Is it better to live with the regrets of the things you have done or the the things you haven't.
2007-01-21 22:38:24 · 23 answers · asked by mickeyleon123 2 in Arts & Humanities ➔ Philosophy
Most optimists and in fact most people would say that it is better to do things that you like to do in life even if at times you have to live with regret as consequence. This sometime is also passed on as an advice - part of conventional wisdom among folks.
Can there be some actual truth in this? This can be very briefly investigated. For if you never do something that you always wanted to do, you first of all deny your self of the opportunity of initiative; and if all would follow the same rule that never do anything until you are certain that there would be no regrets then I think nothing in this world would have happened: no Moon landing, no great wall of china, no exploits of great heroes of the history including people getting married for fearlessly, romantically and frequently. You can imagine the shape of the world if people were afraid of regrets. But fortunately we are not; we do things even when they bring bags of unwanted stuff for us to sort out latter. May be we are getting better at doing things ever so more finely, but I doubt it.
It is however the nature of human heart and mind that they always try to circumvent regrets of all sorts; it is possible to do things and then regret and then after certain length of time be alright again. I think it is. So why not have faith in our selves and give every good thing a go!
2007-01-21 23:01:14 · answer #1 · answered by Shahid 7 · 1⤊ 0⤋
Good question. I believe you learn by your mistakes, so if you regret something in the past, you will have learned by it. So I would say its better to life with the regrets of the things you have done
2007-01-21 22:47:11 · answer #2 · answered by Jon F 2 · 0⤊ 0⤋
Both are hard.
Regrets about things you have done are just a matter of dealing with it and making amends.
Regrets about things you haven't will always be in the back of your mind.
Almost everything I regret are things that i didn't do!
2007-01-21 22:44:33 · answer #3 · answered by Anonymous · 0⤊ 0⤋
Well, I think it's better to live with the regrets for the things you have done. Regretting the things yopu haven't done is so frustrating. But to think about it, we live with both kinds of regret. : )
2007-01-21 22:45:31 · answer #4 · answered by Alki 2 · 1⤊ 0⤋
Doing something is an experience, we learn from expeience, regretting something we have done we learn not to do it again.The real regret, the truly painful regret is the self-condemnation: "if only....." and how different things would have turned out
2007-01-22 13:08:01 · answer #5 · answered by shades of Bruno 5 · 0⤊ 0⤋
It's best to live without regrets because you can't go back & you just torture yourself with "what ifs"...It's best to live in the present & with hope for the future. When you know better, you do better. That applies to mistakes you made (including actions you didn't take & should have). Easier said than done I know. I still torture myself with regrets...what if...
2007-01-22 00:16:12 · answer #6 · answered by amp 6 · 0⤊ 0⤋
Better the ones you have done, because you can then look upon them and learn from them the regrets that you havent done you will always wonder what would be.
2007-01-21 22:55:45 · answer #7 · answered by passport_to_heaven1210 2 · 0⤊ 0⤋
This answer will vary depending on the individual.
I live life with no regrets. My choices are the things that will take me in the direction that I have chosen to go. My path will present to me lessons that I will learn and beauty that I will enjoy watching. My moral compass guides my decisions, and my decisions will become the experience that will mold my perspective. I live life with NO regrets.
2007-01-21 22:47:08 · answer #8 · answered by Venom Spartan 3 · 0⤊ 1⤋
Why?
Most of us will all make a few stupid mistakes in our life. The thing is to learn from them and move on.
You can't spend your life carrying "extra baggage" in the form of regret. What's the point of that?
2007-01-21 23:48:49 · answer #9 · answered by Anonymous · 0⤊ 0⤋
Regrets I've had a few
But then again too few to mention
I did what I had to do
And saw it through without exemption
I lived a life thats full and travelled each and every highway
But more much more than this
I did it my way.
2007-01-21 22:43:58 · answer #10 · answered by breedgemh_101 5 · 0⤊ 1⤋