A friend of mine shared an experience that he had as a young man growing up. He told of growing up living and working on a dairy farm. He said that he didn’t have much encouragement from his friends and family. It wasn’t until he decided to join the United States Coast Guard that his life would change.

When he entered the military he had no idea that he was entering the world of ‘expectations’. One of the things that I love about the military is that when individuals enter there is an unwritten law that there are expectations. Recruits are expected to be challenged at every level of their being. Physical fitness, team building, leadership, and critical thinking are just a few of the skills they will develop as they train.

My friend concluded his story by saying that when his drill instructor told him that he is on his way to becoming an awesome technician in the Coast Guard, he said that comment changed his life forever! I told him that ‘expectations’ were set for him from the beginning and through the process, he was able to rise up to the expectations that they had set for him. Awesome!!!