How to live a life without regrets

In the hustle and bustle of everyday life, weighed down by the burden of various obligations, we often cannot find time for what we really want to do. Trying to do everything at once, we stay late at work or even refuse vacation. As a result, many people regret that they set their priorities incorrectly at the time.

What are the consequences of the wrong choice of priorities? According to psychologists, they are rather sad. And this is what, over the years, people tend to regret the most.

Failed romantic relationship

According to Gail Saltz, a professor of psychiatry at New York's Presbyterian Hospital, many regret not staying in touch with their loved ones. The reason for many breakups is over-preoccupation with a career. Often, in order to maintain a relationship, one of the partners has to make certain sacrifices. But not everyone is ready for these sacrifices.

Nowadays, many people think that giving up a career for the sake of another person is unwise. And they don't refuse. As a result, these people really succeed, but regret that they did not try to maintain a relationship at one time.

Gail Saltz

Lost friends

Neal Roese, author of If Only: How to Turn Regret Into Opportunity, notes that the loss of a friend is often as painful as the loss of a loved one.

When you spend too little time with your friends during your days and nights at work, you set yourself up for subsequent regrets. Rose states that many surveys show that people are very upset about lost friendships because the more time passes, the harder it is to find a true friend.

Leading a sedentary lifestyle

It’s very easy to kick yourself off by sitting at your desk all day and skipping your evening workouts because you’re so tired. However, neglecting exercise not only affects your overall health but also your productivity. And as you get older, making time for regular exercise becomes even more important.

Studies have shown that regular exercise can slow brain aging (sometimes as long as 10 years). According to Dr. Saltz, young people are well aware of what will follow the refusal of training, but do not attach much importance to this.

We tend to think that nothing will happen to us for sure.

Gail Saltz

Alas, this is not the case. Therefore, it is worth taking care of your health now.

Inattention to health

In the same way as in the case of training, we forget about the need to monitor our health. It is very important not to ignore medical examinations, prophylactic visits to the doctor and take tests on time. If you do not pay attention to this, you risk not noticing important warning signals that your body is sending you. In this case, doctors will not be able to provide you with timely assistance. With many diseases, it is extremely important how quickly they are diagnosed. A favorable outcome of treatment depends on this.

Exposure to stress

According to experts in the field of stress management, in today's conditions of overload and constant pressure from various stress factors, many people suffer from the consequences of not paying attention to these pressures.

It has long been proven that prolonged stress leads to various mental disorders. Therefore, it is very important to learn how to cope with stressful situations before they damage your health.

Psychologists advise taking the time to analyze all the stressors affecting you. You can do it yourself or get the help of a psychotherapist. Then you will have to make an effort on yourself, as if you were going to go on a diet or quit smoking, and do everything possible to minimize the influence of these factors.

Try stress management techniques such as meditation, exercise, and breathing. Take every opportunity to reduce the effects of stress on your body.

Making decisions driven by fear

Research by clinical psychologists shows that people are more likely to regret missed opportunities. They worry that, fearing failure, criticism, or other negative consequences, they have abandoned something really important. Instead of taking risks and following their dreams or listening to the voice of intuition, people make bad decisions that affect their entire future life.

In addition, under the influence of fear, many tend to compromise their principles. For example, in fear of losing their jobs, people often act against their beliefs about morality, hard work, and professionalism. As time passes, they most often have to regret these actions.

Of course, it is quite difficult to “spread straws” and develop a strategy of behavior that would help avoid regret. However, now you know what most people regret, and you can try not to repeat their mistakes and set your life priorities correctly. And here's what Neil Rose advises:

We all regret something. We can forgive ourselves some mistakes. We resort to rationalization and find reasons to explain our behavior. But there are such regrets that are very difficult to live with. Therefore, just imagine yourself as a deep old man living out his last days. What would you regret the most? Perhaps answering this question will help you make the right choice and live your life differently.