Disappointment is a natural part of life. Whether it’s from your favorite sports team losing or failing a test you studied hard for, it’s not a hot take that everyone has experienced some level of disappointment at some point in their life. In my opinion, managing disappointment is not about trying to avoid it, instead it’s about managing the impact when disappointment enters the scene.

My personal experience with disappointment could simply be explained with me being a New York sports fan, specifically the New York Giants. Watching your team fight through a long, hard season just to come up short can be crushing. Disappointments are not just in the realm of sports, but having a favorite team does come with a golden chance to adapt oneself to the depths of disappointment.

The strategy that I employ often begins before the game even starts: managing my expectations. A common mistake that most sports fans make is building up unrealistic expectations for their team – setting the bar too high to begin with creates a greater chance for failure to come crashing down on you. I go into a game with no expectations, if I can manage it. This way if the game produces a positive result, then I can enjoy the win moderately. If the game produces a negative result, then I can accept the failure and move on. I know many people do not watch sports, but this strategy can be incorporated into any situation. Whether it’s a relationship, a test, a job interview or just your daily routine.

Now I should mention that this advice does not entail becoming a pessimist, but to employ a realist’s philosophy. While an optimist focuses purely on the good in life and a pessimist focuses purely on the bad in life, a realist is able to come to a simple conclusion: you take the good and the bad, then you take them both and there you have the facts of life. Objectivity is hard to accomplish, and it is impossible to remove all bias from oneself, but being able to manage your bias in a healthy way can yield incredible results.

As a wise man named Kratos once said, “Lower your expectations… and you will never be disappointed.” While it’s completely valid to get excited and be hopeful for the future, be sure not to let your enthusiasm put you in a compromising position. With this in mind, the disappointment you may feel can be greatly diminished.