Invest in hope to prepare for the future

The primatologist Jane Goodall spent long years fighting to protect biodiversity which is under constant pressure. At the age of 88, she would have good reason to be pessimistic. But that isn’t the case. Goodall draws on the following 4 reasons to keep hope alive – and they can also inspire you!

Based on

The Book of hope by Jane Goodall and Douglas Abrams (Celadon Books, 2021).

1/ WORK ON HOPE !

Unlike optimism, hope is not innate: it is something that can be worked on.It acts as an incentive to look towards the future and take action without denying the difficulties.
→ Create your own reasons for hope. Embrace Goodall’s opportunistic (in the good sense of the word) mindset: she’s constantly looking to take advantage of the opportunities that present themselves. One day when Jane was on a plane, the person sitting next to her was the director of a major law firm. Goodall convinced her neighbor to help her take on a laboratory that was using monkeys in their therapeutic trials!
→ Make hope last longer. Use these four methods to make hope go further: set yourself achievable goals; choose a realistic path to achieve them rather than denial or delusional optimism; have faith in your ability to meet your targets; and look for support from the people around you.
→ Make hope contagious. Hope is infectious: set an example, leverage its ripple effect, and involve other people in your actions.