There is a lot of hype these days regarding everyone wanting to live a life without any regrets. I’ll do what I want, how I want it and whenever I want it. Although, I agree with the statement that we should pursue all we want in life, but I feel the statement, “Life with no regrets” is grossly misunderstood.
Regrets are essential because they make us realize that what we did in the past and why we should not do the same things again. The line is thin and the meaning can be lost in translation so allow me to elaborate it.
When we go hell for leather for something in our life we tend to forget about everything, although most of the things we go after are unproductive and irrelevant, doing everything with all our commitment and everything we possess is integral but the problem starts when we don’t learn from it. When we make mistakes we should realize them and make sure that they don’t happen again. An unpleasant experience keeps us grounded and makes us seasoned individuals.
The greatest regret I have is not working as hard as I could have. The high schools in India are super competitive, obvious fact as there are 1.2 billion people and not enough jobs. I worked hard and got 93% marks and was told that I can’t be admitted to a top college. I had worked really hard for the exams, my parents were super happy. I made the decision to come to Canada because there was opportunity here. Anyway, my younger brother is going through the same regime now. My dad was saying that his education adds up to ₹1,000.00 everyday that equals around $20.00. This might not sound like a lot but ₹30,000.00 a month can give a family of 5 people enough to live a decent life. Also, he works from 9 to 7 everyday and rests for a hour every afternoon. He sacrificed his rest just so he can save my brother 30 mins of transit time, all he wants is my brother to work hard and succeed in life.
When he was telling me this I instantly sunk down in regret thinking how many sacrifices he made for me and how I could have worked even harder and made him even happier. Now if I feel like quitting I think of this and immediately get down to it. My why is bigger is than my what. I am doing this for him. He is my why. Also, I want to tell you guys is, setbacks will occur but don’t let up when you suffer setbacks, instead accept your mistakes and learn from them.
When you realize and regret your mistakes it will act as a driving force for you to take decisions and destroy any doubts you have. Happy abundance!