I Always Expect The Worst…That Way I Won't Be Disappointed

These are the words spoken to me by a ten year old boy just a few days ago. I assume that he has adopted this phrase to ease the pain when things do not turn out as he hoped. It saddened me a bit to think that he will always play it safe and expect the least out of life. I sat with him for a while and discussed the flaw in his philosophy. He had just played a basketball game where he scored one basket. I told him I thought he should plan to score five baskets in the next game. Even if he misses his goal of five but makes three baskets, he will have surpassed the prior goal of just one. Just like many successful people I know, Lesa and I are discussing and writing down our goals for 2012. My friend Dan Miller completes his goals by November 15th of each year. He says if you wait until January 1st, you are already behind. When we have large dreams and goals, there is always the risk of disappointment. I believe missed goals provide a learning experience and make us stronger in character. I also believe that the successes in our lives overshadow the failures. We must pray, plan and take action. I have high expectations for the new year. Join me and make it the best ever? "Never let the fear of striking out keep you from coming up to bat." ~ Babe Ruth I've missed more than 9000 shots in my career. I've lost almost 300 games. Twenty-six times, I've been trusted to take the game winning shot and missed. I've failed over and over and over again in my life. And that is why I succeed. ~ Michael Jordan "The size of your success is measured by the strength of your desire; the size of your dream; and how you handle disappointment along the way." ~ Robert Kiyosaki "You may be disappointed if you fail, but you are doomed if you don't try." ~ Beverly Sills Have a great week! Pierce