In this episode, Rick and Keith discuss the pitfalls of placing unhealthy expectations on yourself and others. They also share how they’ve learned to manage their expectations of themselves and others.

Rick’s Reference: Zen Made Easy, Timothy Freke. An Introduction to the basics of the ancient art of Zen Buddhism; Four Noble Truths The first teaching ever given by the Buddha was to five student monks in a deer park. The Buddha spoke of the Four Noble Truths he had discovered while struggling for enlightenment, which are the central teachings of Buddhism. It was the Buddha’s first awareness that life brings with it illness, age, misery and death that lead him to search for a deeper understanding of how we live, and ways to end suffering.

The Four Noble Truths are:

• All life is suffering;
• Suffering comes from desire;
• We have the power to end our suffering;
• We end suffering by following the Eightfold path

See, Alan Watts, Beginner’s Mind; Stephen Batchelor, Buddhism Without Beliefs; Charlotte Kasl, If the Buddha Got Stuck