September 18, 2022
Daniel Pink expands on the four types of regret...
Foundation Regrets are not just difficult to avoid but also difficult to undo.
Boldness (Inaction) Regrets Pink calls these the failure to speak up/speak out, and step up/step out.
He clarifies: “The consequences of actions are specific, concrete, limited. The consequences of inactions are general, abstract, unbounded...and by laying eggs under our skins, incubate endless speculation.”
Moral Regrets: “If only I had done the right thing.” Pink states that these regrets are the smallest, numerically but ache the most and last the longest. They are also more complex than the other core regrets.
Pink says “stamped somewhere in our DNA and buried in our souls is the desire to be good!”
(My comment on this: Of course! We are made in God’s image and He is good.)
Connection Regrets form the largest category, relationships that have come undone or remain incomplete. Pink labels these “Rifts” (usually caused by an incident/problem) and “Drifts” (caused by neglect/ more common) He says that people tend to misunderstand the consequences of social interactions.
My comments on this: Pandemic mandates to limit social interactions have done much harm. Positive social lives have proven to help strengthen our immune systems and our emotional health, a valuable way to protect us from any virus.
Next week: a final few thoughts about regrets. Perhaps you have made a few mental or written notes about your life in each of the four types. Onward to hope and change!
