Daily Times

Let me start with a complaint. What I find most disturbing about us Pakistanis is our negativity, cynicism and continuous complaining. Talk to anyone on the street and you will hear stories of doom and gloom. I understand that from terrorism to poverty, Pakistan faces serious challenges but it is not all gloomy and thus the sole emphasis on negativity and gloom is striking. This negativity and gloom acts as a self-fulfilling prophecy leading to more doom and gloom. Interestingly, this gloomy talk begins with the best off and permeates downwards. Talk to any trader who used to have a motorcycle and now drives a 1.8 litre car and he will tell you how life has become so hard for him. Talk to a professional whose household did not have a single air-conditioner and now has umpteen split units, and he will complain that his salary is not enough to pay for expenses and that electricity prices have skyrocketed. The list goes on and on, and spreads our cynicism.

In some cases, cynicism suits vested interests. For instance, let us talk about the news media. All in all, it is no crusader but an all-out corporate entity, working for profit. Their revenue depends on advertisements and advertisements are dependent on viewer/readership. To make viewers/readers stick to you, what easier way than to make them realise that no one is there to protect them, not the government, not the judiciary, not the army, not the state, not even their relatives, none but the news media. And so starts the battle to project misery and injustice, and when there is none, they will try hard to create a story of misery. Similarly, it suited our military messiahs (dictators) to portray doom and gloom to justify their ascent to power. It gets funnier when the symbol of hope and change, the Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaaf (PTI), campaigns on gloom and how all hell has broken loose, or is about to. Now beat that!

Gloomy thoughts in a society are a self-fulfilling prophecy. In economics, all key indicators in the short-term are impacted by sentiment. If you think there will be inflation, there will be inflation. If you think there will be slow growth, there will be slow growth. The same happens in other spheres of society and state. For us in Pakistan it is this cynicism and negativity that is contributing to our xenophobia, cutting corners and internal divisions. And thus the rise of nations, along with other factors, is a function of positive thinking. With positivity comes self-confidence and self-belief, and lack of self-belief is at the root of our social backwardness. Make dust believe it can be gold and it will glitter, make the best believe they are worthless and they will turn into dust.

Psychological and neurological research supports the assertion that positivity changes the chemical composition and thinking patterns of one’s brain. Barbara Fredrickson is a psychology researcher at the University of North Carolina. According to her research, the human brain closes to the outside world when faced with negative emotions and negative emotions prevent one’s brain from seeing the other options. On the contrary, the human brain is programmed to see more options when exposed to positive emotions. Many neurological researchers assert the same conclusion about chemical and electromagnetic patterns formed in the human brain when exposed to positivity and negativity. Now look around us and we find a society stuck in narrow focus and little ability to be innovative and creative. It is time we start looking at and appreciating the positives around us — there is a lot to be positive about.

We live in a region that is the epicentre of global economic activity. We have managed to survive despite the worst kind of terrorism. We have come out alive from the worst natural calamities like the 2005 earthquake and 2010-11 floods. From charity to rights groups, from nuclear power to the defence production industry, from Edhi to Malala, from the Himalayas to the Arabian Sea, there is a lot to be proud of. And for what we cannot be proud of, it is time that we approach it not with a defeatist, self-pitying mindset but with a positive can-do mindset.

If we can retake Swat from the terrorists in three months, we surely can eradicate polio in five years. If we can provide rescue and relief to earthquake and flood victims, we surely can create a functioning social welfare system that leaves no Pakistani behind. If we can build large, sustainable charity institutions, we surely can make a mark in developing organisations with global impact. And why fear the world? We should have the self-belief to be part of the global system and make a mark. There is no need to fear trade with India or engagement with the west. We are good enough to play any game and make a mark. It is time we stop being cynical and start being positive. If we do not, this cynicism will suck us into the abyss. If we do, we will be on the path upwards. We can have change: less corruption, higher economic growth, a better set of rulers, but first some positivity please.

The writer is a freelance columnist and may be contacted at aalimalik@gmail.com