How to Live a Life Without Regrets

photo not mine

For so long, I have led my life to thinking that as long as others are happy with my decisions, it wouldn't matter if I'm not. That's a principle I have blindly followed for so long because I have been too obsessed about pleasing others, believing that that would make me happy. Little did I know that while I try so hard to achieve this 'happiness', I am actually burying myself in a slum of frustrations and despair. 

I honestly didn't know how it happened; but one day, I just noticed that while others are growing and succeeding, I have remained stagnant. It suddenly occurred to me how sad my life has always been. That's when I finally realized that it's time to quit all these bullshits. I do not need to put other people first. Myself should always be the number one priority. 

When that mindset sank in, I felt lighter and more free. The next thing I knew, I'm glowing.

Due to our addiction for social acceptance, most of us become blinded with what really matters. In the end, we forsake ourselves and completely put our joy in the wrong places - thinking that we'll eventually be happy with it. But what we fail to realize is that we don't just become happy when we say we're happy. It only becomes genuine when we don't feel any regrets or frustrations over how our lives are running. 

Saying 'yes' to others when we actually mean 'no' is one form of denying ourselves of true happiness. It doesn't make us feel good when we lie to ourselves. It makes us feel genuinely incomplete. So why do it? There's always a compromise. Why not practice it?

I am not saying that we should not work on pleasing others. Of course, we should; but that should just come secondary. Remember, we cannot give something we don't have. If we do not prioritize our happiness, how sure are we that others will feel sincerity over what we're doing for them to be happy? 

Life is too short. The best thing to do now is to make the most out of it. So we all should live it wisely and stop taking ourselves for granted.