“If a problem is fixable, if a situation is such that you can do something about it, then there is no need to worry. If it's not fixable, then there is no help in worrying. There is no benefit in worrying whatsoever”. The Dalai Lama uses this quote to create a perfect illustration of how people worry too much about what they can't change. Countless people consistently ask what-if questions, gather anxiety, and deal with stress every day. What is more, is that this is all due to one underlying factor: worrying. People spend so much of their day worrying, asking themselves questions and having thoughts such as, ‘What will this person expect if they find out this happened before?’, or ‘I can’t believe I made such a huge mistake’. However, thoughts such as these are doing nothing but bringing along more stress. And the truth is, focusing on past mistakes causes us to worry and dwell far too often. Thanks to this, all different kinds of people then begin to care what people think due to fear of judgment. Ultimately, the past is the past, and the present is now. No one should fret or lose sleep over past mistakes that no one has the power to change.
We spend so much time concerned about our past and our mistakes, but what for? The past is never meant to be a burden on ourselves, but rather something we can learn from. Focusing on things that happened yesterday, or the day before, or whenever it is us placing an unnecessary weight on our shoulders. The reality is that everyone has a past. There is no reason for one sole person to live in fear of judgment. There is no reason for one person to be ashamed of themselves. Wasting time worrying will never change former times and previous events. We can't spend time worrying about the past when there is time to spend focusing on the present and the future. The only way you can continue being harmed by something that already happened is if you let it. People who spend too much time worrying about the past prevents them from having lasting happiness because they’re building on regrets. We can’t worry about mistakes, bad choices, being hurt, and hurting others, because imperfections like these are part of being human. The past is gone forever, and rehashing these memories is pointless. This isn’t something that just gets to us either. It can also prevent us from building relationships with other people. This is the source of so many negative emotions. The only way to fix this is by being more present, mindful, and taking the time to listen.
Save your time!
We can take care of your essay
- Proper editing and formatting
- Free revision, title page, and bibliography
- Flexible prices and money-back guarantee
Worrying about the past causes us to worry about every mistake we’ve made. When we make strings of mistakes, we often overreact and feel like our life is falling apart. However, mistakes are something we can choose to learn from rather than overreact about and worry too much about. While the mistakes we make will always have consequences and repercussions, but this should always be seen as an opportunity to learn from this and show how your mistake doesn't define you and to prove your true character. Mistakes are always an opportunity to improve yourself, because once you've hit rock bottom, you can only go up from there. We shouldn't worry about this because everybody makes mistakes and nobody is perfect. Even though nobody likes making mistakes, they are inevitable. They just can't be avoided. Instead of worrying about them, we should be grateful for all that mistakes teach us. They give us lessons such as telling us things we didn't know about ourselves or others, to warn us, help us value forgiveness, make us humble, show us our true feelings, and much more. Mistakes are just part of the process of growth and development. When mistakes are handled the proper way, without too much worry, we enjoy all aspects of life more, and we are more accepting of our own mistakes as well as others' mistakes.
All in all, when we worry too much about our mistakes, we begin to worry too much about what people think of us. It can be very difficult to stop worrying about what others think, but it is possible. Almost everyone has worried too much and overestimated what other people think of our embarrassing moments, our mistakes, and our failings. When we worry too much about what people think, we become afraid to say how we feel, we avoid certain circumstances, and do things we don't want to in fear of judgment. This causes a huge decline in how happy and confident we are in ourselves. Then, that becomes all we can focus on and it inhibits too much of our daily thoughts. When we do this, it causes a lot of anxiety and insecurities. But the reality is, we don't need anybody else's approval to be ourselves, and what other people think of us is none of our business. To stop worrying so much about what people think, it's important to stop worrying and focus on what's happening at the moment – in the present. We are living in the present, not the past. Don't focus on what might happen with other people, because other people are out of your control. You are only in control of yourself and need to be able to keep your positive mindset without worrying about how others might affect you. And with this, you have to accept yourself. Then, once you've achieved this, you can live carefreely and stop worrying too much about what people think of you.
To conclude, the past is the past, and we can't choose to live in it and worry over it. We can't worry about the past, the mistakes we once made, and what people will think of us because of it. To live in the present allows us to stop worrying and focus on what's happening now. Focus on the moment and accept yourself and your past mistakes. We can't waste time worrying about the what-ifs to change parts of the past, but rather spend time looking at the person you are now, and life will be much more joyful. To quote the influential John Newton: “We can easily manage if we will only take, each day, the burden appointed to it. But the load will be too heavy for us if we carry yesterday's burden over again today, and then add the burden of the morrow before we are required to bear it”.
Stuck on your essay?
