Many people thought George was anal retentive, he obviously missed something important in his early childhood. I knew George was not anal retentive, just overly paranoid. No matter who spoke with George, and no matter what the conversation was about, George was always on the lookout for the hook in the conversation. He was sure at any moment someone was going to try to take advantage of him.

My friends and some family members used to tell me I was overly trusting. I should not trust everyone as someone was going to take advantage of me and I would be sorry. I never believed that and usually always take people at face value unless I have good reason not to. Even people I used to hang around with who had bad reputations I trusted.

While I can not say for certain that trusting almost everyone is better than trusting almost no one, it certainly does seem as if it was easier to manage on a day to day basis. I do not have to burn up brain cells wondering where a conversation is going or what someone wants from me. I also do not waste a lot of time wondering if someone is going to take advantage of me. Maybe because I would be such an easy mark, and people know I trust them, very few people ever try.

I find the same general thinking to be true about other traits in people. Whether it is a matter of trust, completing a task, or keeping their word, most people always do what they say they will do. Maybe I have been just lucky, and my luck will run out soon, but I find most people will live up to whatever expectation I have of them.

Take children for example as they are the simplest to watch. Whatever perception a child thinks an adult has of them, that is how the child will act around that adult. As a child have you ever done little around your own home only to work very hard for a neighbor or relative? Or perhaps you have heard someone talk about some else that has? The relative or neighbor has a completely different expectation of you than your family does. So you meet both expectations depending on where you are at the moment.

We also have our own expectations of ourselves. We do not usually pay attention to them, and they slip out when we are preoccupied. Have you ever said to yourself something along the lines of, “way to go dummy”? Or another derogatory line slipped out of your mouth when something happened or went wrong that you were doing?

These are the most important expectations, and the expectations that need the most watching. Deep inside our minds we believe these one liners we say to ourselves. Because we believe these one liners, and we do not think about them, they come out when something happens that we did not intend to happen. What we are doing at times like this is living up to our own expectation of us.

Fortunately, if we catch ourselves saying these things to ourselves, now we have the power to recognize them for what they are – negative expectations. When they start to slip out, stop them before you finish it, and give yourself permission to say something good about yourself in their place. When you do that you brain will replace the bad thoughts with good thoughts and start believing the good things about you.

Back to trusting others, over the years it has been win most of the time, and lose a few. Of all the people I have trusted implicitly only a few have ever violated that trust. I wonder over the years what George’s tally sheet would show? The difference is being cheated, or lied to is an affirmation for George, and it is a disappointment for me when someone breaks the trust I place in them. Start placing more trust in yourself and see what happens in your life!