This morning, many of us are recovering from a weekend filled with food, family… and more food!
There is nothing better than reuniting with family, and a few years ago, I attended a similar reunion in Key West, Florida. You know how family get togethers can be. Reuniting with relatives you haven’t seen in years, telling stories about past family moments, and of course… food!
One night during the reunion, I was hanging out with my favorite cousin, who is actually like a brother to me. We hadn’t seen one another in a couple of years, and we began to open up about our current personal lives.
I was going on about how happy I was to be an author and how excited I was about my future. However, I’ll never forget what he said to me after I finished talking. He opened up to me and expressed his regret in never going back to school.
When I heard him say, “I haven’t accomplished anything since I left college fifteen years ago,” it broke my heart!
According to Everyday Health, the 10 Biggest Life Regrets are:
1. ROMANTIC REGRETS (Divorce, letting that good one get away)
2. FAMILY REGRETS (Family Feuds)
3. EDUCATIONAL REGRETS (Pursuing a different major, not studying harder)
4. CAREER REGRETS (Not going after that desired job)
5. FINANCIAL REGRETS (Not investing, failing to save)
6. PARENTAL REGRETS (Not being present as a parent)
7. HEALTH REGRETS (Not maintaining diet and exercise)
8. FRIENDSHIP REGRETS (Not forgiving past mistakes)
9. SPIRITUAL REGRETS (Not attending church, not living according to the Word of God)
10. COMMUNITY REGRETS (Not serving others, lack of helping charities)
It’s impossible to have lived an adult life and not have experienced at least one of these regrets. I know I have, and I also know that as an adult, it’s difficult to express our regrets to one another. I was surprised to hear my cousin open up to me so candidly, because for adults, expressing life regrets can be viewed as a sign of weakness!
In reality, however, being open about our regrets is the first step to Getting Back Up!
Listen, it doesn’t matter if your regret has lasted one year, five years or fifteen years. The moment you decide to face it and correct it… it’s over!
Les Brown, one of the greatest motivational speakers, says, “When you fall down, if you can look up, then you can get up!” As adults, we avoid communicating our regrets because we’ve learned to view them as failures. Remember, failure is only a certainty when we choose to quit! No one should ever quit!
Did you know that Abraham Lincoln, who is widely considered the greatest President in U.S. history, lost eight prior elections before winning the Presidential election in 1860?
We all will experience regret and feel like failures at some point.
BUT YOUR GREATEST ACHIEVEMENT WILL NOT COME FROM
YOUR ACCOMPLISHMENTS, YOUR AWARDS… OR YOUR MONEY.
YOUR GREATEST ACHIEVEMENT WILL COME
THE MOMENT YOU DECIDE TO GET BACK UP!
(www.everydayhealth.com/…health…/woulda-shoulda-coulda-…)
Successful Choices in Living 