Managing expectations on your path to success

By Julie Parker, Julie Parker Practice Success

When I bought my practice in 2003 I quickly learned that things were no longer straightforward. Whether I was organising finance for an equipment purchase, arranging a staff dinner or achieving a ‘well-planned for’ goal, the path always threw up ‘interesting’ barriers.

Initially these interruptions to progress frustrated me enormously. I was a ‘planner’, and paved a sturdy path to every goal. How dare people and events not conform to my plan! I had read that “disappointment is the distance between expectations and reality”, and felt this to be true.

My frustrated response, however, did nothing to either improve my situation, or aid the speed with which I restructured my plan. Contemplating on my angst lead me to realise that it was my EXPECTATIONS that were the problem, not the situation. There are so many influences on the events and people in our world. I acknowledged that to expect the universe to shift in to my gear, at the expense of all others, was both ludicrous and never going to happen. In effect, I was setting myself up for disappointment again and again.

So I taught myself a new rule of life. There are many exciting journey’s in life, and enthusiastically tackling the barriers that interrupt our path to success is one of them. I started to relish the challenge of overcoming the expected obstacles quickly and efficiently. I no longer resented it when things didn’t go smoothly. I instead developed a strong belief that the eventual result would always be better that what I could ever plan, because this result was one that embraced the desires of many, not just my own.

If you find yourself discouraged and disappointed when others fail to conform to your plan, shift your mindset. Plan big, overcome issues powerfully, and be happy and inspired on your path to success.