Relevant Magazine

Forget Blind Optimism — Here’s a Smarter Way to Believe in the Future

Forget Blind Optimism — Here’s a Smarter Way to Believe in the Future

Thursday, September 11, 2025
These days, it feels like people are split between two camps: the cynics, who see nothing but selfishness and corruption, and the optimists, who insist everything will somehow work out. Stanford psychology professor Jamil Zaki thinks there’s a better option.  In his book, Hope for Cynics: The Surprising Science of Human Goodness, he lays out…