in my experiance ive found putting expectation on other people is limited to their personality and most are incapable of the integrity and honor i hold myself to, so ive found to simply not have any expectation until a level is reached where there is mutual trust understanding

in other words to have one level of trust or expectation for all people is perhaps doomed to fail

i like to start everyone at level one so to speak and build from there in bite size pieces, so if someone is to let you down or whatever then it will only be something minor and not a major kick in the pants, then it will reveal itself if a person is worthly of a deeper connection; but to brand everyone with the same iron is somewhat foolish because there is every type of person out there

in fact yesterday i quit working from one of my contractors (i subcontract in general carpentry / construction)

for a while i sensed a level of dishonesty for this guy but he always paid me well and treated me with respect, however he underpaid some guys on his crew because they are pushovers, eventually this got worse and started to take advantage of my hard work and honesty so i ended our contract before he has a chance to fuk me around, this probably doesnt relate much to your situation but for me he was definitly not someone i could count on for professionalism and integrity so id much rather end it now then get into a situation of serious consequence which i felt was just a matter of time

most people are fuked in their own way so ive come to filter everyone i meet and go from there in baby steps but it is definitly easier said than done especially when money and even more important- emotion is involved

this

Instead of trying to set standards for what you want people to be set standards for the people you want around you and only keep the people that meet them standards around

careful with being to trusty

Expect the unexpected
If someone fails you, spend time with other people that are more worth but give the failer another chance if/when it feels right

to much

Only a coward talks behind someones back

Have no expectations
Have no disappointments

Only a fool trusts his life to a weapon