What is you single biggest regret in life?

gent9662 · 19-05-2011 8:32am #1

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=LP7pdAn3foE

The King of Moo · 19-05-2011 8:38am

To be honest, I try not to have any regrets.
If you make a mistake, deal with the consequences, if any, and move on.
Like most people I used to get hung up on past mistakes now and then, but I grew to realise that if there's nothing you can do to change them, move on and keep going forward, perhaps while whistling a happy tune.

(Though I wish I hadn't awkwardly insisted on making the Queen drink her pint yesterday. Oh wait, wasn't me

)

iamwhoiam · 19-05-2011 8:39am

wasting a few summers watching Big Brother .

Guill · 19-05-2011 8:41am

Not riding my teacher when i had the chance.

telekon · 19-05-2011 8:41am

"Dick Byrne"....tee hee hee.

thebigbiffo · 19-05-2011 8:42am

getting married too young (26)...i know it's **** to think like that - and i love d'wife and d'kids - but waiting another few years to enjoy youth, and become more financially stable before settling down would have been nice.

AH answer - not blasting yer ma with piss when i had the chance.

RedXIV · 19-05-2011 8:44am

Not working my ass off in college. I'd keep the same amount of partying, no problems there but the lazy mornings and aimless walks and the endless net surfing when I should have been working, that I regret.

But as said above, no point dwelling on it, got a job didn't I?

Plazaman · 19-05-2011 8:53am

Not asking that lovely Belfast girl to go out with me when she was holidays here all the way back in my teens. Damn those awkward years (if I knew then what I know now and all that). She was lovely, we got on extremely well but my hesitation meant that another friend, with the IQ of a shoelace, asked her out on a date. The gimp probably had to be dug out of her at the end of the week which still makes me shudder

jimthemental · 19-05-2011 8:55am

I regret doing chemistry in college instead of engineering teaching. My degree has so far gone completely to waste because I can't get the right kind of job.

Wolfe Tone · 19-05-2011 8:56am

thebigbiffo wrote: »

getting married too young (26)...i know it's **** to think like that - and i love d'wife and d'kids - but waiting another few years to enjoy youth, and become more financially stable before settling down would have been nice.

AH answer - not blasting yer ma with piss when i had the chance.

Hope she aint on boards!

Personally I dont have any significant regrets really.

hidinginthebush · 19-05-2011 8:57am

I regret not kicking a certain b!tch to the kerb when I should have, eventually did, but would have saved myself a year or 2 of mental torment. Whore. :mad:

tbh · 19-05-2011 8:57am

not spending more time with my Nana.

Buceph · 19-05-2011 9:03am

Doing drugs when I was a teenager.

Duggy747 · 19-05-2011 9:06am

Try not to have regrets, either. Screw it, it's in the past and chances are things might not have turned out as good as you think it may have when looking back with rose-tinted specs.

Most of my regrets have been women-related and are in the Why didn't I get with her? / Why the hell did I ever get with her!?!. To me, that's small-fry stuff anyways.

SEPT 23 1989 · 19-05-2011 9:08am

Being a total asshole to my parents when i was a teenager

Sykk · 19-05-2011 9:09am

The last walrus I spent 6 months of my life with... Wasted.. All wasted.

Funglegunk · 19-05-2011 9:10am

Not bothering my arse to do any study for either Leaving Cert or degree. Could have done a lot better than I did, but didn't give a ****e at the time.

high heels · 19-05-2011 9:11am

Losing my virginity at 23, Should of done it years ago. Missed out on a lot of fun.. So dident have any boyfriends for years looking for the right one.. when to be honest should of be out having fun... I passed on a lot of guys due to me not thinking they are the one when really they could of been I just didn't give any a chance.

I think even if you wait for the one you think you love for your first time it will still suck...

celticutd87 · 19-05-2011 9:11am

I regret the fact that I was never able to spend more time with my brother. He died aged 18 from cancer when I was 15. He was a great guy and even got an A in an xmas exam (the only 1 he had the energy to sit) just 2 weeks before he passed. Im now 24 and every now and then I sit down and wonder what he might have done with his life, how he could have given me advice in college, where would he be living, doing etc and so i think my main regret is that he died so young and I wasnt able to do anything to help him

.

bc dub · 19-05-2011 9:12am

mortgage

afatbollix · 19-05-2011 9:14am

Having such low self confidence that wasn't really able to talk to girls from the age of 16 to 22..

Because of that I let two girl slip past that I think were the ones.

Stupid friend zones..

LeeHoffmann · 19-05-2011 9:16am

I regret not standing up for myself more. There were many times when I should have forced people to hear me. Instead I sacrificed myself. This caused me a decade of pain and changed me in ways I wouldn't have wanted or imagined. I also wish I'd kept up running -that could have been a great anchor for me in troubling times and I'm sure would have made me feel stronger and perhaps given more opportunities. However, looking back, it's hard to see how I could have done things differently. I was more selfless than I am now and I know I did what I thought was right/best at the time. As others have said, it's not good to get hung up on the past. Who know what would have happened if you'd done things differently? Things could have also ended up worse! I feel very lucky to have certain people in my life now so I can't complain.

19-05-2011 9:16am

None

Juicyfruit · 19-05-2011 9:18am

What a lovely video

I don't really have a biggest regret, more a lot of little ones! Try not to dwell on them though, not much I can do about it now!

opinion guy · 19-05-2011 9:21am

Signing up to boards.ie

The King of Moo · 19-05-2011 9:24am

Rejecting the second most famous AH when he applied to my art academy

Professey Chin · 19-05-2011 9:25am

Simply not being good enough (not behaviour wise.Just everything else Ive tried)

RedXIV · 19-05-2011 9:25am

bluewolf wrote: »

None

Could just be me but this suggests very little imagination if you've never once thought "Maybe I should have done this instead"

Don't regret spending more time with a lost relative?
Don't regret any relationships?
Don't regret any career decisions?

I believe that everything that happens makes us who we are but having NO regrets....i dunno, kinda sounds like you've relinquished control over your own life

Gillington · 19-05-2011 9:26am

Finished first year of an accounting course got offered a junior position for a company where they'd let me go on and continue college while working.At the same time I started seeing this girl who I was already working with who I was starting to really like.

Turned down the job,stayed working in a supermarket,didnt go back to college,in fairnesss I was with the girl for 4 years but I still think of that day ringing up that crowd and turning down their offer as the worst decision I ever made

Ah well!

SeaFields · 19-05-2011 9:26am

Not starting a proper career before the economic crash....hindsight is 20-20

Jesus Wept · 19-05-2011 9:27am

Watching that video a few days ago, barely a honest answer in it.

Duggy747 · 19-05-2011 9:27am

The King of Moo wrote: »

Rejecting the second most famous AH when he applied to my art academy

I never applied to any art...........oooooh..........I see, you're not on about me

The King of Moo · 19-05-2011 9:29am

RedXIV wrote: »

Could just be me but this suggests very little imagination if you've never once thought "Maybe I should have done this instead"

Don't regret spending more time with a lost relative?
Don't regret any relationships?
Don't regret any career decisions?

I believe that everything that happens makes us who we are but having NO regrets....i dunno, kinda sounds like you've relinquished control over your own life

I think you can recognise things in the past could've been different and learn from mistakes without regretting them though. Maybe I'm just splitting hairs but I always think of regret as involving wishing things in the past had been different after the time has past for that to happen.
I personally aim for recognising my mistakes and learning from them, but without wishing for things to have been different.
Though it's difficult to stop regrets coming to you, it's human nature, I just try not to dwell on them.

Drumpot · 19-05-2011 9:29am

I try to live my life in a manner in which if I was on my deathbed, what would I look back on and regret. I am married with kid(s) (one on the way) and still tell my folks I love them (dad was never a huggy huggy kind of person but I eventually learned to just say it!).

My one true regret, if something happened to me now, is my health. I am not as fit or healthy as I would like to be and I worry that I wont be healthy when older to enjoy my children grow up.

Each to their own and I know people have differant views, but for me Exams and jobs will come and go and I dont believe that they are worth getting stressed or worried about (dont get me wrong I get stressed myself, but know I shouldnt). The only things worth any effort are family and friends. Everything else should be down your list of important things. Why ? If you get that job you want, what differance does it make if you dont have time to enjoy it with family/friends ?

RedXIV · 19-05-2011 9:33am

The King of Moo wrote: »

I think you can recognise things in the past could've been different and learn from mistakes without regretting them though. Maybe I'm just splitting hairs but I always think of regret as involving wishing things in the past had been different after the time has past for that to happen.
I personally aim for recognising my mistakes and learning from them, but without wishing for things to have been different.
Though it's difficult to stop regrets coming to you, it's human nature, I just try not to dwell on them.

I see where you're coming from but surely there are things that were in your control and you maybe let them slide? Not you specifically but for example, when I started college I was extremely fit and dedicated to training and was in great shape. 4 years in college later I had lost that. Now I had concentrated on college but I regret that I didn't try to keep up my fitness.

I guess I see learning from the mistakes AS regret, otherwise, why would you call it a mistake?

I think its too early to be this philosophical :pac:

Joey the lips · 19-05-2011 9:35am

Not having my kids earlier....

fakearms123 · 19-05-2011 9:37am

liking Limp Bizkit in my early teens

TaraFoxglove · 19-05-2011 9:39am

The King of Moo wrote: »

Rejecting the second most famous AH when he applied to my art academy

Huh?

The King of Moo · 19-05-2011 9:39am

RedXIV wrote: »

I see where you're coming from but surely there are things that were in your control and you maybe let them slide? Not you specifically but for example, when I started college I was extremely fit and dedicated to training and was in great shape. 4 years in college later I had lost that. Now I had concentrated on college but I regret that I didn't try to keep up my fitness.

I guess I see learning from the mistakes AS regret, otherwise, why would you call it a mistake?

I think its too early to be this philosophical :pac:

Absolutely there's things I had control over I could've changed, I could probably say the same about my fitness (Except I was never very fit

). And I do find myself regretting that, but I try to stop myself from thinking that and say to myself "either do something about it or else stop thinking about it, as thinking about it won't help."
It's a bit strict on myself (and I think it's impossible not to have some regrets now and then), but I found I used to have quite a negative mindset and would get annoyed about things I couldn't or wouldn't change, so I said to myself I just had to stop the negative thoughts as they were just a waste of energy and never made anyone feel good. And regrets came under that umbrella.

But I agree, definitely too early for philosophy, I'm only on my second coffee

.

mprgst78 · 19-05-2011 9:41am

I once read that regret is for something you didn't do but remorse is for something you did. Just my 2 cents!

tommy21 · 19-05-2011 9:45am

mprgst78 wrote: »

I once read that regret is for something you didn't do but remorse is for something you did. Just my 2 cents!

I bet you'll regret being so pedantic.

CathyMoran · 19-05-2011 9:46am

I regret not marrying my husband years earlier - he is a wonderful man and the only man in the world for me - I should have just told him straight out that I hated big weddings and that I felt pushed into having one. I would also have had more children and younger, I get incredible joy from being a parent.

RedXIV · 19-05-2011 9:47am

The King of Moo wrote: »

Absolutely there's things I had control over I could've changed, I could probably say the same about my fitness (Except I was never very fit ). And I do find myself regretting that, but I try to stop myself from thinking that and say to myself "either do something about it or else stop thinking about it, as thinking about it won't help."
It's a bit strict on myself (and I think it's impossible not to have some regrets now and then), but I found I used to have quite a negative mindset and would get annoyed about things I couldn't or wouldn't change, so I said to myself I just had to stop the negative thoughts as they were just a waste of energy and never made anyone feel good. And regrets came under that umbrella.

But I agree, definitely too early for philosophy, I'm only on my second coffee .

Seems then its just a matter of definition between us.

Like you say, I'd look back on things and continuing the fitness example, "I used to be fit, I regret I lost that" and immediately start thinking about how to get it back.

I suppose it could be said that regret can be a motivator in some situations. But taking another example, e.g. I spent very little time with either of my grandfathers before they died, and I regret that. And I can't change it. BUT it has made me aware of that and I'd make more time for my remaining grandmother so I don't make the same mistake.

mprgst78 · 19-05-2011 9:50am

tommy21 wrote: »

I bet you'll regret being so pedantic.

oh the irony. should I not be remorseful as per my post?.... :rolleyes:

The King of Moo · 19-05-2011 9:52am

TaraFoxglove wrote: »

Huh?

Back in Vienna, in the early 1900s..

.

(It's a bad joke anyway

)

I love this smiley

Thomas828 · 19-05-2011 9:53am

I'm starting to regret not doing Irish beyond my first year at secondary school. I didn't think it would be much use to me at the time. I lived in Belfast and not many people around me spoke Irish. And in the twenty years I lived in London I never heard a word of Irish spoken on the street. In fact I only got to hear it regularly when RTÉ Radio 1 started broadcasting on long wave.

But now I'm back in Ireland, I can get Irish language periodicals and books from the local library, I can tune into RTÉ Raidió na Gaeltachta and "Blas" on BBC Radio Ulster, I can go to an Cultúrlann up the Falls Road in Belfast... and I can't understand a flipping word anyone's saying!