How to Move On From Past Mistakes

No one gets everything right all the time. We all make mistakes; it’s just part of being human.

What matters isn’t what happens to us but how we respond to it. If a person can hold their hands up and admit their mistakes, then they’ve got character.

If you’ve made a mistake and can admit to it, then you’ve taken a big first step. The important thing is to move on from it. If you don’t, then you may end up in a worse position; guilt and other factors can make us do things that harm our future. The good news is that it’s always possible to move on from past mistakes.

In this blog, we’ll take a look at some tried and tested methods for doing just that.

Remember That You Control Your Future

You can’t control the past. You can only accept it. But what you can control is your future. The past has been and gone, but the story isn’t over — the only thing you can do is to write a story that you’re proud of. This takes work, of course, but it’s something that you should always keep in mind. Your past doesn’t define you; where you’re going defines you.

Forgive Yourself

You have to forgive yourself for what you’ve done in the past. Normally, there were additional circumstances that led you to act in the way that you did. You may have been stressed, depressed, or anything else. That doesn’t excuse the behavior, but it can explain it. It’s imperative you truly forgive yourself. If you don’t, then you may find that you’re constantly riddled with guilt or shame. And those aren’t things that will help you on any level. Take some time and get yourself to a place where you can forgive your previous mistakes. It’ll be worth it.

Don’t Let Your Past Follow You

You will hopefully have forgiven yourself or be on the path towards doing so. What’s important now is that you don’t let your past follow you around and potentially impact your future. There are plenty of ways to do this, though it depends on what you did; if you spent time in prison, then you could get your record expunged. This is remarkably effective; if you’ve ever wondered can a non-violent felon own a gun and figured the answer was no, then think again. It is possible. There are other ways to expunge your past, too. In doing so, it’ll be more likely that you can get a job, a mortgage, and other things that constitute a regular life.

Make Amends

Finally, look at making amends if necessary. As we said earlier, you can’t control what’s happened in the past. But you can try to make up for it. If there were people that you hurt, then you might find that you — and they — can get a lot of closure just by offering a heartfelt apology. It may not be an easy conversation to have, but it will be worth it.