We all talk about living life without regret – and yet the reality is so many of the things we say we want to do, we put off because we keep thinking we can get to them ‘when we have more time’.
I understand that, it’s human nature … however given we actually never know when our time is up, all we are doing is creating a situation where we allow regret to blossom.
A while back a nurse wrote an article about her experiences looking after the dying.
After years of service, she had been able to compile what the ‘5 biggest regrets of people on their death-bed’ were …
1. I wish I’d had the courage to live a life true to myself.
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.
Now I don’t know whether this is a true reflection of what people really think in their dying days … but something tells me there’s a lot of truth in there.
The tragedy of life is that it appears we only see – or embrace – the things that are truly important, once we know the end is near.
OK, so not everyone is like that, but if you were to look at those 5 regrets right now, how many – being brutally truthful to yourself – could you say you are living without compromise.
Of course, it could be argued that life is one big compromise … and maybe that’s true … but if you were told you had a year left to live, how differently would you be living your life?
If you can say ‘not a lot’ … then I am envious of you.
The full article of the ‘5 biggest regrets’ can be read here.