W. Clement Stone was once described as “inverse paranoid.” He believed the Universe was conspiring in his favor rather than colluding to do him harm. He looked for an opportunity in everything that happened, whether good, bad, or neutral.

In simple terms, a paranoid person believes the world has the power to do them harm. So, an inverse paranoid individual believes the world is out there to enrich and empower him or her.

This attitude looks at every wound and sorrow as a blessing.

Rumi gives this lovely example: “Realize that you are a rock, a diamond if you will. Every rub and friction you experience is therefore not something you are trying to destroy. It is trying to polish. Trying to do better. Trying to smoothen the rough, to clear the unclear, to beautify, and to make you something that in the end is so elegant and magnificent that you are worth far beyond your weight in gold.”