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Meeting Every Expectation Yet Still Falling Apart? | Episode 433
Meeting Every Expectation Yet Still Falling Apart? | Episode 433
Ever felt like you were graded on a curve you never agreed to? We get real about how expectations can lift or crush us—at work, at home, and inside our own heads—and why mental health context should be part of every performance conversation. From forced bell curves and vague targets to the quiet courage of saying no, we unpack the systems that judge effort without granting influence.
We trace the slippery ways bias enters reviews, including a candid story where a team-approved choice got weaponized later. That moment becomes a lesson in boundary-setting: confirm agreements in writing, keep work and personal choices cleanly separated, and negotiate goals tied to resources, authority, and training. If you’re being measured on outcomes you can’t touch—like production volume or enterprise contracts outside your scope—it’s time to push back, revise the metrics, or seek a healthier lane.
Along the way, we read from a mental health memoir that reframes expectation as a tool, not a trap. Recovery, service, and radical transparency can reset the narrative from comparison to contribution. We also share the broader mission of Voices for Voices—expanding access to care, building community, and pursuing big, St. Jude’s–style dreams for mental health—powered by listeners who share, subscribe, and support the work.
If you’ve been told to “own” goals you can’t influence, this conversation gives you language, steps, and confidence to renegotiate. Listen, reflect, and then tell us: which expectation are you refusing to carry alone? Subscribe, share with a friend who needs it, and leave a review to help more people find the show.
Chapter Markers
0:00 Welcome And Global Mission
2:00 Donations And Big Mental Health Goals
3:55 Defining Expectations In Life And Work
6:10 Performance Reviews And The Bell Curve
10:40 Mental Health Misunderstood At Work
13:35 Getting Cut Loose Without Support
16:30 Asking For Training And Being Denied
19:10 The Rooftop Yoga Review Fallout
24:00 Hidden Bias And Comparison Traps
27:30 Setting Goals You Can Actually Influence
31:00 Saying No And Protecting Your Role
34:00 When To Move Teams Or Jobs
36:30 Personal Story As Cautionary Tale
40:00 Memoir Excerpt: Prescription For Living
44:00 Letting Go Of Others’ Assumptions
47:00 Gratitude, Community
*Donate Today: lovevoices.org
**Find our book here:
Amazon: https://voices-for-voices.org/3ZhJ6AW
Publisher: https://voices-for-voices.org/3LKL1uN
***Website: https://voices-for-voices.org/4byLXgb
Instagram: @voicesforvoices
TikTok: @voices_for_voices
Facebook: Voices for Voices
*Voices for Voices is a 501c3 nonprofit charity. All donations are 100% tax deductible.
#MentalHealth #ExpectationsVsReality #CopingStrategies #EmotionalWellbeing #PressureToSucceed #OvercomingObstacles #SelfCareTips #LifeBalance #AnxietyManagement #PersonalGrowthJourney #ResilienceBuilding #FeelingLost #NavigatingLifeChallenges #MindsetShift #FindingYourself #justiceforsurvivors #VoicesforVoices #VoicesforVoicesPodcast #JustinAlanHayes #JustinHayes #help3billion #TikTok #Instagram #truth #Jesusaire #VoiceForChange #HealingTogether #VoicesForVoices433
Support the show
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By Founder of Voices for Voices®, Justin Alan HayesMeeting Every Expectation Yet Still Falling Apart? | Episode 433
Ever felt like you were graded on a curve you never agreed to? We get real about how expectations can lift or crush us—at work, at home, and inside our own heads—and why mental health context should be part of every performance conversation. From forced bell curves and vague targets to the quiet courage of saying no, we unpack the systems that judge effort without granting influence.
We trace the slippery ways bias enters reviews, including a candid story where a team-approved choice got weaponized later. That moment becomes a lesson in boundary-setting: confirm agreements in writing, keep work and personal choices cleanly separated, and negotiate goals tied to resources, authority, and training. If you’re being measured on outcomes you can’t touch—like production volume or enterprise contracts outside your scope—it’s time to push back, revise the metrics, or seek a healthier lane.
Along the way, we read from a mental health memoir that reframes expectation as a tool, not a trap. Recovery, service, and radical transparency can reset the narrative from comparison to contribution. We also share the broader mission of Voices for Voices—expanding access to care, building community, and pursuing big, St. Jude’s–style dreams for mental health—powered by listeners who share, subscribe, and support the work.
If you’ve been told to “own” goals you can’t influence, this conversation gives you language, steps, and confidence to renegotiate. Listen, reflect, and then tell us: which expectation are you refusing to carry alone? Subscribe, share with a friend who needs it, and leave a review to help more people find the show.
Chapter Markers
0:00 Welcome And Global Mission
2:00 Donations And Big Mental Health Goals
3:55 Defining Expectations In Life And Work
6:10 Performance Reviews And The Bell Curve
10:40 Mental Health Misunderstood At Work
13:35 Getting Cut Loose Without Support
16:30 Asking For Training And Being Denied
19:10 The Rooftop Yoga Review Fallout
24:00 Hidden Bias And Comparison Traps
27:30 Setting Goals You Can Actually Influence
31:00 Saying No And Protecting Your Role
34:00 When To Move Teams Or Jobs
36:30 Personal Story As Cautionary Tale
40:00 Memoir Excerpt: Prescription For Living
44:00 Letting Go Of Others’ Assumptions
47:00 Gratitude, Community
*Donate Today: lovevoices.org
**Find our book here:
Amazon: https://voices-for-voices.org/3ZhJ6AW
Publisher: https://voices-for-voices.org/3LKL1uN
***Website: https://voices-for-voices.org/4byLXgb
Instagram: @voicesforvoices
TikTok: @voices_for_voices
Facebook: Voices for Voices
*Voices for Voices is a 501c3 nonprofit charity. All donations are 100% tax deductible.
#MentalHealth #ExpectationsVsReality #CopingStrategies #EmotionalWellbeing #PressureToSucceed #OvercomingObstacles #SelfCareTips #LifeBalance #AnxietyManagement #PersonalGrowthJourney #ResilienceBuilding #FeelingLost #NavigatingLifeChallenges #MindsetShift #FindingYourself #justiceforsurvivors #VoicesforVoices #VoicesforVoicesPodcast #JustinAlanHayes #JustinHayes #help3billion #TikTok #Instagram #truth #Jesusaire #VoiceForChange #HealingTogether #VoicesForVoices433
Support the show