Self Expectations!?

It seemed to be a lazy day ahead, till my eyes rested on the sports section of Daily Excelsior! In a flutter, I would have dropped the hot cup of tea all over myself, but salvaged it just in time.

A quick look at the newspaper and found the name of our Karate Kid, Aaryan Garg. Wow, was I thrilled? Immediately, SMSed to all in the family and friends (Made good use of Vodafone Postpaid SMS Offer!!). My phone never stopped beeping with congratulatory notes till the first half of the day! And when I showed the newspaper clipping to our champ after he came back from school, he just smiled. I was disheartened by his response. So I asked, “Are you happy”?

His remark, just floored me. He said, “I have got the third prize, those who don’t do that well, get the third prize. First prize is the best!”

I tried explaining to him that it’s an honor and a reward that he has got after beating many kids in his category. But he remained stoic and was unmoved by this joy.

So it made me wonder about ‘Self Expectations’ at a young age.
I scanned through some data and felt that these thoughts mirrored my thinking process.

High self expectations lead to good things. Low or bad self expectations lead to bad things. If you have high expectations for yourself, you WILL automatically work towards meeting those expectations and if you have low expectations for yourself, you will NOT work to reach higher levels of abilities.
If you have a positive attitude to succeed, then you will not give up. You will work, or even struggle, to find ways to reach your goals. The chances are you will succeed in succeeding.
Whether you think you can, or think you can’t, you are correct!

A simple lesson reinforced by a kid!

What is your take on this??