9 Things No One Wants to Regret
When They’re Older
In the end, we only regret the chances we didn’t take,
relationships we were afraid to have, and the decisions we waited too long to
make.
The things you didn’t do when you had the chance. That priceless relationship you
neglected. Those important words you
left unspoken…
Every one of us has experienced feelings of regret.
But it’s not too late to set things
straight...
We’re still here
breathing...
Right now we have an
opportunity
to change our future.
Right
now we can choose to erase
regret from our later years.
Here are nine things no one wants to regret when they’re
older, and some thoughts on avoiding these regrets:
1. Not spending
enough time smiling with the people you love.
You’ve heard the saying, ‘The best things in life are
free.’ Well spending quality time with
family and friends, enjoying the antics of a pet, seeing your child smile,
experiencing intimate and heart-felt moments with your significant other –
these times are precious and free.
Don’t get so caught up in the rat race, working 50+ hours a
week, to the point where you are too stressed and exhausted to enjoy your
closest relationships.
By
simplifying your lifestyle and
making conscious choices along the way, it is possible to live on less money,
and thus work fewer hours and enjoy more of what matters most.
As we get older, fun is often underrated.
With all of our responsibilities,
fun seems
like an indulgence.
It shouldn’t
be.
It should be a requirement.
When your work life is busy, and all your
energy is focused in that arena, it’s all too easy to find yourself off
balance. While drive and focus is
important, if you intend to maintain happiness and peace in your life you still
need to balance in the soccer games, the family dinners, the intimate dates
with your significant other, etc.
2. Holding a grudge
and never forgiving someone you care about.
We’ve all been hurt by another person at some point – we
were treated poorly, trust was broken, hearts were hurt. And while this pain is normal, sometimes it lingers
for too long. We relive the pain over
and over and have a hard time letting go.
This creates problems.
It not only causes us to be unhappy, but it can strain or ruin our
relationships, distract us from work and family and other important things, and
make us reluctant to open up to new things and people. We get trapped in a cycle of anger and hurt,
and miss out on the beauty of life as it happens.
Grudges are a waste of perfect happiness. If there’s someone in your life who deserves
another chance, give it to them. If you
need to apologize, do it. Give your
story together a happy new beginning.
3. Fulfilling
everyone else’s dreams, instead of your own.
Unfortunately, just before you take your first step on the
righteous journey to pursue your dreams, people around you, even the ones who
deeply care for you, will give you awful advice. It’s not because they have evil
intentions. It’s because they don’t
understand the big picture – what your dreams, passions, and life goals mean to
you.
Have the courage to live a life true to YOU,
not the life
others expect of you.
Make time to
pursue your passion,
no matter how busy you are or what anyone else says.
As our friend Steve Jobs once said:
“Your time is limited, so don’t waste it living someone
else’s life. Don’t be trapped by dogma,
which is living with the results of other people’s thinking. Don’t let the noise of others’ opinions drown
out your own inner voice, heart and intuition.
They somehow already know what you truly want to become. Everything else is secondary.”
4. Not being honest
about how you feel.
Say what you need to say, and
never apologize for showing
your feelings.
Many people suppress
their feelings in order to keep peace with others. As a result, they settle for carrying the
weight of their own silence.
Give
yourself permission to feel
a full range of emotions.
When you’re in touch with
what you’re
feeling, you’re more
likely to understand the situation
at hand and resolve it
instead of avoiding it.
Also, if you want to connect with others, you need to accept
and love yourself first, even when your truth feels heavy.
In the end, expressing your feelings will
boost your relationships, including your relationship with yourself, to a new
healthier level. And your open honesty
will also help you to realize and release unhealthy relationships from your
life.
5. Being foolish and
irresponsible with your finances.
When you spend less than you make you buy lifestyle
flexibility and freedom.
You are buying
the ability to say yes to the things that matter, because you’re saving on the
things that don’t.
Money can bring
comfort, and there is absolutely nothing wrong with enjoying that comfort. But it’s important to spend money on the
things that truly matter to you, and let go of spending that does not add value
to your life.
Live a comfortable life, not a wasteful one.
Stop buying stuff you do not need.
Do not spend to impress others.
Do not live life trying to fool yourself
into
thinking wealth is measured in material objects.
Manage your money wisely so your money
does
not manage you.
6. Getting caught up
in needless drama and negativity.
Don’t expect to achieve long-term happiness
if you surround
yourself with negative people.
Don’t
give part-time people
a full-time position in your life.
Know your value and what you have to offer,
stay positive, and never settle
for anything less than what you deserve.
There comes a time in life when you have to let go of all
the pointless drama and the people who create it. Staying out of other people’s drama is an
incredibly effective way to simplify your life and reduce stress. Surround yourself with positive people who
make you laugh so hard that you forget the bad, so you can focus on the
good.
Life really is too short to be
anything
but positive and happy.
7. Never making your
own happiness a priority.
For the average person happiness is a choice, yet numerous
people are unhappy. There are many
reasons, but it all boils down to one simple principle: They choose something else over happiness. Because it often takes less effort to be
unhappy.
To find true happiness in life
you have to follow your heart
and intuition.
You have to be who you
are,
and design a lifestyle and career
that fulfills you – no matter what that
entails or what people say about it.
And
it is never too late to do so.
So be happy; be yourself.
If others don’t like it, then let them be.
Life isn’t about pleasing everybody.
Begin today by taking responsibility for your
own happiness. You are the only one who
can create it. The choice is yours.
8. Never making a
difference in the lives of others.
Every person can make a difference, and every person should
try.
In life, you get what you put in. When you make a positive impact in someone
else’s life, you also make a positive impact in your own life.
Do something that’s greater than you –
something that helps someone else
to be happy or to suffer less.
Remember, making a positive difference
in one person’s life
can change the world.
Maybe not the
whole world, but their world.
9. Failing because
you were scared to fail.
If your fear of failure, or of not being perfect, has driven
you to take the safe road of doing nothing, you have already failed.
Accept the fact that everyone fails,
but
don’t accept the act of not trying
as your form of failure.
If you find yourself at a point of intense decision making
where you’re caught in a spiral of over-analysis and hesitation, and you’re
making no progress, take a deep breath, break the spiral, make an educated
guess on the next logical step, and take it.
Even if you get it wrong, you will learn something that will help you
get it right next time.
Your failures along the road to your goals are simply
opportunities to learn and grow.
You
might not be there yet, but if you keep moving forward, you’ll get there
eventually.
Title Photo from: http://chrispiascik.com/2010/11/regrets-are-for-horseshoes-and-handbags/
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