6 Mindsets I Adopted After a Stressful Last Year That Made This Year More Enjoyable

Live With No Regrets

When I say, “Live with no regrets,” I’m not saying that you should go out and do something out-of-the-box since you might regret it later. I’m talking about a reflection on the past. 

When I say, “Live with no regrets,” I mean that, if you have something that you have done in the past that you regret, you need to accept it and move on. I know this sounds easier said than done, but moving forward will make you a lot happier in the long run. 

You need to consider what made you regret this event/decision, what you could have done differently in this situation, and finally, what actions you can take now that the situation has happened. The event is in the past, so all we can do now is accept it happened, learn from it, and figure out how to make sure it doesn’t happen again. 

No Day is a Bad Day

I know this might sound cheesy, but since I started thinking this way, I’ve been happier than ever. 

Not having a bad day doesn’t mean that bad things can’t happen, it means that you don’t let 1 bad thing ruin your whole day. Not having a bad day also doesn’t mean that every day is going to be great, you can still have days where you feel kind of neutral. 

In my case, I had a semester where I was really struggling with a class. The material was hard, I wasn’t getting the grades on my assignments that I wanted, and I ended up almost failing the course. I remember calling my mom several times that semester and just bawling my eyes out over how stressful it made me. After that semester though, I realized that I was specifically stressed because of what happened in that class and that the class only affected an hour or 2 of my day. The second I started to purposely look for good things in my day, even after something bad happened, I began to have a lot more good days.  

Sometimes Done is the Best Result

This is more for perfectionists, as I used to be, but a project is better turned in on time than perfect. Try finishing the project to a “good” level but still complete, and then if you still have time, go back and fix it to look how you want it to. Companies, schools, and clubs would rather have an only ok, but finished, project than a perfect project they never got or got too late. 

Everything Happens for a Reason

I would say that this one is probably the hardest mindset to practice. Especially when the thing that happens isn’t good. 

Say you don’t get into your dream school, but you still end up in a decent school. You go on to make amazing friends and find a degree you would love to pursue. If you went to your dream school, would you still have made those friends? Would you still consider that degree? What if your dream school was a medical school, but the degree you ended up deciding on at your new school is business? 

Several similar occurrences will happen throughout your life, sometimes you just need to consider what you have now and how that might be different if another possibility occurred. 

Don’t Act Like a Victim of Your Own Actions

Basically, take responsibility for your actions. If you only spend 10 minutes studying before an exam and you flunk it, don’t blame your professor. Did you use all your resources? Could you have studied some practice problems? 

This also applies to mistakes at work. Own up to them, don’t blame others, and figure out how you will prevent/avoid making the same mistake in the future. Employers prefer employees who are willing to take this uncomfortable step and who are willing to try and improve themselves. 

Obviously, there are going to be times when you try everything you can and there is something/someone else to blame, but you need to know how to properly identify those instances. 

Don’t be a Jerk

This might sound like kind of a dumb point. We all know to be nice and, “only do to others what you want done to yourself.” 

My family has a bit of an expansion onto this mentality though. Sometimes you have an opinion on a matter, which is okay, but that opinion might be hurtful to others. In cases like this, you can have your opinion, but you don’t need to voice it just to hurt another. 

An example of this is people who disagree with a certain person’s sexuality. They are entitled to an opinion on the subject, but they are not entitled to voice that to said person, it is not anyone but that person and their family’s concern. 

This is just an example, and it can apply to several other matters. Basically, don’t be rude just to be rude.