I had a couple of moments this week where I went into situations expecting the worst.  Not because I wanted to be negative—but because my past experiences and assumptions quietly set the tone.  That mindset usually feels safer.  If you expect less, you can’t be disappointed… right? But in both situations, I caught it.  Mid-experience, I noticed what I was doing and made a small shift: What if this is different?  That slight openness changed everything.  Both experiences ended up being not just fine—but genuinely positive.

When you’ve been hurt, disappointed, or let down, it makes sense to become protective.  You brace yourself. You assume. You expect less.  It’s not a flaw, it’s a strategy and protective.  The cost to this is, if we’re not careful, that same protection can keep us from seeing something good when it’s right in front of us.

Sometimes growth isn’t about a massive mindset overhaul.  It’s about a subtle shift that may allow you to think…maybe this won’t go the way it always has, maybe I can stay curious instead of certain and  maybe I can tolerate the discomfort of not knowing.

And when we do that, something powerful happens. We can create space for a new experience… and sometimes even a new storyline. 

Not every situation will surprise you in a good way.  

But some will.

And you won’t want to miss those.