What is it that you want to try?

A book you want to write? A hobby you want to try? A business you want to start? A place you have always wanted to live? Someone you want to ask out? Would you like to be more social?

But you haven’t tried yet.

Because you are scared.

You could fail. Publicly.

People might laugh at you.

You might lose some money.

You might hate the thing you tried.

They might say no.

 

True.

 

That is why taking a risk is scary.

All of those bad things could happen.

The only thing worse is regret.

Regretting that you didn’t try.

Regret is terrifying.

I know this from personal experience. I am old enough to have tried a lot of things. Some worked out. Some didn’t. There have also been things that I didn’t try because I was scared.

I regret the things I didn’t try more than my failures.

 

But it isn’t just my opinion. Many articles (a popular example) and podcasts discuss the regrets of those who are dying. Many of those regrets boil down to fear keeping them from doing what they wanted to do, or being who they wanted to be.

That’s hard.

Really hard.

I don’t want to say the same thing on my deathbed. Do you?

I won’t say the same thing on my deathbed. Will you?

Fear has had too much influence on my life in the past.

No more. I have been changing that (Feel the Fear post).

I have been trying and will continue to try, even if it is scary, because lying on my deathbed with regret is terrifying.

Will you try with me?

 

(NOTE: I got the language of this maxim from Joey Bowen of Few Will Hunt from his new book “Letters to Self – The Few”. I have heard it in other forms, for example, “Fear is Temporary, but Regret is Forever.” I prefer Joey’s version. Also, I can no longer find a link to the book on their website, but I will include it in my What I Read in May post in a few days.)

 

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