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Feeling regret for a decision you made is part of life. There can be big decisions such as a new house or new job, or small ones like deciding to eat or wear something that doesn’t make you feel good. In the moment, it can usually seem like you’re making the right choice only to discover later on that perhaps our judgement was a little off. Whilst some regret can be a good thing by causing us to take action towards the things we want, too much of it can cause negative impacts on our health and wellbeing. Too much regret can bring shame and guilt and hold you back from making future decisions through fear that you’ll somehow get those wrong too.
If regret is keeping you fixed and avoiding pain that might come with the outcome of a decision, read on for 8 reasons why you should never feel negatively towards a decision you made.
Decisions force you to grow
We can’t prepare for tragedy or something awful to happen but what we can do is discover a variety of perspectives and opportunities gained from different decisions, and strengthen your resilience by knowing you will handle whatever the outcome is.
Different decisions add colour to your life
Different decisions force us to accept that life isn’t simply black and white. Feeling every emotion, struggle and disappointment leads to a colourful life.
Making decisions allow you to write your own story
Regardless of whether it was the right one, accepting that you made the decision is a reminder that at some point it was what you wanted. Taking responsibility for your decisions is the first step to feeling lighter about the choices you made.
You can reassess what you value in life
Decisions that present us with unfavourable outcomes remind us of what we desire in life. Acknowledging this becomes a starting point to go after what we want and leap into the direction we want our lives to take.
Decisions remind you that you have freedom to choose
Even though you might sometimes wish for a different outcome, acknowledging that you have the freedom to choose is so liberating. The outcome might not be what you envisioned but you can still choose to learn from it.
You are more than the decisions you make
You are not the decisions you make. You are so much more than them and whilst not all decisions are going to work out the way you want, each one provides an opportunity to reframe your thinking and take a step back to assess who you really are.
You’ll appreciate the small things
Challenges and hardships allow us to appreciate the little things in life. Regardless of the decision you made, there are lessons and insights to be learnt from every path you take in life.
You’ll experience new things
There’s no such thing as a bad decision. Each will simply lead to different paths and outcomes that will encourage different learning and experiences. Avoid focusing on the outcome a different decision could have offered and instead, see the one you did choose as a chance to learn and gain something from it.
Sammy Taylor is the founder of Beauty in the Brain, who launched it in 2019 while preparing for brain surgery.
