Big promises are made. We get our hopes up. Perhaps so much so that disappointment is inevitable. Will they overpromise and underdeliver? Is it possible that they could conjure up everything outlined and more? Commitments often have a lifecycle. They start with big aspirations and unchecked hubris about the resources required to accomplish the goal. Excitement of the potential can anesthetize us from critical thought. We imagine all manner of impossibilities to be not only possible but easily attained. Sometimes it is the spin of a good sell job, but often we are complicit in the ride. We want to catch what they are pitching.

Invariably, we soon find our ability to effect the grand changes promised to require more heavy lifting and compromise than expected. Persistence demands stamina and both take effort. So, we adjust and begin to dial down the rhetoric of our role in the change and aim the spotlight at those who would be potential scapegoats in a failure. Ultimately, the dramatic and sweeping reform is scaled back or put on hold. The product was already sold, so we come to realize that we bought a longshot chance rather than efficacy. Blame flies and accountability is in short supply. Political, professional or late-night television informercial, we are surrounded by those who promise big knowing that little is likely to be delivered.

Should we scold ourselves for not being critical enough of them for leading us down the primrose path or of them for taking advantage of our slumber? But if we are always thinking critically, how do we remain optimistic? Who is responsible for managing our expectations – the one making the promises or those of us naive enough to follow? If we invite them to do it, is it our fault that they lie to us?