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.
- At the start the line on the diagram climbed steeply - it was labelled "uninformed optimism"
- Then, suddenly, it tipped over and fell just as steeply as it had climbed - it was labelled "informed pessimism"
- 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.
- uninformed optimism
- informed pessimism
- then, with luck, things getting better again.