When Optimism Overlooks Authenticity and Growth
I remember back in late 2020 when the term “toxic positivity” started gaining attention. At first, I felt defensive, like my naturally positive outlook—something that comes so easily to me—was suddenly being labeled as harmful.
As someone who is a high-I on the DISC profile, my strength has always been seeing a bright future and sprinting toward it with enthusiasm. Was that now considered toxic?
I started second-guessing myself. I toned down my positivity and found myself trying to match the complaints or frustrations I heard around me. It felt easy in the moment to commiserate, but at the end of the day, alone with my thoughts, I felt drained and disconnected from myself.
Rather than let that feeling keep me trapped, I leaned into my growth mindset and asked, “What is toxic positivity, really?”
According to Dr. Jaime Zuckerman, a clinical psychologist, it ties directly to the dangers of mental health when you “dismiss genuine emotions, like anxiety or depression, by forcing an overly optimistic outlook.”
But the slang version felt like it was simply telling positive people, “You’re being annoying.”
So, I dug deeper and asked myself: how does this impact me personally and professionally? After all, a big part of my job is helping people reframe their thoughts to those that serve them, not cage them.
That’s when I was reminded of my work teaching others to embrace diversity of thought: we’re all wired differently.
Avoiding toxic positivity doesn’t mean we stop being positive. It means we learn how to drop the right keys for each other—keys that unlock growth, freedom, and possibility.
For some of us, like me, that means focusing on possibilities and staying future-focused. For others, it’s about identifying potential challenges and grounding that optimism in practicality.
The real issue isn’t my positivity—it’s failing to balance it with other perspectives that fill in the gaps.
Positivity in the workplace doesn’t mean slapping on a smile and pretending everything is fine. That’s where the danger of toxic positivity creeps in. Instead, true positivity recognizes that people express and experience it differently. Our diverse experiences and ways of seeing the world should inform how we support one another.
So, I pose this question: How can we reinforce positivity in our work environment while respecting the diverse ways people experience and value it?
REVEL COMPANIES
Helping organizations create winning cultures to achieve results.
Masterminds Enrolling Now!
Marcy Stoudt is a seasoned sales leader dedicated to shaping the future of talent acquisition and executive coaching. As the founder of Revel Search and Revel Coach, Marcy collaborates with corporate clients to develop innovative strategies for attracting, advancing, and retaining top-tier talent.
During her 22 years at Allegis Group, Marcy was TEKsystems's first female Vice President. She led a team of 300 producers and delivered four consecutive years of revenue results at 18% CAGR, averaging $320 million annually. While at MarketSource, she established the Customer Experience Strategy for the Target Mobile outsourced sales team at 1,540 Target locations, fostering executive-level relationships with Target and Apple.
The Revel Coach™ Blog is provided for educational and informational purposes only and is not mental health, financial, business or legal advice. The information presented here is not intended to diagnose, treat, heal, cure or prevent any medical, mental or emotional condition. The information presented here is not a guarantee that you will obtain any results or earn any money using our content.