An excuse to fail, or an opportunity to succeed?

I think there's an important attitudinal difference that separates the lazy person from the hard worker, the cynic from the optimist. That attitude is expressed in the title of this post. It can be an uncomfortable introspection when applied to various areas of one's life. Are you looking for an excuse to fail? To maintain a dismal status quo? Or, are you eagerly on the lookout for an opportunity to succeed.

When someone spends their energy coming up with an excuse for their predicament, they are necessarily diverting energy that could otherwise be spent coming up with a solution. Invariably, the solution will require doing something differently, which usually means effort, work, and change.

Does the atheist spend more time thinking of excuses that justify the perceived impossibility of knowing any greater power, rather than looking for opportunities to find out what he thinks he cannot know?

Does the chronically unemployed person more readily blame his environment for his lack of employment, rather than getting off the couch and looking for a job?

Does the single person make excuses for not dating, rather than looking for ways to meet people? (Hmm, I don't like that one.)

Does the student who just failed an exam come up with excuses for failure, or an opportunity to learn from mistakes?

This is all just another take on what differentiates optimists from pessimists. I think optimists would be on the lookout for opportunities, while pessimists are content with playing the blame game.