Of all the emotions, I find this one to be the most powerful.
Hope builds optimism and encourages us to move forward, even when times are tough. It helps inspire others to follow along with a plan or vision.
It is, in the classic line from Shawshank Redemption, “a good thing, maybe the best of things.”
But there is something illogical about the concept of hope.
Sure, you can have an emotional desire that your current efforts will lead to a positive outcome in the future, but the entire concept of hope is rooted in the knowledge that no matter what you are doing today – no matter how hard you are trying – those efforts may not manifest themselves into an outcome you desire.
Or put in simpler terms, hope is just an emotional coping mechanism to address the reality that the outcome of our efforts is outside our direct control.
And yet I could never imagine living a life without some measure of hope.
Illogical? Yes.
But it is at the intersection of emotion and logic that THINKERS reside -- acknowledging the role our emotions play in our logical decision-making process.
As THINKERS, we do no seek to remove all emotions from our decisions. Instead, we acknowledge the role they play in our lives and how they can influence us toward one action versus another.
And with this understanding, we can incorporate those feelings as we use logic and rationale reasoning to create ideas, make decisions, and advise those around us.
Hope is a good thing to have as a THINKER.
Personally, there are many things I am hopeful for: the future for my wife and children; a world that stays at peace while lifting prosperity for all; and the Dallas Stars making the NHL playoffs again!
There is a lot that I am hopeful for and to this list I would add the future growth of THINKERS.
For the past several months, we have been working on a few new products and offerings that we hope will make a difference in the lives of our customers in the near future.
- A new desktop version of the THINKERS App so you can capture and organize notes from the desktop to your phone and vice-a-versa.
- A new leather pen holder and elastic band for the THINKERS Notebook that will make it easy to keep your notebook closed while also making it convenient to carry a THINKERS Pen.
- An update to our THINKERS Pen with a redesigned case AND extra blue ink cartridge in addition to the black ink.
- A new partnership with Interabang Books – the first independent bookstore in the US to carry the THINKERS Notebook – making it convenient for people to purchase from a retail store.
- New notebook cover designs that will add more variety for customers to choose from.
These are just a few things we hope our customers will find value from in the months ahead.
And of course there are a few things we had been hoping for that have yet to pan out.
- Our Android version is in the early stages of development but still a ways away from being ready.
- Finding a reliable domestic supplier for our disc-bound notebooks is taking longer than hoped.
- International shipping continues to cause us delays in getting inventory for customers.
Basically, a few important things we had hoped would be ready by now have yet to materialize. But we are undeterred.
In the coming weeks, once our inventory arrives, you should receive emails from us about a promotion we are doing for Father’s Day.
We hope you will like it.
After all, thinking about the future requires a lot of hope today.
What is hope?
"In his study, Snyder discovered that hope is made up of two primary components. There’s willpower and “waypower”. Willpower is the driving force. It’s the internal fuel that moves people forward. Waypower is “a mental capacity we can call on to find one or more effective ways to reach our goals.” Said differently, it’s our ability to create a path between our current situation and where we want to be."
Read: Psychology of Hope (Amazon)
Hope can be extremely powerful.
"For all those who have come to think of hope as an impotent wish, a vague, flimsy idea that things will be better in the future, this book brings good news: Hope is real. It’s measurable. It has life-saving power. And it can be learned."
Read: Hope Rising: How the Science of HOPE Can Change Your Life (Amazon)
The Science of Hope
"Hope came to Chan Hellman during a 10-minute conversation years ago with a young man newly diagnosed with HIV that led to his parents kicking him out of the house.
The University of Oklahoma quantitative psychologist met the 19-year-old while conducting a housing assessment for the nonprofit Tulsa CARES. The teenager was happy, engaging with others and thoughtful even though he was living under a bridge.
It changed Hellman’s way of thinking and professional direction. "
Read: The Science of Hope (Sooner Magazine)
Quote of the week
"Learn from yesterday, live for today, hope for tomorrow. The important thing is not to stop questioning.”
-- Albert Einstein