Regret

Bronnie Ware is a nurse from Australia who spent many years working in palliative care – providing comfort care to many people approaching the end of their life.

Her patients articulated their thoughts on regret which fell into recurring themes.

She was inspired to share these themes in her book, The Top Five Regrets of the Dying: A Life Transformed by the Dearly Departing.

As we know, regret is a massive motivator for many of us. It is often irreversible which is why we fear it and take steps to manage it before it’s too late.

Below are the 5 most common regrets identified by Ms. Ware, along with my personal thoughts for each…

 

1 – “I wish I’d had the courage to live a life true to myself, not the life others expected of me.”

Often, because our upbringing and experiences, our path in life is deeply ingrained in us. It is often difficult for us to see any other way. We need to employ deep reflection and soul-searching to identify our true calling in order to live unique and authentic lives.

It would be such a shame if we just blindly followed the path and expectation laid out for us by our families, society,  and culture.

Prior to becoming a full-time traveler, I lived a common, upper middle-class lifestyle: comfortably accumulating nice things like houses, cars, clothes, etc. I even transformed one of the bedrooms in my house into a personal wardrobe room for all my clothes and shoes!

Once I dug deeper into my heart and soul, I realized my lifestyle and all the stuff I had didn’t fulfill me. I really just wanted authentic experiences with authentic people while traveling the world!

 

2 – “I wish I hadn’t worked so hard.”

This is a common struggle for those of us who are high achievers and place high value on career success. We constantly need to remind ourselves that there is more to life than work and career achievement.

Early in my career, I spent every Spring studying for and taking the grueling CFA exams. Like most people, I had to retake each level more than once.

It was so defeating (and embarrassing?) to tell my friends that I didn’t pass. However, a friend of mine grabbed my shoulders and reminded me that my identity was not tied to whether or not I passed these exams. From that day forward, I heeded her words in many different areas of my life.

I also think traveling while working remotely is helpful in striking the right balance between work and life. When I’m off living and working remotely from some great destination, I learned that I can enjoy my work part of the time but, because I’m also surrounded by so many amazing things, it’s easy to close the laptop at the end of the day and enjoy my surroundings. It’s a built-in, work-life balance regulator for those of us who are natural work-aholics!

 

3 – “I wish I’d had the courage to express my feelings.”

Self-expression and sharing your feelings are the things that connect us as humans. It’s so important that we feel empowered to share and express what’s in your heart – even if those listening don’t completely understand.

I can tell you from personal experience that many people in my life didn’t understand why I would sell all my stuff and quit my comfortable corporate career to travel.

However, I knew exactly what I wanted so I didn’t care if they got it or not. I expressed my authentic feelings and proceeded with what I had to do to live a more fulfilling life for me.

 

4 – “I wish I had stayed in touch with my friends.”

This regret points directly at the need for community and staying connected. It’s no surprise that communication and sharing experiences are the building blocks of life. The importance of this can never be overstated.

Human connection and surrounding yourself with kind, honest people are key drivers for why I started the Executive Remote Worker community.

We come together as corporate leaders with a passion for travel. Within our community, we build lifelong friendships while helping each other achieve our personal dreams of travel!

 

5 – “I wish I had let myself be happier”

If the pandemic taught us anything, it was that life is short!

It emphasized the need to take swift action toward making our lives happier – before it’s too late!

Travel makes me happy which is why I took action to add more joy and happiness to my life.

Nowadays, you don’t need to go to the extreme I did by selling my stuff and quitting my career. With the advancement  of remote working, it has never been easier to travel for extended periods of time!

Instead of taking a 1-week vacation to Italy, why not live there and work remotely for a month?

 

Conclusion

I highly recommend each of you give serious thought to your life and what you truly want from it.

Do this before it’s too late!

If fulfillment in your life requires travel, career, and community, then you need to join the Executive Remote Worker community! [Click HERE to join…]

Our community members are not giving up their careers or lifestyle at home to fulfill their dreams of travel.

[Also, for more information about Bonnie Ware, check out here website HERE.]