Happy Days Are Here Again

Priscilla Gragg/Getty Images

Some days you may wake up raring to go, able to believe in yourself, your work, your fellow man (and woman). Other days, you just… can't. And even on good days, the slightest setback may sour your cheerful outlook, seemingly irrevocably.

Fortunately, new studies suggest that you may have more control over your mindset than you thought. According to Elaine Fox, M.D., author of the new book Rainy Brain, Sunny Brain: How to Retrain Your Brain to Overcome Pessimism and Achieve a More Positive Outlook, seeing the glass as half full is a skill, a muscle that you can improve. In her research, Fox discovered physical proof that changing your mind can actually, you know, change your mind. Neurons, the very circuitry of our brains, can be reshaped by new thought patterns—which is, in and of itself, cause for optimism. Here are Fox's suggestions for flexing your optimism muscles.