Disappointment is a (draining) Function of Expectation.

Burning energy on disappointment is like flaring off gas on an oil rig – such a waste.

You are disappointed with yourself, your team, the boss, the partner organisation, the result, the journey, the market, the sector. When it comes to sources of disappointment  – we are well served with choice.

Truth is, disappointment is mostly unnecessary.

We get disappointed around an outcome that we forget we made up in the first place and then we became attached to it as an unmoveable object.

Acknowledge disappointment yes. But notice when acknowledgement goes beyond into indulgence – the human practice of over egging a feeling for the payback it might give us (oblivious of the cost).

So the partner in the collaboration had a wobble when it came to the commercial matters. What did you expect in a world of vast money pressures and lifelong habits?

So your boss had no idea you had spent so much time on that great piece of work. Do you expect her or him to be oracles of all that exists?

The team ‘ even’ after three briefing sessions still don’t get your Vision and Mission as they seem to regularly go off course. Have you ever tried to sail a boat in a straight line – everyone drifts? Period.

The secret is to catch yourself indulging disappointment and then ask yourself:

“This expectation I set back in (insert date) was it then or, is it now realistic and relevant and worth idling disappointment over – or should I recreate a different expectation and pick up momentum?