Ups and downs ... then onwards and gradually upwards I hope September 24, 2010

It's been one of those weeks - with highs and lows and making mistakes and wondering what to learn from them.

I'm reminded of a diagram that I saw one of my colleagues use when I was a trainer.  I can remember the shape and the titles of the first two bits - but not the last bit. It's a diagram  about expectations and perceptions - relevant to all kinds of new situations in life - work, relationships, etc.

1. At the start the line on the diagram climbed steeply - it was labelled "uninformed optimism"
2. Then, suddenly, it tipped over and fell just as steeply as it had climbed - it was labelled "informed pessimism"
3. Then it started to climb again - no-where near as steeply as before, but gently, gradually building up again - this represented the development of long-term realism and getting on with things.

So...

1. uninformed optimism
2. informed pessimism
3. then, with luck, things getting better again.
   

The third stage had a clever label too, but I don't remember what it was - can anyone tell me?