5 Decisions You’ll Regret 10 Years from Now
Life is short, youth is temporary. You have every opportunity to make the most of the life you have now. Your choices today will determine the number of regrets you will have in the next decade. The most common regrets you've probably heard are: missed opportunities, not making better use of your time, not accomplishing more, not doing meaningful work, procrastination, not developing better habits, not mastering another language or skill, bad relationships, or making mistakes in a past relationship… Regrets feel awful. . But today, right now, you can do something about your choices to limit your future regrets.
“If you had one month to live: How would you spend it?”
You can spend quality time with the people you love most, truly paying attention to every word they say. You can go out and have wonderful experiences and explore the world. Or you can spend your days learning, focusing on books and life itself.
You can create anything. You can leave a legacy by making art, making people's lives better, or trying to solve a global problem in your own small way. Any of these choices, or a combination of them, would be a valuable way to spend a term. Every moment is limited, temporary and precious. With this mindset, start living your life to the fullest right now! This is the best choice to avoid these regrets in the future.
“I'm Waiting for the Right Time”
Don't expect everything to be perfect. It will never happen. There will always be challenges, obstacles, and less-than-perfect circumstances.
There is never a perfect time for you to take action. There is never a perfect time to start a project, spend time with your family, write a book, change a habit, or start a new one. When you accept this, you will do much more meaningful work every day.
I'm too tired, I don't have time, I'm not capable, someone else will do it, it's too late, now is not the right time, I'm not capable, I'm not ready, I'm too scared, no one will help me, what if I fail, I'm not motivated, I'd rather do nothing, I don't have money. no… These may be true. But these are valid for now!
It's easy to find excuses and try to justify not starting. The longer you fill your head with rationalizations and empty excuses, the less time you have to take action. It's easy to say, “I'll start when I have more experience, money, time, and resources.” By this time next year you'll have a lot more excuses. It's a cycle, and once you're caught in it, it can be hard to break free and do something meaningful that you care about.
Self-criticism and self-doubt will always be in our lives, and the only solution is to take action despite them.
Your first ebook, article, song, podcast, freelance work, or creative work will never be satisfying and perfect. This is no problem. But despite everything, it's worth starting. In ten years you'll be happier that you tried this today.
There will always be reasons why you can't do something. People are constantly explaining why they can't do something, why they shouldn't do something, why they simply won't do it. When you make excuses, it's easy to say, “I'm not in control, what can I do?” you say. But you are the only person in the world who is in complete control of your actions and decisions. Making excuses takes away your personal power.
People make excuses out of fear of the unknown. Some people are afraid of change, rejection and embarrassment. Fear keeps you stuck in your comfort zone. And you can never accomplish anything impressive or remarkable in your safe space. If you learn how to eliminate all traces of fear from your life, you can stop making excuses.
Next time you experience a setback, don't make an excuse. See it as a challenge, learn from it and move forward. Excuses are distracting and reduce your confidence and belief in yourself.
“Waiting to Gather”
“Choosing yourself means having the chance to matter. Not finishing now, but starting now! Choosing yourself means we have to stop waiting, whining, and stalling. “The outcome is still in doubt, but it is clear that waiting will not pay.” –Seth Godin
Today, there are more ways than ever to choose yourself and show what you have to offer. It's much easier to get someone to notice your creative work. If you are willing and focused, you may discover that people love what you do. People will come to you for more than you have to share or say.
This is how you build your reputation with the public. You can be the best in the world at something people value. You may not make money from it right away, but putting it in every day makes the biggest difference.
You have everything you need to make an impact in the world. You don't even need to start your own business. What you need is to find something you can connect with emotionally and deeply. Don't think too much about the future. Use what you have where you are now and witness the magic of creative work. If you think about it too much before taking action, you're probably killing it.
No matter what you choose to do, there are resources that can help you achieve your goals with simple steps. It doesn't have to be a difficult thing. You can choose to be small and consistent.
“Choose to be your authentic self, let go of who you think you should be in the future, and be yourself now.”
The only person who can push yourself a little harder to start, create, share or publish is you. Stop waiting to be chosen! Choose yourself!
Living Someone Else's Dream
“Your time is limited so don't waste it living someone else's life. Don't get trapped in “dogma”, which is living with the results of other people's thoughts. Don't let the noise of other people's opinions drown out your own inner voice. And most importantly, have the courage to follow your heart and intuition. Those intuitions somehow know what you really want to be. Everything else is secondary.” –Steve Jobs
The greatest challenge in life is to discover who you are; The second biggest thing is to be happy with what you find and make the most of it. The decision to stay true to your own goals and dreams is life-changing.
No matter how busy you are, make time to pursue what you're passionate about. If you've always wanted to be a writer and publish a book, self-publish because you can. Amazon now makes it very easy to upload a manuscript, design a cover, and publish it. It's that easy! You don't have to wait to be selected. You can choose yourself. You don't need permission to get your ideas to the right audience.
“I don't have time to write” is not an excuse. Time before bed is golden because it's available every day and is usually entirely yours to schedule. What do you want to do this time? You can follow your passion. There will never be a perfect time with a full-time job and maybe a family. You must create the time. Set aside a block of time to do what you love, remove other things from your life that take up your time, and don't let anything interfere with that passion project.
You can't even imagine what you can achieve in ten years if you constantly do something related to your dream. You don't even have to waste your hours. It could be minutes every day. Small actions gradually merge and become larger.
not trying
“Try and fail, but don't forget to try.” – John Quincy Adams
The biggest reason people fail to create habits, change their lives, pursue their goals, or simply take action is because they can't find the motivation to get started. The problem is, you're comfortable with what you're doing (the current routine) and you find it harder to form the new habits you need to actually get better at. Sticking to what is comfortable. It's easy to be persuaded by a steady salary, a solid routine and a comfortable life, but at what cost?
You can only make progress if you take steps. Overcoming the fear of failure is the first step to success. Start facing your fears today and take the most basic step towards what you need to do.
Remember that dream you were too afraid to follow? It's still not too late to try. Don't miss any opportunity to try it.
It's Too Early to Give Up
“Leaving. Never stop trying to build the world you can see, even if others can't. Listen only to your own drum. It is the one that makes the sweetest sound.” – Simon Sinek
If you have failed in the past and never given up, you are stronger than you think. If you have failed recently and are thinking of giving up, don't do it. Obstacles show that you are on a path, and there is always a way out of these obstacles. Even if you haven't found it yet, keep trying.
Find out why, how and where you're stuck and save yourself from temporary failure. Unfortunately, most people refuse to do something about their failures, eventually giving up on their dreams and wallowing in discontent.
Everyone is afraid of failure, it is inevitable to experience this. But it's your reaction to it that makes all the difference. Don't get stuck. These are a few of the many habits that can ensure your failure.
How persistent are you in pursuing your dreams and goals? One of the most important secrets of success is learning to overcome your doubts. Most of us give up our curiosity too soon. Every successful person you know today has a story of patience to share.
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