One of our seven core values at Gibson is Optimism Reigns: Attitude and outlook impact results. While I appreciate and think all of our values are important, this one can make or break an organization. Unfortunately, I have personally witnessed the meltdown of teams, work ethic, and overall productivity in past jobs. Optimism and attitude were nowhere to be found. And the health of the organization suffered. Our CEO, Tim Leman, previously shared his take on this core value in his Rejoice! Thorns Have Roses! blog.
I was thinking about optimism and attitude recently—not from the perspective of business health, but rather personal health. I had the opportunity to visit a friend in the hospital who is fighting cancer. While I don’t know her prognosis, I know that she has an uphill battle. I have to admit, I was anxious on the way to see her. I have known her for nearly 34 years. Her younger sister is my best friend. She’s a mom, and like me, I know her daughter means everything to her.
I feared my emotions would get the best of me and that our time together would be tear-filled, and I was surprised that our visit was the exact opposite. Instead it was full of laughter, childhood memories, and an overview of her treatment, complete with some good humor regarding her options for Halloween costumes thanks to her bald head. She expressed appreciation for how well the physicians and other healthcare providers were caring for her and gratitude for recently being approved for participation in a chemotherapy study. Her positive attitude, and yes, her optimism was overwhelming!
The visit reminded me of a seminar I attended several years ago regarding the effect attitude has on a person’s health. Although I don’t recall who the speaker was, I do remember vividly the mention of a study that examined how well (or not) breast cancer patients responded to treatment depending on their personal outlooks and personal connections to others. A Duke University study had similar findings. They asked heart patients to classify their health as poor, fair, good, or very good. Those who chose “very good” were about 70% less likely to die within three years than those who answered “good”, and they had three times the survival rate as those who classified their health as “poor”. Another study in Denmark examined the moods of patients and found those with an overall positive outlook were 58% more likely to live at least another five years.
Researchers continue to study the effects of positive thinking and optimism on health. They have determined that the health benefits may include lower rates of depression, improved immune system, better psychological and physical well-being, and certainly increased life span. I don’t know what impact my friend’s positive attitude will have on her health, but I do know that her outlook is inspiring. That visit reinforced one of our core values in a way I never imagined. Optimism reigns!
