Under times of stress you may rely less on your objectivity and fall victim to fearing the worse or you could swing to the other extreme and take a rose-colored glasses approach. If you worry about catastrophes, remember that sometimes the best actions involve risks. Don’t be limited by worst-case scenarios that may never occur. To test the chance of real danger, try running your catastrophe hypothesis by a third party to see if it has any validity.

If you tend to see situations through rose colored glasses, try playing “devil’s advocate,” and find data to more accurately describe the situation. You might also want to observe how others react to your positivity. If there is hesitation in their voice or body language, they likely see your positive outlook as unrealistic. Inquire about your observations to hear their thinking.