Chapter One of Pathological Positivity: Free for Anyone Who Doubts "Just Think Positive" Actually Works
The thinking shift I've used with families for more than 30 years, in the words I first wrote it down.
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Most positive-thinking advice asks you to feel something you don't feel yet.
That's not what this is. Pathological Positivity is a set of principles, not a mood, and Chapter One lays out the one idea everything else in the book builds on: every problem carries an opportunity inside it, whether you can see it yet or not.
I call this a “propportunity.” It's not a trick of language. It's a different way of looking at the same set of facts, and once you see it, you can't fully un-see it.
You don't have to take my word for it. Read the chapter and see if the shift holds up against something real in your own life right now.
What you'll get in Chapter One:
This is 22 pages of the actual book, not a summary or a teaser. Read it in one sitting or a few minutes at a time; either way, it's yours to keep.
- The idea “propportunity” comes from
- and why I chose that clumsy word on purpose instead of a smoother one.
- The gap between a real problem and the “it could have gone better” story you tell about it
- the reframe that lets you evaluate “what is” against “what could be worse” instead of only “what could be better.”
- Why this isn't fake-it-till-you-make-it
- The chapter draws the line between authentic positivity and the performance kind, and shows you which one actually holds up under pressure.
- The starting point for everything else I teach
- so if you go on to read further or work with me directly, you already have the foundation underneath it.
I'm Dr. Paul Jenkins, a Positivity Psychologist.
I've spent more than 30 years in clinical practice working with families, and Pathological Positivity is where I first wrote down the thinking behind that work, chapter by chapter. This chapter is the same one I hand people who ask me where to start.
Just let me know where to send it.
Check your inbox now. Chapter One will be there, ready to read, along with a short note from me on where to go next if it lands the way I think it will.