123: How to Avoid the 3 Most Common Regrets in Life

Do you have any regrets in life? Have you ever asked yourself this, or the people you love? This is a great topic that a lot of people may or may not have even thought about. But it's something that probably most people will have to deal with at some point in their life. 

Today, Neil and I share candidly our regrets in life, and what we’ve learned from them. Nonetheless, God has just poured out all these blessings on us because we've been willing to just let him take over. He has given us this life that’s a million times more beautiful than what we could have ever planned or hoped for.

We also share the top 3 most common things people regret before they die as well as 3 resolutions you can make today that will help you avoid some of the deepest regrets in life. We challenge you to make those three resolutions, and if we can just make that conscious choice to live life the way God exactly wants us to live, then we will be able to find more joy in life.

In this episode, you will hear:

• Neil’s regret is missing out on the opportunities that he could have had and mine was wasting Miss Utah and not serving a mission because I didn’t live up to my potential.
• When my ex-husband and I were dating and getting close to marriage, I felt a strong prompting not to marry him. 
• Opposite of that voice of warning, I've also had so many times where the Spirit has told me exactly how God wants me to live my life.
• We don’t get to redo childhood. I regretted not connecting well with my sister as we were growing up. I thought I wasted years of what could have been great childhood memories. (Although I have a super great relationship with her now!)
• Neil's two full brothers, Steve and Dave, have passed away. Neil talks about the conversation he had with his brother Steve, six months before he died when he asked Neil to never do drugs, alcohol, and smoke.
• The 3 most common things people regret before they die: not spending time with people they love (or maybe they could have spent it differently), not living up to their potential, and spending so much of their life being miserable.
• "The joy we feel has little to do with the circumstances of our lives and everything to do with the focus of our lives." - Russell M. Nelson 
• God put us on this earth to have joy and to be happy. And we all have our peaks and valleys, but when we put our focus on the right things, those bring joy in our lives.
• The 3 resolutions to help avoid some of the deepest regrets of life: resolve to spend more time with those you love, strive more earnestly to become the person God wants you to be, and resolve to find happiness regardless of your circumstances.

Supporting Resources:

“Of Regrets and Resolutions” Talk by Dieter F. Uchtdorf https://abn.churchofjesuschrist.org/study/general-conference/2012/10/of-regrets-and-resolutions?lang=eng

“Joy and Spiritual Survival” Talk by Russell M. Nelson https://www.churchofjesuschrist.org/study/general-conference/2016/10/joy-and-spiritual-survival?lang=eng

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Episode Credits

Produced by Emerald City Productions

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