The much-hyped; long-anticipated unification bout between Floyd Mayweather and Manny Pacquiao was disappointing; but not surprising.

Mayweather fought a smart fight, using the “sweet science.” He used his longer reach to keep Manny outside for most of the bout, scoring with the jab and an occasional straight right. When Manny did get inside, Mayweather either tied him up or used his agility to dance out of danger.

Manny stung him a couple times, but he never seriously hurt him. Mayweather covered up effectively until his head cleared, then got back on his bicycle.

Neither man is a power puncher, but Pacquiao is an attrition puncher. He may have been a Twitter favorite, but he was always an odds underdog. It was an uphill fight for him—victory would have meant either putting out some of his best work, or capitalizing on an opening or mistake that just don’t come very often against elusive boxers like Mayweather. When all was said and done, the grinning Pacquiao just didn’t work hard enough to win.

People who don’t know much about the fight game were surprised by his answers in the post-fight interview. When asked why he wasn’t more active; why he didn’t throw as many punches as in other fights, he admitted that he didn’t think he needed to.

Because he thought he was winning the fight.

Not just in boxing (though perhaps fighters suffer this worse than anyone), but anywhere in life, you’re gonna find people who mistake their subjective, personal impression  for the objective, universal truth.

Some have such a proud, amplified self-image that their assumption of superiority skews their perception of what they’re involved in. But even humble individuals (like Manny?) can put themselves at a disadvantage by overestimating their performance.

In boxing this is a bit more understandable than in other endeavors, because you’re getting smacked repeatedly in the head while you work. In the case of the Mayweather fight, Manny had to work very hard just to get inside. If he landed a clean shot before Mayweather tied him up or danced away, he recognized that he had just accomplished a very difficult feat. Those are the highlights for a fighter in real time–not what happens in between those accomplishments.

But the judges scoring the fight don’t understand or appreciate the energy you have to expend just to make a fight competitive. They don’t appreciate the footwork, feints, and tricks needed to get your opponent into position where you can land a blow or two. Most of them don’t even appreciate the power behind the shots you land.

What the judges keep track of is how many times the other guy taps you with his gloves while you’re busy working toward those highlights.

This myopia can come in handy sometimes. In boxing, there’s always “the puncher’s chance” (if you are, in fact, a puncher) if you never get discouraged and keep the pressure on. In so many arenas of life, this can keep you mentally in the game no matter how much you struggle, and your positive attitude projects an image of success to those who haven’t been adding up all the punches you take.

To paraphrase Winston Churchill: “Success is moving from failure to failure with no loss of enthusiasm.”

However, there are certain circumstances wherein your hyper-perspective can give you a false sense of security.

In team sports when you have a myopic egotist on your side, it can be frustrating trying to make corrections (because that person believes they’re just crushing it on the field, and need no correction). If you spend any time in the ‘hood, you’ll come across fat chicks with ugly attitudes who think they’re sexy. This myopia is an easy trap for writers to fall in; which is why it’s so important to have somebody else look at your work before you submit it for the acid test.

And of course, “conservatives” in the USA have this myopia about our country. You can point to our military victories or our quality of life and assure yourself “it can’t happen here!” even as our national suicide kicks into high gear.

Seeing the glass as half-full is a commendable mindset. But more important is honest examination that is free from the prejudices of personal experience.