The concept of positivity does not originate in this book, because Dr. Carol S. Dweck wrote an entire book about it, entitled Mindset: The New Psychology of Success.[90] Many years before her efforts, Rev Dr. Norman Vincent Peale became famous for his book, The Power of Positive Thinking.[120] Advocates of positive thinking have been with us for a long time. Wallace Wattles advocated positive mindset in his book, The Science of Success.[25] Many years later, Rhonda Byrne re-stated this principle as the ‘law of attraction’ in her book, The Secret[.87] So did current 2019 presidential candidate, Mary Ann Williamson, in her book, The Law of Divine Compensation.[88] Tai Lopez of TaiLopez.com has built an entire institution around positive attitude and impact. And this is by no means the end of the list.  Dean Graziosi and Tony Robbins have a program dedicated to finding success. Dean's book The Under Dog Advantage: Rewrite Your Future by Turning Your Disadvantages into Your Super Powers is all about achieving after adopting a growth mindset.

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Dr. Dweck begins her remarkable book with the following message.[90] “My work is part of a tradition in psychology that shows the power of people’s beliefs. These may be beliefs we’re aware of or unaware of, but they strongly affect what we want and whether we succeed in getting it. This tradition also shows how changing people’s beliefs- even the simplest beliefs – can have profound effects.” This is, my friends, the intent of the Geometry of Emotions and BUILD-UP-BRIDGES. It’s all about giving you a leg up in life, because I want you to adopt the 7 Virtues, as part of living your life.

 

Let's continue with Doctor Dweck, “How a simple belief about yourself – a belief we discovered in our research- guides a large part of your life. In fact, it permeates every part of your life. Much of what you think of as your personality actually grows out of this ‘mindset.’ Much of what may be preventing you from fulfilling your potential grows out of it.” Since we know the power of the Geometry of Emotions, Doctor Dweck’s commentary makes perfect sense. If we can stay on the positive side (the 7 Virtues) of the GEM diagram, then this is an enormous advantage to us. Yes, Professor Dweck is all about what helps you to find SUCCESS.

 

According to Carol Dweck, individuals fall into one of two mindsets. First, there is a rigid mindset that is fixed in stone. You were born with certain mindsets and talents, and you will be tested repeatedly in life to ‘cough up’ your response and that’s it. In that scenario, your life is over before it’s begun, according to the fixed mindset 'graders.' In every one of these challenges, you’ll get a grade, given by your family, yourself, your co-workers, your teachers, supervisors, and friends.

 

The ‘grade’ will define just who you are. In this approach, there are many negative emotions, and ultimately, people who live with a fixed mindset are likely to end up thinking that they are a ‘loser’ in varying degrees. The negative destructive emotions shown in my model of positive versus negative emotions, the Geometry of Emotions, belong to them. They are card carriers for the negative side.

 

Don’t tell the Reverend Joel Osteen[121] or Elon Musk[56] that you know that they have a negative mindset. Osteen[121] will point to the scriptures, and what Isaiah said about failure. ‘It’s just another stepping stone.' Musk would say that if you’re not failing, then, you’re aren’t innovating enough. Yes indeed, the bulls of positivity are everywhere, but so are the bears, who are determined to stay negative.

 

This is by no means an unimportant observation. What has repeated itself as a characteristic of mass shootings is that the perpetrators are living isolated lives with a profound degree of a negative mindset. They are profoundly, tragically, by their own opinions, ‘left out’ and angry. [They are the Negative Delta Archetypes of the GEM model.] Children have borne the brunt of that anger, as was shown in the Adverse Child Event Study. Severe negative childhood experiences change our health and lifespans!

 

Fortunately for us all, there is a second mindset that believes that we are all capable of growth. Life is changing, and we are changing, too! We are adapting, innovating, growing, and creating with a goal to make life better, not just for ourselves but for everyone.[90] Life is not just about what you inherit, or how you performed on the social studies exam in the tenth grade that convinced you that you were stupid. No. You are creative, intelligent, and profoundly capable of growth!

 

As a result, people with a growth mindset look forward to the next challenge, and they give their best to them. Failure to them is just another stepping stone in life, which is expected, and they redouble their efforts to achieve their goals. They believe that if one path is blocked that another will open, because they have a growth mindset. Because of them, we went to the moon!

 

In this regard, the Reverend Joel Osteen[121] described Isaiah’s commentary that failure is a stepping stone beneath you and NOT an end. This is the critical focus of his advice on failure in the life experience, in his book, The Power of I AM.[121] Even if the idea of a God is a concept that you can’t embrace, then it’s still a great book to read, because you know that you have company.

 

No one is alone in the struggle of life. We are in it, together, and there is only one way to approach the challenge. Bring your positivity and compassion for self and others with you, and look for the ‘formless substance’ that Wallace D. Wattles wrote about in the Science of Success.[25] Embrace the 7 Virtues and practice them, every day! For this first editorial, I thought that this was a good place to begin. This is the essence of the message that fills every corner of this website. Enjoy it.

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