"We find very often that what is false about the basis of our expectations is that we imagine that people should be and should be able to be consistent, and that they should act and should be able to act in accordance with certain standards. But the error of this is that we look at people and at ourselves as though we could do, as though we were one, as though we had free will, as though we were conscious. Reflection shows this is not so, either of ourselves or of other people. It makes no sense to expect other people or ourselves to behave as if they had these qualities which they don't have.

One should be careful not to jump to the opposite conclusion and expect nothing at all. This is equally foolish. The trouble about one's expectations is that they may, a lot of the time, be perfectly realistic. What is unrealistic is that we expect them to be consistently met-- in fact, always, and if the facts ever go against our expectations, then we think there is something wrong with the world or with people. There is nothing wrong at all. The only thing that is wrong is our expectation..."

--H. Ripman