1. You didn’t spend enough time with the right people
If you haven’t reached this stage yet, know that the time will come when you'll prefer to surround yourself only with people who make you smile for the right reasons. Don’t wait until that moment knocks on your door, and choose right now to spend your time with people who help you love who you are and make you feel good, while trying to spend as little time as possible with those who pressure you to impress them.
Never say you’re too busy to make time for the people who truly love you, and remember that there’s nothing more meaningful you can give them than your attention and presence. Quality time together means listening and opening up to each other, without looking at the clock or waiting for the next item on your schedule.
2. You didn’t openly express your love
Sadly, we will all lose people we love throughout our lives. No matter how much time you spend with someone who is important to you, you will never feel like you had enough time together in the end, and it’s best not to learn this lesson the hard way. Express your love in every possible way and every day you have together, and say to the people who matter to you what they need to hear from you. Don’t feel ashamed just because it makes you uncomfortable – you’ll regret much more not taking the opportunities you had to do so.
They may not always understand you perfectly because not all of us have the ability to express our love exactly as we feel it in our hearts, but you should still try as much as you can to say what’s important to you. If there’s someone you appreciate, tell them today, and if there’s anything else that’s important for you to say – don’t keep it inside. Your heart will remain confused and broken with every word you’ve trapped inside.
3. You based your self-worth on others' opinions
We tend to forget that most people judge us based on their past experiences, principles, and values, with no real connection to who we are. For example, someone might judge you based on their knowledge of another person who reminds them of you, even though you are two entirely different people. Therefore, basing your self-worth on what others think of you leaves you in a kind of limbo where you're at the mercy of others’ perspectives and not living according to what you believe is right.
If others see you in a positive light, you’ll feel good about yourself, but if not, you’ll think you're doing something wrong or that something is off. Bottom line – you'll never find your true worth in the thoughts of others, but only in your own, and when you do that, you’ll attract the right people who are worthy of your attention and care. So don’t take anything that hurts you personally, and remember that only you can decide who you truly are.
4. You tried to impress others at the expense of what truly matters to you
In 10 years, it won’t matter to you what you wore today or how your hair looked right now. What will matter is how you lived, how you loved, and what you learned along the way. So there’s no point in trying to impress others, and instead, it's better to simply be who you are. If you do want to impress someone – impress yourself first in a way that makes you proud.
You’ll find you can achieve much more that’s important to you once you stop worrying about what others think of what you're doing. Just show yourself that you're growing and improving, and don’t try to compete with anyone else, only with yourself. Be better than who you were yesterday, and don’t try to be who others want you to be.
5. You let uncertainty paralyze you
You’ll thank yourself later in life if you just go with uncertainty – because you simply don’t know how your story will end, but that’s the only way to move it in an interesting direction. Life is dangerous, and uncertainty can accompany every decision, interaction, and even small step. To live your life to the fullest, you must take such small risks and trust that you’ll get through them safely.
If you let the fear of uncertainty win – you’ll never really know how your life could have turned out, and it’s always better to look back and regret what you did than what you didn’t do. If you made a mistake, you’ll learn from it and change your course later. Remember this and find within yourself the courage to make decisions despite the risks involved.
6. You focused on failures instead of opportunities
You've probably already failed at something and even been hurt, but at the same time, you've also done things you're proud of and received love. You took a risk, gained something, failed at something else, and now you're wiser than you were before. If you ask anyone with experience, you’ll find that it’s better to live a life full of small failures rather than one full of regrets.
Have you ever seen how a toddler learns to walk? They wobble and fall time after time, but each fall is a learning process, and they immediately get back on their feet and keep trying. Don’t let time pass like a wave from a train you wish you were on. Don’t spend your life thinking about why you didn’t do what you want to do now.
7. You held on to ideals and missed real opportunities
You can’t lose what was never yours, and you can’t hold on to what isn’t yours, but you can certainly drive yourself crazy trying to do so. Anything can be part of your life if you keep thinking about it, so stop holding on to what hurts you and make room for what feels right. Don’t let what’s out of your control interfere with all the things you can control.
In other words, say "goodbye" to what doesn’t work for you and welcome what does. For every door that closes, two others open, and there’s no reason to stare longingly at the one that shut, hoping it will open again. Such a situation is a sign that you’re in a process of personal growth, so keep moving and never stop, so you can transition to the next chapter of your life, which will lead you to exciting and unexpected places.
8. You played the victim for too long
If you've gotten used to playing the victim, you will always be treated as one. Life isn’t fair, but that doesn’t mean you should let your past define who you are. Think of experiences you once had that you didn’t think you could get through – yet here you are, you got through them, and you’ll do it again and again in the future when more challenging times come. Don’t let challenges "crush" you, and don’t let your insecurities push you into a corner – don’t be a victim!
Take a small step because the biggest mistake is standing still when, in fact, you can always do a little something to move forward. The place where you are right now doesn’t define you, though you might believe it does and even think it’s what you deserve. The truth is that you're exactly where you need to be, but this isn’t the final stop, just part of the path you've been walking for a long time and will continue on – this is the path of your life.
9. You waited, over-analyzed, and didn’t act
We waste too much time waiting for the ideal life path to appear before us, but it never shows up, because we forget that our life path is the one we create with our steps and not one that lies ahead. It’s easy to be lazy and wait, to just waste another day, but you have to do the opposite and decide what you want to achieve for it to actually happen. Action is the best weapon against fear, which only wants to paralyze you.
When you find yourself at a crossroads where you’re over-analyzing the situation and hesitating without making progress, take a deep breath and decide to break the cycle you’ve gotten stuck in. Choose your next step wisely and take it – even if there are several options, just choose one and follow it to the end. Even if you made a mistake, you’ll learn something essential that will help you in the future.
10. You were too busy to appreciate life
You must always do and work, but don’t forget to take breaks sometimes to enjoy the small moments of life that most of us ignore. Among all the advice here, this is the most important, because happiness isn’t something that lasts forever, but something we get small tastes of, and it’s always there – waiting for you to take a bite. Listen to the birds chirping in the morning, daydream in the middle of the workday, watch the sunset in the evening, and enjoy the cool breeze on your face on a chilly summer night. These are small but significant things for your inner happiness.
Moments like these will keep you grounded in the present and in the good feeling it brings, while negative feelings usually come from thinking about the past or worrying about the stressful future. Be grateful for everything you have right now, because even if it seems insignificant to others – for you, it is priceless. The less time you spend worrying and the more time you devote to what you're experiencing at this moment – in your present – the more you’ll appreciate each day and regret less about the small moments you wasted on unnecessary thoughts.
