Our expectations are constructed through our values systems, upbringing, and past experiences, and can be very different from those of others. These expectations can become major sources of frustration when not met or matched by others’ behavior, such as that of our tutees.

The best thing to do is to try to enter tutoring without any expectations at all. This, of course, includes giving up expectations you may have of your future students and their personalities, their academic skills or progress, and their motivation and attitude toward you. Every child is different. They have different backgrounds, different strengths, and different weaknesses. Some may be thrilled to be tutored; others may be suspicious. A tutor’s conception of a student should be a blank slate. Tutors must be prepared to accept and work with any student they are assigned.

– from the chapter “Attitudes, Anxieties, and Expectations” in Tutoring Matters: Everything You Always Wanted to Know About How to Tutor by Jerome Rabow, Tiffany Chin, and Nima Fahimian.