The Science of Hope - What Happens to Your Brain When You Focus on Optimism
Hope is a choice.
Optimism is a choice.
Choosing both of these can improve mental health, lower anxiety, and provide you with the opportunity to improve the lives of others.
Imagine a world where every problem is seen as a challenge.
Where unpredictable events are seen as an adventure.
And where there’s a genuine belief that things will turn out well.
Sound farfetched?
I don’t see this as fantasy or naivety; this is the power of optimism and hope.
A subconscious bias towards the positive.
Used alongside the fundamental principles behind Karma and the ‘Law of Attraction’, optimism and hope can become a catalyst for personal growth, improved mental health and societal change.
Choosing to be hopeful, or choosing to be optimistic, are both choices.
That may sound blunt, but not choosing them will put you at a disadvantage compared to someone who does not.
What is hope?
Hope is the source of energy that can guide you through your darkest of nights.
Hope is the belief that your future will be better than the present and that you have the ability to make it happen. It involves both optimism and a can-do attitude.
It isn’t just wishful thinking or blind optimism.
Hope is a powerful combination of positive expectations and a conviction that you have what it takes to achieve something.
When you embrace hope and optimism, you’re able to tap into an inner source of strength and resilience.
You’re able to see issues, problems and obstacles as opportunities for growth… and stepping stones towards your goals.
Hope can fuel your motivation.
It can give you the courage and conviction to make decisions and the perseverance to keep pushing forward, even when the path ahead is uncertain.
Hope can also be used to inspire others, to help make a positive impact on the world around you.
When you lead with hope, you can become a beacon of light for those who are struggling, showing them that a better future is possible and that they too have the power to create change.
When you have hope, anything is possible.
But first, you must fall
In my late twenties, I was going through a particularly difficult period in my professional life.
I was employed full-time, and objectively, I was successful in my career. However, I felt lost, directionless, and frustrated without fully understanding what those feelings were.
One day, when I came home from work feeling low, I opened the front door and saw a small parcel addressed to me lying on the carpet. It must have been posted through the letterbox. As I opened the package, I was surprised to see it was a gift-wrapped DVD.
On the front of the DVD, it said, "Pollyanna".
I’m not a big fan of Disney films, especially those from the 1960s. I’d never seen this film before, so I had no idea what it was about.
I began to open a small gift card that was attached to the cover.
"Dear Matt darling, Give the world love and positivity and it will come back to you 100 times over, Luv Naz x x"
Inside were these words that I'll never forget. Words that have shaped my life every day since -
My eyes began to fill with water, and my heart was full again.
I decided to put aside my own prejudices about Disney films, and trust that the man I loved had bought me this gift for a very important reason.
When my fiancé Naz came home that evening, he was excited to share the story behind Pollyanna and why he wanted me to see this film. Naz told me about the hope and optimism Pollyanna had brought to the town of Harrington, USA, and the impact she had made on the people around her.
At first, I wasn’t too convinced about the film, but Naz insisted I would love it.
We cuddled up on the sofa that evening and watched Pollyanna together. It was a wonderful story of a young orphaned girl who was moved to a new small town with her rich and strict aunt Polly. In a town that was so wrapped up in its negativity, everyone who lived there had become toxic and miserable.
Pollyanna shared with the local residents of Harrington a game that her late father had taught her called the ‘glad game’.
The game challenges participants to find the silver lining in every situation.
Pollyanna would walk around the town, and if she heard a resident grumbling (which was most of them), she’d share things like -
‘… But look at the sun it’s beautiful. It’s glowing. It’s warm. And we should be glad about that.’
or
‘Look at the trees, they’re wonderful. Look at the green leaves, and look at the beauty of the tree… and we should be glad about that.’
Later in the film, Pollyanna suffered a serious accident when she fell out of a tree. She was seriously injured, confined to a bed and could no longer go outside to play.
Pollyanna started to slip into a negative mindset and no longer felt glad about anything.
Lying injured in bed, Pollyanna confessed to everyone that being ‘glad’ was just a game and that feeling ‘glad’ wasn’t real, and she'd made it all up. She no longer believed that feeling glad was possible or true.
The residents of Harrington learned about what happened to Pollyanna and that she no longer felt glad.
The residents visited Pollyanna as she rested at home, one by one.
They reminded Pollyanna about all the wonderful things in life that she could still feel glad about. The residents explained how Pollyanna’s ‘glad game’ had helped them become glad, and indeed happy, about so many things in their own lives.
Pollyanna listened and over time, started to absorb their words and their stories of feeling glad.
Slowly, over time, Pollyanna started feeling glad about life again.
(trigger warning: suicide)
Sometimes, hope is the only thing we have left
The quote from Naz captured the true essence and meaning behind the story of Pollyanna.
When my fiancé of thirteen years Naz, tragically took his own life in 2014, I desperately struggled to find anything positive to hold onto. The pain of losing my soulmate was too much for me to process.
I almost took my own life a few days later.
Months later, and after much searching, I found Naz’s quote again in a dusty box.
Reading those words took me back to the moment when Naz and I watched Pollyanna together and the love we shared for thirteen beautiful years.
It reminded me of how he approached life’s challenges and how Naz was the most inspirational person I have ever met.
Naz’s words gave me a new feeling of purpose.
A reason to be optimistic, even given the most challenging, almost impossible circumstances I now found myself in.
His words gave me hope.
From that moment on, I decided to use Naz’s quote as my moral compass—a guide to help me make decisions on the difficult journey ahead.
His quote is now engraved on two memorial benches, one in Birmingham and one in London. I go there to read his words when I need to find answers.
A printout of Naz's quote sits right in front of my computer, which I read daily. Particularly when I'm facing a challenge and don't know which path to take.
Naz's quote triggers a chemical reaction in my brain.
I was curious to understand more... so I did some research.
Sagittal human brain with cortical regions delineated. Natalie M. Zahr, Ph.D., and Edith V. Sullivan, Ph.D.
The science of hope
Studies show that focusing on hope and maintaining a positive outlook can do more than make us feel better. It can fundamentally change our brains, enhance our well-being, and transform how we tackle life's challenges.
Studies suggest that increasing hope can improve symptoms and daily functioning in people with mental health conditions.
Hope has been found to act as a buffer against stress, anxiety, and depression during the COVID-19 pandemic.
According to hope theory, higher levels of hope are consistently linked to better outcomes regarding mental health, physical health, and overall well-being.
Hope can produce a mindset that is grounded, optimistic, and protective even when faced with tremendous challenges.
Research also shows that hope can have a positive impact on mental health by reducing stress and anxiety, increasing resilience, and promoting overall well-being.
As a catalyst for positive change, hope promotes overall mental health and may help heal specific conditions, including severe mental illness.
What happens to our brain when we focus on hope?
When we focus on hope, several areas of the brain are activated, leading to positive changes in our mental state and well-being.
Hope activates the prefrontal cortex, which is involved in goal-directed behaviour and decision-making.
This activation helps us plan and take steps towards achieving our goals.
Focusing on hope also stimulates the release of neurotransmitters like dopamine and serotonin, which are associated with feelings of pleasure, reward, and well-being.
These neurotransmitters can help alleviate stress, anxiety, and even pain.
And hope is closely related to a sense of power and feeling in control of a future. Studies have shown that both hope and a sense of power activate similar brain regions, such as the striatum and the medial prefrontal cortex.
These regions are involved in motivation and positive emotions.
Regularly focusing on hope can lead to long-term changes in the brain through neuroplasticity, which is the brain's ability to rewire itself based on experiences and thoughts.
By consistently engaging in hopeful thinking, we can strengthen the neural pathways associated with positive emotions and resilience.
Make hope and optimism a core part of your life
As you navigate life's ups and downs, choosing hope and optimism is a powerful, science-backed way to build a more resilient, joyful, and healthy life.
Research overwhelmingly shows that training our brains to see the positive, even in tough times, unlocks numerous mental, emotional, and physical benefits. By focusing on hope, we steer ourselves towards a brighter future.
Don't think of optimism or hope as a fleeting feeling - it’s something you can choose to create if you really want it.
Embrace hope and optimism as a fundamental pillar of your existence.
Turn your biggest challenges into opportunities to learn and grow.
Personal proof that hope works
In 2014, I founded Naz and Matt Foundation in memory of Naz.
Now a multi-award-winning high-profile charity, its foundational work and approach to tackling familial abuse are built on the principles of hope and positivity. Much of the work is inspired by Naz’s quote.
As an organisation being able to create hope as a repeatable process, the charity has helped support thousands of individuals.
It has saved the lives of countless victims and survivors of abuse who felt they had no way forward at the point of contacting the Foundation.
Hope as a tool for personal and business growth
Hope and optimism are two powerful yet overlooked tools you can use, no matter what profession you are in.
Believing in a better future is the first step towards getting there.
How are you going to use hope today?
How will you inspire hope in the community you serve?
Whatever the challenges you're facing today... you've got this. I believe in you.
If you'd like to discuss hope and how it can be used in your professional journey as a CEO, entrepreneur, or coach, please get in touch.
If you are affected by any of the issues discussed in this article, please contact the Samaritans (UK) on 116 123 if you are feeling suicidal. If you're in the US, contact TrevorLifeline on 1–866–488–7386.
If you're LGBTQI+ or a parent from a religious or culturally conservative family and need support, contact Naz and Matt Foundation's friendly Support Team.