1. Practice optimism

以乐观的心态实践

The studies are positive: Looking on the bright side of life really is good for you. Optimists² have a 35% less chance of having a heart attack or stroke, are more likely to eat a healthy diet and exercise regularly, have stronger immune systems; and even live longer. In fact, a 2019 study found people with the most positive outlook had the greatest odds³ of living to 85 or beyond.

研究给出了正面的证明：关注生活的光明一面确实对人有好处。乐观主义者心脏病发作或者中风的概率要比其他人低35%，同时他们更有可能摄入健康膳食，定期锻炼，拥有更强大的免疫功能甚至拥有更长的寿命。事实上，2019年的一项研究发现，心态最乐观的人寿命也是最长的，他们能够活到85岁甚至以上。

Now, let's get real: Being an optimist¹ doesn't mean you ignore the stress of daily life. Who can do that? It simply means that when crummy things happen, you don't blame yourself unnecessarily. If you face a challenge or obstacle, you're more likely to see it as temporary or even positive, allowing you to learn and grow.

我们来说点实际的做法：做一个乐观主义者并不意味着忽略日常生活的压力。谁又能做到呢？心态乐观意味着在面对糟糕的事情时，你不要毫无必要地责备自己，你要能够把自己所面对的挑战或障碍看作是暂时的甚至是积极的事情，从而使自己在这些磨砺中学习和成长。

Optimists also believe they have control over their fate and can create opportunities for good things to happen.

乐观主义者也相信他们可以掌控自己的命运，并不断为好事的发生创造机会。

Not a natural optimist? No worries. Science has shown you can train your brain to be more positive. Only about 25% of optimism is programmed by our genes⁴ anyway.

不是天生的乐观主义者？别担心。科学表明，人们可以通过思维训练来变得更加积极乐观。只有25%的乐观因素根植于基因之中，（剩下的75%可以通过思维训练来启发）。

According to a meta-analysis of existing studies, using the "Best Possible Self" technique is one of the most effective ways to increase your optimism. It's based on exercises that ask you to imagine yourself with all of your problems solved in a future where all of your life's goals were achieved.

根据对于现有研究的元分析，“成就最好的自己”是提高乐观程度最有效的方式之一。这种方式通过练习来让人们想象自己处于一个解决了未来的所有问题并且实现了人生的一切追求的状态中。

In one study, people who did this for only 15 minutes a week over an eight-week period became more positive and remained that way for nearly six months. What do you have to lose?

在一项研究中，在八周时间内每周只花15分钟实践了这种方法的人变得更加积极，并保持这种状态将近六个月。反正又没有损失，何不尝试一下？

2. Start volunteering

开始志愿之旅

A prayer attributed to St. Francis of Assisi tell us, "It is in giving that we receive."

阿西尼城的圣弗朗西斯的祈祷告诉我们：“我们所得到就是我们所给予的。”

Turns out he was scientifically right. Studies have shown that putting the well-being⁵ of others before our own without expecting anything in return, or what is called being altruistic⁶, stimulates⁷ the reward centers of the brain. Those feel-good chemicals flood our system, producing a sort of "helper's high."

研究证明这是科学的论断，将他人的福祉放在自我福祉之前，不求回报地为他人付出或是所谓的利他主义会刺激我们大脑的奖赏中枢。这些让人感觉愉悦的化学物质会充盈人体系统，让助人者获得快乐与满足。

There are physical benefits, too: Studies show volunteering minimizes stress and improves depression. It can reduce the risk for cognitive⁸ impairment. It can even help us live longer.

在精神受益之外身体也会受益：研究表明志愿活动会使压力最小化并改善抑郁症，从而降低认知损伤的风险，甚至有助于人们更长寿。

Even if you have little time to offer, just the act of giving has been shown to improve our health, possibly by temporarily reducing our sense of pain.

即使没有时间做志愿活动，仅仅是付出也被证实能够改善健康状况，这可能是通过暂时降低痛苦感而实现的。

A new study found that people who said they would donate money to help orphans⁹ were less sensitive to an electric shock than those who declined to give. In addition, the more helpful people thought their donation would be, the less pain they felt.

一项新研究发现，那些愿意通过捐款来帮助孤儿的人与那些不愿捐款的人相比对电击的敏感度更低。此外，人们如果认为自己的捐款帮助较大，所感受到的痛苦就更少。

3. Be grateful

感恩

We heard a lot about the benefits of thankfulness in the last decade, and that is backed by science: Counting our blessings¹⁰ protects us against anxiety and depression and boosts optimism. Need more proof? Middle-schoolers who practiced gratitude¹¹ exercises had less problem behavior.

在过去的十年中，我们经常听到关于感恩的各种益处，并得到了科学的支持：数算福分可以保护我们免受焦虑和沮丧的困扰并激发乐观情绪。需要更多证据吗？那些接受过感恩教育的中学生出现的行为问题更少。

One of the best ways to make thankfulness a part of your life, say experts, is to keep a daily journal. Before you go to bed, jot¹² down any positive experience you had that day, no matter how small.

如专家们所说，使感恩成为你人生的一部分的最佳方式之一是记日记。在你睡觉前，简单记下你在这一天遇到的各种正能量的经历，不论大小。

If you do that for one minute each morning and evening, that sense of appreciation¹³ can broaden to others in your life and bolster¹⁴ optimism and better mental health.

如果你每天早晚用一分钟的时间来做这件事，这种感恩之情将扩展到你生活中的其他人身上，增强你的乐观情绪，改善你的心理健康。

4. Bolster your social connections

维持你的社交网络

"People who are more socially connected to family, to friends, to community, are happier, they're physically¹⁵ healthier, and they live longer than people who are less well connected," said Harvard psychiatrist¹⁶ Robert Waldinger in his popular TEDx talk.

哈佛大学的精神病学家罗伯特·瓦尔丁格在颇为流行的TEDx演讲中提到：“那些与家庭、朋友和社区联系更加紧密的人更加开心、健康，寿命也更长。”

The proof for this comes from the Harvard Study of Adult Development, which tracked 724 Boston men for more than 75 years and then began following more than 2,000 of their offspring and wives.

哈佛的成人发展研究为此提供了证明，这一研究追踪了724名波士顿人超过75年，然后还追踪了超过2000名他们的后代和妻子。

"The clearest message that we get from this 75-year study is this: Good relationships keep us happier and healthier. Period," Waldinger said.

瓦尔丁格说：“我们从这一长达75年的研究中所获取的最明确的信息是：良好的社会关系能够使人们更加快乐和健康。”

And you don't have to be in a committed relationship or have scores of pals¹⁷ to get this benefit. Instead, it's the quality of the relationship that matters, he said.

你不是非要婚姻稳定或是拥有众多的好友才能获取这一益处，事实上，社会关系的质量才是更重要的。

"High-conflict marriages, for example, without much affection, turn out to be very bad for our health, perhaps worse than getting divorced," Waldinger said. "And living in the midst of good, warm relationships is protective."

瓦尔丁格说：“例如，事实证明冲突迭起、缺乏感情的婚姻将对我们的健康非常有害，甚至可能比离婚所带来的害处更大。而生活在美好、温暖的关系中会对我们的健康起到保护作用。”

5. Find your purpose

找到你的目标

Finding a sense of purpose contributes greatly to well-being and a longer, happier life, experts tell CNN.

专家们对美国有线电视新闻网说，拥有目标感对于幸福和更长久、快乐的生活具有极为重要的意义。

University of Pennsylvania psychologist Martin Seligman, who co-founded the field of positive psychology¹⁸, says a sense of purpose will come from being part of something bigger than ourselves. He points to religion, family, and social causes as ways to increase meaning in our lives.

宾夕法尼亚大学的心理学家马丁·塞利格曼是积极心理学领域的共同创始人，他说目标感来源于成为比我们自己更加庞大的事物的一部分。他指出宗教、家庭和社会事业能够使我们的生活更具意义。

It doesn't have to be a traditional religion to be effective, according to Lord Richard Layard, one of Britain's most prominent economists¹⁹ and the author of several books on happiness.

英国最杰出的经济学家之一理查·莱亚德勋爵认为，并不一定非得是传统宗教才能够发挥作用。莱亚德曾出版过几本关于幸福的书。

In his landmark²⁰ book, "Happiness: Lessons From a New Science," he says spiritual practices can range from meditation²¹ to positive psychology to cognitive therapy.

在他的里程碑式著作《快乐经济学》中，他说精神实践的囊括范围很广，包括冥想、积极心理学，以及认知疗法等。

"If your sole duty is to achieve the best for yourself, life becomes just too stressful, too lonely -- you are set up to fail. Instead, you need to feel you exist for something larger, and that very thought takes off some of the pressure."

“如果你唯一的职责就是成就最好的自己，那么你的人生就会压力太大，太孤独——你注定要失败。相反，你需要觉得自己为一些更加高远的事物而存在，这种思想可以解除一部分的压力。”