Powerball lottery… are we Optimistic?

With all of the interest around Powerball lottery the American Psychological Association (APA) has chimed in.

A question many of us may find in our mind, should we by Powerball ticket or not? Is it a wise choice, worthwhile investment, evidence of being gullible, a sign of being hopeful, or proof of weakness? Well, in all honesty, there’s good likelihood the answer may be yes to all of the above. imagining winning the lottery is frequently accompanied by thoughts of having change in her life, quitting jobs, buying homes, or paying off debt. using imagination can be a wonderful thing frequently lost childhood. As adults it can be powerful to have imagination in our life which is tempered with our adult experiences. Imagining things being different is not a far leap from optimism which, I might suggest, is a critical component of us being able to imagine that things can be different and in turn grow or find change in our life.

So why do we buy lottery tickets?

It might be a built-in component of our survival, optimism, imagining that things can be better and working to make that happen.

If we stopped really didn’t think things were possible, as humans, we would be losing opportunities to grow and see what we might not be aware of. There is vulnerability in this however, we may hope for a particular kind of change that never happens. Does this mean that we failed or were wrong? It might not have to be the case… if we are able to glean something that we use in the future to accomplish a goal or avoid a pitfall to venture into hope or optimism might have been very helpful.

Venice Florida psychologist, Dr. Charles R Davenport, provides counseling and therapy services at Dr. Charles R Davenport PsyD LLC.

He works with patients to help them find change and deal with career stress, anxiety, depression, and communication difficulties. Please feel free to contact Charles  R. Davenport, Psy.D. , LLC at 941-321-1971.