How would you go about doing this and when would you be able to tell when its done? Is the music you listen to or other media you consume a factor?
Well is this thread because you've started feeling the itch to cultivate more optimism, and do you feel like you need an adventure? Because if so, then, you're off to a good start. Music can put you into moods for sure, but its also an attitude, or choice if you like, something inside of you that rattles the bars of your soul and demands that you go do something...at least it is for me. As to how to tell when you're done? I honestly don't know if anyone who sets down that path is ever done until they shuffle off the mortal coil, and even then, to live and die is a grand adventure in and of itself...
I suppose a good deal may be tied to having a general perspective or view that whatever shit gets tossed your way won't kill you, unless it actually does, but that's past the point of being reckless rather than what I'd call adventurous. And you might obtain this point of view (maybe) with a good dose of self reflection every so often, and contemplate the outcome of the adventure you've just experienced, how did you learn from it, how can you grow? The more I know myself and the more I find my true capabilities, the more confidence and more daring I become to pushing my boundaries further. Not quite so literally of course, I won't ever become some daredevil, but in many ways, I'm constantly pushing what I initially thought was a boundary or limit of mine, only to find where I can surpass it and in some areas where I can't. I'd also conclude that having a decent bit of awareness of what you ARE actually limited by, and that's what would keep you within the realm of adventure rather than recklessness.
Its something I've seen people list as a goal or new year resolution, as in "I will cultivate a sense of optimism and adventure", but I'm not sure what it means or how to quantify it as achieved or accomplished, I'm just musing about it, I think it is a worthwhile goal probably.
Although if you have that as a goal does it mean that you are not optimistic and are not adventurous?
Perhaps they don't feel optimistic and adventurous enough? Ime people make goals for all kinds of reasons, most of them only make sense to them I reckon...
Martin Seligman (the father of the positive psychology movement) has written some fantastic direction about this, based on his studies. I'm personally a hard sell on things supposedly designed to boost positivity, I often find things that others praise as useful to be empty platitudes for me - but I really like Seligman's work. I'll have to wait until I'm actually at my computer to give links - but one that comes to mind right now is making the habit to consider what we have to be grateful for every single day. This makes gratitude spread into our unconscious auto-pilot thinking.
And when I'm having trouble authentically finding something to be grateful for, I find this instruction incredibly helpful: imagine if we only woke up every morning with that which we thanked God for on the previous day. I'm Agnostic, but it's still an incredibly useful way to find what I'm grateful for.
I haven't read Seligman's book on authentic happiness - but I thought Flourish had some great exercises in it. (And yeah, I thought his studies on helplessness were fascinating). I'll have to look up the others you mentioned.
I just did an Amazon search for that^ book, and one of the items listed among the search results was a remote control Mega Fart machine.
I just, I thought it was funny enough to share.
I liked Seligman's Learned Helplessness and the other book on the limits of psychotherapy, in which he suggests that if people had more helpful friends it would help a lot, but I didnt like his book called authentic happiness, I really thought by that point some of his material had jumped the horse or he'd moved to commercialising his model or thinking.
The attitude of gratitude really is a thing though, I totally agree with that and practice something like it most of the time, I even like that other guy, is it Napoleon Hill or another author who writes about visualisation? Became the basis for The Secret and all that, I dont believe those extrapolations, not sure I believe their theory at all but I do believe in that kind of positive thinking.
Seligman has some great stuff to say about forgiveness and anger, also, in which he suggests that the folk psychology (derived from Freudian thinking) model that people need to "let out" their anger is faulty, and it only encourages more anger.
Though I suppose this may bother more political types who feel that anger is necessary to motivate people to solving society's problems. (I'm not really sure if they are wrong on that.)
Anyway, Seligman is a favorite of mine.