Leading a Life Of No Regrets

With the proliferation of choices in terms of products, brands, 'soul mates', career opportunities and even following spiritual paths in this digital era, the paradox of choice often results in a kind of regret - regretting a choice that is positive.

The availability of equally good alternatives to choose from seems to wane off the joy of enjoying a choice that is experientially much superior to the lack of choice to millions who may not have the opportunity to choose at all.

For instance, one chooses a good brand of sports utility vehicle but regrets that the final choice has excluded several equally good options. Being contended appears to face an additional barrier due to the affordability to deliberate on many alternatives before the final choice is made.


Well-known sociologist Leon Festinger (1957) advocated the concept of cognitive dissonance that deals with the evaluation of equally good alternative choices and the result of making a choice - the dissonance created due to the imagined loss of other alternative choices.

Strengthen the intent to focus on the positives of the final choice and experience happiness over the choice. One limitation of the mind generally leads to a chain of limitations afflicting legitimate pleasures of life; the sooner we realise it, the smaller will be our list of regrets.