Shortly after my "I should have bought more crap" post here, I read an article in The Guardian about an Australian palliative care nurse that recorded the most common regrets of her dying patients.
There is a lot to be learned from these commonly reported sources of remorse. We can use the collective wisdom of others to help us avoid similar pitfalls.
Top 5 Most Common Regrets Of The Dying
1. I wish I'd had the courage to live a life true to myself, not the life others expected of me.
2. I wish I hadn't worked so hard.
3. I wish I'd had the courage to express my feelings.
4. I wish I had stayed in touch with my friends.
5. I wish that I had let myself be happier.
Read the Guardian article here.
How can we avoid these same situations? How can we make it to the end of life with the fewest possible regrets?
With more autonomy, one can create a remorse-free life. Living more simply allows me the freedom, time, and space to follow my heart, and honour my priorities.
The simple life also helps me avoid the traps of wealth that can distract even the most ardent from their true path.
These distractions are why some wealthy parents plan on forcing their kids to live more simply by leaving them a reduced inheritance. These concerned parents wish to save their kids from the potentially devastating distractions of extreme wealth.
How thoughtful. It just might help their kids avoid buying gold-plated regrets.
Besides the freedom of simplicity, which allows one to explore and experiment with life's passions, there are other attitudes and approaches that can be practised.
Ways To Live Life Without Regrets
- take risks
- say "Yes" more often
- listen to your heart/inner voice
- apologize, forgive
- ask questions, seek answers
- share the love - with yourself, and others
- learn from, and cherish, all experience
- be a dreamer
- set and work toward goals, but take breaks to recharge
- don't worry about what you think other people might think
- say "No" more often
- shamelessly be your own quirky self
- try not to label things as "good" or "bad"
- do something to make the world a better place, no matter how small
- savour the moment
- think good thoughts
- give more hugs
- give yourself permission to be happy
- keep moving/be physical - sing, dance, bang a drum, run, swing, roll, take joy in your body and what it can do
- do things that scare you - fearlessly embrace existence
- look at change as an opportunity for learning and experiencing new things
- reach out, open up, share your feelings
- live the life you imagine
- initiate, motivate, make things happen - write letters, make phone calls, send emails/messages
- kiss him (her)
Live life without regrets. Don't wait. Start now. Have fun.
This reminds me of what I always say to my husband, "You will never lay on your death bed saying, I wish I had worked more"
ReplyDeleteLife is short...
MarieG LifeSimplyBalanced.com
It's true...
DeleteWords to live by.