especially in business or college. Think that the worst is going to happen, get ready for it, and get a very nice surprise when things always end better than you thought (and also learn a lot of damage control in the way).
However, when it comes to personal life, this can be very misleading. For example, when someone near you has a serious illness, paranoia strikes fast and you start to mourn things that haven't yet happened, and if things end well, all you've got is a real bad feeling that you could have avoided just by staying at that someone's side and conforting him/her.
I think this happens because losing money or getting bad grades is not that much of a big deal compared with certain losses in personal life (plus, you usually have less control in the latter case). I'd very much lose all my money than one of my best friends, maybe it's just me.