Let’s be honest. We all have expectations, mainly from people and situations. Then, there is reality. Often these two turn out to be poles apart. This results in the gap between expectation and reality. Its important to look at the dynamics of this gap because it can be a great source of misery. It creates constant conflicts. It can become a feeding ground for lot of negative emotions such as anger, hurt, disappointment and frustration.
You called a friend or relative and they did not return your call! You want your colleague or family member to behave the way you want but they behave exactly opposite! We are rarely in harmony with reality. Often we want that is NOT. The wider the gap between your expectation and reality, the more you suffer. The narrower the gap, less you suffer. Its being human to have certain expectations from people or situations however, its useful to be mindful of this gap as often as possible. When you understand the consequences of having to face this gap, you loosen up. It prepares you for that worst case scenario and allows you to not cling to your disappointment unnecessarily.
Yes we are humans and we have this unique ability to alter the reality by taking right actions if our expectations are not met. However, this is not the case every time. Let’s take a simple and subtle situational example; I would be expecting nice clear day for the Cricket at MCG. In reality, it may rain. If it rains, there is nothing that I could do to change the situation. No clear action can be taken to change the reality. So in this case, its wise to be in tune with reality rather than being in anger, frustration, resentment and being disappointed. If you can, take clear actions and if not, merge with reality without any internal conflict. Reality is always is and its futile to be in conflict with what already is.
Its a great opportunity to observe yourself and see what happens to you when reality does not meet your expectation. Narrow the gap by lowering your expectations.
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