lifestyle

Our 10 biggest regrets

 

 

 

 

There are no excuses for wasting your time on what could have been.  In fact you stand to gain 45 minutes of your time back every week just by letting go of your regrets. Sounds flaky? Let me explain:

According to a study it seems that we are wasting 45 minutes out of every week wishing that we had done things differently, looking in the rear view mirror and slapping ourselves on the wrist for the mistakes that we have made.

The main areas of regret can be separated into our love lives, family, career, health and finances

The Daily Mail reports

On average, we have two main regrets in life. 17 per cent of those interviewed laid the blame at someone else’s door.

But two thirds of those interviewed said they thought their regrets had led them to act more positively and that they had learnt from their mistakes.

A quarter of the 2,000 people questioned by Electric Zebra, an electronic substitute cigarette firm, said their regrets had made them into the person they are today.

Common regrets range from not getting on the property ladder sooner to not being more promiscuous when younger. Others include regretting not telling someone we loved them and wishing we had repaired a damaged friendship.

The top ten regrets were:

1.) Not having saved more money

2.) Not having worked harder at school

3.) Not having exercised more

4.) Not seeing more of the world

5.) Taking up smoking

6.) Not staying in touch with people more

7.) Not having taken more care of our bodies when younger

8.) Not having appreciated an elderly relative more before he or she passed away

9.) Not having taken more photos of experiences growing up

10.) Getting married too early

I think I may be above average in this one. I focus quite a lot on the things that I could have done differently. Like high school.  The whole of it.  And then some of the decisions that I made after I finished school.

But with that regret comes learning.  I regretted not doing something that I loved with my life but now at of 43 I feel really happy, ecstatic even with the way my life has panned out.  Maybe if I hadn’t made all those decisions when I was younger I wouldn’t be the person that I am today. If I hadn’t stuffed up (and I did – sometimes spectacularly) then I would not have the strength and knowledge that I do today. I would also not spend 45 minutes a week regretting my teens and early 20s.

There is one thing that no time can repair though, I really wish I hadn’t had that perm the day before my wedding. Also there’s that smoking thing…

What are the things that you regret?