We hope you look back on a wonderful year!
It has been a very special year for us. In 2012, Ode changed her name. She is now The Intelligent Optimist. Ode was always about open-minded optimists and pioneers of the possible looking for solutions.Ode was a song of praise, a tribute to the people and ideas making our world a better place. But Ode doesn’t say who we are and what we are doing.The Intelligent Optimist does.
Optimism is rising in the farthest corners of the planet, albeit still only visible and audible to the ones with open eyes and ears. More and more of us are no longer waiting for institutions and procedures to fail. Instead we are acting, making and building. And so, Ode became The Intelligent Optimist, and her voice is becoming stronger and more determined. She is bringing together a rapidly growing community that includes you and all the ones we have been waiting for. Yes, we know that plain, unfiltered optimism can be a naïve and even dangerous strategy—remember our tagline: for intelligent optimists. However we also know that optimism is ultimately the only strategy for positive change. Optimism is a practice that requires effort and attention. It is a meaningful quest as science keeps confirming—that optimism generates more health, happiness and creativity and therefore contributes to a better world.
To celebrate 2012, a year full of inspiration, we offer you a selection of our best stories here. Look forward to 2013 with optimism!
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1. Come Swing with Me
By Sam Rosenzweig
When was the last time you swung on a swing? Probably much too long, and that is exactly what Swings Tampa Bay (STB) is trying to change.
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2. Hidden Persuaders
By Jeremy Mercer
There’s a torrent of new research that is unlocking the mysteries of the human unconscious and showing how its enormous powers can be harnessed.
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3. Tell Me a Story
By Diane Daniel
More and more people crave the human connection and universal truths found in personal narratives and the chance to share experiences, advocate for change and understand themselves better.
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4. For Rent: Room with a View
By Elleke Bal
To call it a treehouse would be almost insulting to Sweden’s Treehotel. The Lapland Lodging opened it’s doors – or rather, dropped it’s ladders – in 2010.
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5. Working on the Future
By Maarten van der Schaaf
Wait for politicians to solve the economic crisis? No thanks. Some Greeks are doing it for themselves.
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6. Great! What’s Next?
By Jurriaan Kamp
Being an intelligent optimist is a discipline that invites us to live in possibility, says Ben Zander, conductor of the Boston Philharmonic Orchestra and co-author ofThe Art of Possibility.
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7. Warrior of the human spirit
By Jurriaan Kamp
Author and management consultant Margaret Wheatley on why human experience is the story of perseverance
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8. A Way of Life
By Jurriaan Kamp
All of us are born intelligent optimists. All of us!
You don’t believe me? Let me ask you this: Have you ever met a pessimistic 5-year-old?
