Learn English – What does the meaning of the phrase “couldn’t be more”

meaningmeaning-in-context

I have a question about the word "optimistic" from the Peter Klein's resignation letter. He wrote:

One noteworthy characteristic of Finance is the regularity of its
rhythm – month end, quarter end, year end. Every one of those
milestones marks the passage of time. And as time passes, and
milestones are marked, we all periodically reflect on our lives, our
goals, and our priorities. As we approach the end of the fiscal year,
I have been reflecting in that way. And I have decided that now is a
good time for me to step away from Microsoft and take some time to
spend with my family in a way that I haven't had the opportunity to do
in the 30 years I have been working.

This has not been an easy decision. I love Microsoft. I love my job.
When I joined Microsoft 11 years ago I had this loosely held belief
that people were one of the most important elements of any job or any
company. I had no idea how profoundly true that is, but I do now.
People are everything. Microsoft is the most amazing collection of
talented, passionate and caring people I could ever imagine being
associated with. It's been an honor and my good fortune to have been
part of that.

I am proud of the work that Finance has done and the impact we have
had on the Company. One reason that now is a good time to leave is
that the organization is very strong, and I am delighted we will be
naming an internal candidate. I couldn't be more optimistic about both
the Company's and Finance's future.

Looking ahead, I have no specific plans. In the short term I will work
to ensure a smooth transition. After that I intend to spend time with
my extended family which is dispersed throughout the country and
hopefully get to some long deferred travel. For the last 11 years
Microsoft has been my family and now I am going to focus on my other
family.

Thanks for being such a great team – I will follow your success with
great interest and pride.

Peter

From my understanding, the word "optimistic" mean to expect that a good thing will happen in the future. But from the bold sentence, it sounds like he doesn't hope that good things will happen at Microsoft.

Best Answer

It means the same as it normally means. In the phrase "couldn't be more" optimistic, it means that he is as optimistic as he could possibly be - that they will do well. He couldn't expect that they will do well any more than he already does.

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