The defining characteristic of pessimists is that they tend to believe that bad events will last a long time, will undermine everything they do, and are their own fault. The optimists, who are confronted with the same hard knocks of this world, think about misfortune in the opposite way. They tend to believe that defeat is just a temporary setback or a challenge, that its causes are just confined to this one case.
Martin SeligmanThe Fundamentalist Religions simply seem to offer more hope for a brighter future than do the more liberal, humanistic ones.
Martin SeligmanWhat determines how much time and deliberate practice a child is willing to devote to achievement? Nothing less than her character.
Martin SeligmanPsychology should be just as concerned with building strength as with repairing damage
Martin SeligmanSuccess requires persistence, the ability to not give up in the face of failure. I believe that optimistic explanatory style is the key to persistence.
Martin Seligman