The Illusion of Regret — Why Regret May Not Be What We Think It Is
The Illusion of Regret — Why Regret May Not Be What We Think It Is Ramneek Mathur Nov 15, 2019·2 min read

I often think about regret and the role it plays in our lives.

When we think back to certain times in our lives, we may recall times where we would have done something differently.

Maybe we would have said something we didn’t say.

Maybe do something we didn’t do.

Or vice versa.

But everytime I find myself in this predicament, there is one question that I cannot help but ask myself.

Are there things in my life I could not bare to be without? Are there things in my life that I’m grateful for? Are there things I could not imagine willfully letting go of?

The answer to this question, for me — is yes.

And my suspicion is for most of us, it is a resounding ‘yes’.

And if it is a yes, then there is something to be said about this ‘feeling’ of regret we come to experience.

Sometimes we cannot understand the intricacies and dynamics around choice in our lives.

If we acted differently back then, we may very well not be experiencing the things we are grateful for today — in it’s current form.

So then maybe it isn’t regret, we are feeling, after all.

Perhaps this feeling is not trying to pull you back to your past, but pull you into a future you internally want to see manifest.

Something you may not have had the courage to do in the past but something you are ready to embody or ‘be’ now.

In this way, sometimes it feels as if regret is simply an illusion; a mirage.

Something the closer you get to, it disappears.

So today I encourage you to walk towards your regrets, not away from them.

Watch them disappear.
['Ramneek Mathur']
['Choices', 'Regret', 'Life', 'Mindset', 'Life Lessons']