Last Sunday we did a casino trek with Mamma Gina, my brother, my cousin, a friend and me. When my cousin, brother and I plopped down at a Roulette table upon first arriving, I purchased $100 in chips, placed the minimum $15 bet and thought nothing of it. Badda-bing-badda -boom! A minute later my brother Danny says, "You just won $175" as the dealer slid a pile of chips toward me. 

I hate when that happens. :-D 

We continued playing, yet already on the second roll of the Roulette ball, I could tell something had shifted. What was different? Oh, I know - I began to put out a mental expectation to win.

Great Expectations. There could be a whole lotta snippets written on the topic.  

What happens when we expect something? Does it usually turn out how we think it should? Did the situation or person meet our expectation? Could be it/they exceeded it (bonus!); could be it fell short.

It feels as though we expect a LOT out of people (especially closest to us), don't we? Last weekend I bet many wives expected their husbands to act in a certain way since it was Valentine's Day: bring flowers, sign a card, buy a gift, make dinner reservations, and all that other Hallmark-induced stuff. Instead some witnessed that dumb-jock blank look on their husbands' faces: "UH-OH, I forgot it was Valentine's Day" as Wifey handed him a well-thought-out card and his favorite 'Chunky' chocolate bars. (Ahem. Not that I'm talking about anyone specific here.) :-D

And what do we do when Hubby doesn't meet our expectations? We pout, we may pick a fight, we feel disappointed. Why? Because WE set up the scenario the way we think it should have gone. But remember ...

We expect people to be, to do and to act like us. If you are an efficient email communicator at work because it saves phone time and unnecessary meetings, don't you expect the same practice in return? What happens when you don't receive an email in what you 'expect' to be a quick turnaround? You may become annoyed, feel impatient, wonder about the reply. You may even email the person a second time because they haven't answered fast enough - because their action, or lack of reaction, didn't meet your expectations.