I try very hard to get you this note by 9am and I do a pretty good job of it. I figure it goes best with coffee.
But while I had an early meeting today I held onto this note and made it about expectations because I wanted to make a point.
How did you react?
Perhaps some of you read the note when you can so it wasn’t a big deal.
But maybe for others, who have come to expect my note in the morning, you became disappointed. “I expected this note and it wasn’t there,” you might have said to yourself. You might even have become a little annoyed.
So take a moment and think about expectations. It is such a subtle symbol of trust.
An expectation says, “I count on you”. It is an unwritten bond or a handshake between two friends.
Now in our society and time we have gotten used to disappointment. “What did you expect?” we say. Or, “that just did not live up to expectations” we moan.
But in such a world you have a chance to be different. To be a little bit better.
Set expectations clearly and don’t overpromise (as many of us do who want to please). Once you communicate these expectations do your absolute best to live up to them. And when make a mistake and don’t live up to expectations don’t make excuses. Tell the person “I’m sorry” and get back on the horse.
There is a tremendous amount of honor that you can display in the way you handle the expectations others have of you. People do not expect perfection. They expect honest effort.
So think about “expectations” and do your best.
And I am sorry if I didn’t live up to your expectations by getting you this note so late.
You may expect the next by tomorrow morning at 9am.
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