Regrets Are A Good Thing

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“No regrets.” That’s the motto, right? 

Everyone says to live how you live and don’t regret a single thing because that’s what got you where you are today. While I believe that to be totally true, I just don’t think it’s practical to have no regrets.

It’s no good to dwell on regrets, but I think reflecting on them, accepting them, and attempting to avoid the same mistakes we regret is a must to move forward in life.

Going in to a new year, we tend to reflect on the past year and maybe even the past ten years. It can get overwhelming. So why not manage your regrets?

We manage our stress, goals, diets, budgets, and pretty much everything else, so why do we leave out regrets? They are an important part of life and growth and reaching happiness, so don’t leave them out.

Thinking about all the regrets you’ve ever had ever will knock you on the ground and come over you like a huge wave and you will drown. You will. It’s not good to let it all hit you all at once. That’s torturing yourself.

So, when you go to make those new year’s resolutions or list of goals for the upcoming months, go ahead and write out your regrets.

Looking at them on paper and seeing that they happened and they are real and they caused something else to happen can be very insightful. It can even show you how although you regret some things you did, they ended up doing something beautiful in the long run. 

And the ones that didn’t end up doing anything you dub as beautiful, well, make a vow to never let them happen again. Write them down, burn the page, and then turn a new page, literally and figuratively.

Think about why you did them and how much you’ve changed and grown from the time you made the mistakes until now. Evaluate the choices you make and the emotions you act on as a person, and then make changes to improve.

Then only person that can improve your life is you. You make your own choices, your own mistakes, and your own victories, and that’s what makes you a unique individual.

Don’t let past regrets and mistakes set the tone for the rest of your life. Don’t dwell on them, but definitely don’t forget about them.

So, regret all you want. You don’t have to have “no regrets” just because it seems like the free-spirited, life-fulfilling thing to do. But once you’ve written down those things you wish had never happened, once you manage those mistakes, be done with them forever.

Start over. It is a possible thing to do. You can start over whenever you want and no one gets to decide that but you.

I like to thing of regrets in the simplest metaphor: rain. People complain about rain and wish it wouldn’t rain, but we need rain to survive. We need it to nourish the earth, and we need it to nourish our souls and let us lay in bed and watch movies all day on a Saturday. 

Regrets can be like rain for your life. They can bring about positive reactions and can nourish your soul if they’re handled well and thought of in a positive manner.

Your regrets play a part in your daily life whether you’ve recognized it or not, so let’s stop avoiding our regrets and turn them into a good thing. Let them fall down and water your life and then just step back and see what beautiful things grow.

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