The Power of Regret: How Looking Backward Moves Us Forward

Look back on your life. Do you have regrets? Of course you do. Things you wish you had done, or had not done, or done differently. Regret is so painful we often want to avoid it, but it’s an important part of the human experience and can even be extremely beneficial. Regrets show us what we value, and offer us a path forward to improve. Embracing regret can lead us to our best life.

This excellent book was such an entertaining, as well as informative, exploration of the idea of regret. Filled with solid science neatly parsed for the general reader, and peppered with anecdotes and sampled regrets from participants in Pink’s World Regret Survey, it’s a fast read with lessons for a lifetime. Compelling support for the value of regret as well as suggestions for how to use this uncomfortable feeling give you hope, and the experiences shared are humanizing. Rather than ignoring regret, or wallowing in “what might have been”, you can decide to act, and act differently, if you let your regrets guide you. Regret is a healthy and adaptive part of being human. Read this book to understand it better –you won’t regret it.