"What we anticipate seldom occurs; what we least expected generally happens."
- Benjamin Disraeli

As I anxiously await the arrival of my second daughter, I find myself wondering what's to come. What will she be like? Will having two daughters 15 months apart be too difficult? How long will it take for my wife and I find a rhythm that will allow us to give appropriate attention to each of our daughters, as well as each other? My thought process usually follows a path of curiosity and belief that anything can happen, rather than anticipating what will happen. I believe it is this thought process that allows me to adapt quickly to changing situations - in business and in life.

After running a business for over a decade, I can easily identify with the statement that "what we anticipate seldom occurs" and "what we least expect generally happens." This isn't to say that the experience we gain in our lives wouldn't help us better anticipate what may happen, but the truth of the matter is you never really know for sure until it happens. For example - when I was younger, I would get very anxious about going into meetings with top level executives or maybe the rare unhappy customer. I played many scenarios in my head that did not result in a positive outcome, but rarely was that ever the case. I learned that trying to anticipate what was going to happen was a huge waste of energy, and it had no positive effect on the outcome. Still understanding that anything can happen keeps me prepared, but doesn't lead me to anticipate the potential outcome.

I'm fortunate enough to say that at this point in my life most of what I anticipated would happen has happened. This doesn't mean all of the granular details are exactly what I thought as I'm certainly not a fortune teller! I still understand, however, that these things can change at any moment, and it is this thinking that lets me not fear what's to come. When I do find myself anticipating what's going to happen, I choose to focus on the positive outcome scenarios. This is especially true in the case of my wife and newborn with the quickly approaching due date! Even with my first daughter there was a short stay in the NICU that there really is no preparing for, so I choose to push ahead anticipating that everything will work out as it should, but knowing there are alternatives as many times what happens is what we least expected.