It'll Get Worse Before It gets Better
Why ‘No Pain, No Gain’, should set Alarm bells ringing
Mere smokescreen
This is a variant of the so-called confirmation bias.
If the problem continues to worsen, the prediction is confirmed. If the situation improves unexpectedly, the customer is happy and the expert can attribute it to his prowess. Either way he wins.
Beware: Situations do exist where things first dip and then improve.
The milestones are clear and verifiable. Look to these rather than to the heavens.