Is optimism part of your personal brand?

"The future ain't what it used to be" – Yogi Berra

Whether you consider optimism to be a value or an attribute or perhaps even both, having it in your personal brand arsenal can certainly be an advantage – not just from your outlook being better, but measurable in terms of your career.

According to recent research out of the National Bureau of Economic Research in the US, researchers who studied MBA graduates and students during their job search and for two years afterwards found that those with a positive disposition were more likely to experience a less intensive job search  and after two years were more likely to have been promoted.

There is probably more to this that just having an optimistic outlook. It is likely that those upbeat people are also more likely to have prepared more because they were looking forward, made more concrete plans for their careers and continued to track and monitor their progress once hired.

As you consider your personal brand and career having a clear picture of your career goals and looking forward are a key element to being more successful and with an optimistic outlook perhaps more ready to deal with the bumps in the road, or as an optimist do they not appear?!

How important do you feel optimism is for career success? Add your toonies worth below.