In today’s episode, Jamie, Lucy, and Avery talk about how expectations come up for us in our lives. We notice that expectations can have a negative effect on our daily experiences and can impact special occasions like the holidays. We talk about how expectations can sneak up on us and threaten to “ruin” our experiences. We discuss how expectations feel in our body and some strategies we have found helping in managing our expectations. We talk about the pressure to have the “best holiday ever” and how difficult it can be when the holiday experience doesn’t live up to our expectations.   

Do try this at home:

• Be mindful of your expectations. If you are a person that often falls into the high expectations trap, pay attention to how you are feeling (especially during the holidays).
• Voice your expectations. Don’t keep those things buried deep down inside. It may help if you reframe expectations as intentions or goals. You may find that putting words to your expectations helps to diffuse them. 
• Keep expectations low. When you keep your expectations reasonable and reachable, it is more likely that you’ll be pleasantly surprised by reaching them rather than disappointed when you don’t.