Expectations Hurt

Hello everybody!! I am back after a really long time with a topic I guess most of us will agree with.

What are expectations? An expectation is neither a promise nor an argument. It is a conjecture based upon strong assumptions that what the future might hold.

They are a strong belief that something will happen. These are not our ambitions or goals. Expectations are just our beliefs.

Expectations have now become the benchmark for everybody's success and failure. Basically, the benchmark for life.

There is no age limit for expectations. Kids are expected to join a good primary school at the age of 5 by writing entrance tests. Then complete board exams in class 10 successfully, great if they get 10 /10 GPA. Then, join a good junior college. Then again work hard for 2 years to join a good college. Then get a good job after completing graduation. Then get promotion in the job. Then complete higher studies if they want to. Then again join a good job with a higher salary. Then settle down. Then get promotions and earn well. Get a good house(villa or bungalow, then great) , new car and the list goes on and on.

This word 'THEN' has become a common word for expectations. "Then what next?" A common question.

The entire thesis I said above were fine till the end of the 20th century. Then came this entire new century with developments in the form of competition, peer pressure and the list is endless. These all are the fruits of expectations.

In today's world, people tend to depend more on their expectations than on themselves or their goals and ambitions. People not only try to live up to their own as well as others' expectations but they even tend to create expectations on others and get disappointed when others do not live up to their expectations.

So here, people are not only disappointed about themselves but also create situations for themselves to feel disappointed about others.

Expectations have their place. But problems arise when we fail to give the right significance to expectations, such as expecting more or expecting less from others or ourselves, than we ought to. It is then that we set ourselves up for disappointment.

Like I said before, expectations are not taken in by its their purest meaning but as a benchmark for people to live their life.

People tend to get carried away with expectations and in the process hurt themselves. Keeping expectations is good until you become ambitious with your expectations and forget your ambitions and dreams. The process of getting ambitious with your expectations is more disappointing than taking expectations in their purest form and feeling disappointed.

We need to know the difference between ambitions and expectations and when we should draw the line between them. Ambition + Expectations is the most chaotic equation in today's world.

So, try to draw a line between what you and others expect from you and your ambition with your expectations. Less expectations lead to less amount of disappointments. Everyone has their own journey. Just because you didn't achieve something at the age of 25 does not mean that you cannot achieve it when you are 25 years and 1 day.

Fulfilling expectations must become a milestone in your path to fulfill your ambition but not become your ambition itself otherwise the milestone will become the stone which will hurt you the most and give you only disappointments.

I know this might not be expected by you but sure to put a thought in your mind and a smile on your face😊.