Let Go of the Past: Always Forward never Backwards
Quotes
“What lies behind us and what lies before us are tiny matters compared to what lies within us.” – Ralph Waldo Emerson
“The only real battle in life is between hanging on and letting go.” – Shannon L. Alder
“The beautiful journey of today can only begin when we learn to let go of yesterday.” – Steve Maraboli
“The only limit to our realization of tomorrow will be our doubts of today.” – Franklin D. Roosevelt
“The future starts today, not tomorrow.” – Pope John Paul II
“Keep your face always toward the sunshine – and shadows will fall behind you.” – Walt Whitman
“The first step towards getting somewhere is to decide that you are not going to stay where you are.” – J.P. Morgan
“The greatest glory in living lies not in never falling, but in rising every time we fall.” – Nelson Mandela
“One of the happiest moments in life is when you find the courage to let go of what you can’t change.” – Anonymous
“New beginnings are often disguised as painful endings.” – Lao Tzu
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Abstract
You will have good and bad days in life. It’s called the seasons of life. You will touch lows that you never thought possible the good news is that this shall pass.
Light always breaks out at the end of the dark tunnel. You will struggle and have many problems but that should not hold you down. Unfortunately, as human beings we tend to concentrate and reminisce on our bad outcomes rather than plan and act for a better future.
What is DONE IS DONE. You can’t undo it you only have today, the present, to act, skill up and work for better outcomes in the future. We can only learn from past mistakes and ensure we don’t repeat them in the future.
Exams
We have all done academic exams in life. The worst thing you can do after an exam is to carry out an immediate post review of your performance with your peers. This can destroy your confidence especially if you have other exams coming up.
Forget about the exam and concentrate on the upcoming exams. It’s spilt milk or water at this stage. You can’t change what you have done. You can only hope to make the future better.
Once we learn this fact we free our minds to focus and concentrate on better outcomes in the future.
Children
Children are unencumbered by past guilt or shame. They do not focus on failures and this is why they learn fast and are able to pick up many skills early in life.
Unfortunately, when they grow up, society starts instilling guilt and shame for any mistakes or failures they make. They fear experimenting and innovating, schools and parents punish mistakes and they stop venturing out on their own.
When we learn to adopt a child’s mindset and forget about dwelling on our past mistakes and focus on getting better we can then free ourselves to grow and flourish.
Application in real life
Toyota
Toyota is the leading car manufacturing company in the world because they are in a continuous state of improvement. They are constantly experimenting and learning from failures. Their mantra is constant never-ending improvement.
They understand mistakes are part of life but their motto is to constantly learn and improve. They avoid the same mistakes in the future. They truly understand, only by willing to risk failure accompanied by constant experimentation, is the only way they will succeed as a company.
Other Successful Companies
Companies that adapt fast to the environment and stay nimble will always succeed. Brand names like Apple, Microsoft, Sony, Google, Amazon, Samsung, NVIDIA, Facebook, Tesla etc adopted the Toyota philosophy of Constant and Never-Ending Improvement (CANI)
They are based on fast iteration and extreme focus on customer needs. They evolve as fast as customer desires change. They don’t focus on past success or losses. Amazon has a ‘Day One’ Philosophy that underpins their success. They are focused on the now and their immediate environment.
Summary
The only factor that holds promise is the present. Focus and give your attention to now. Do your best and elevate your skills now. The future only holds promise and the past is already gone. You can only control what you have now.
You can only learn from past mistakes but don’t dwell and spend time on these mistakes. Have the courage to harness, focus and concentrate on the resources you have at your disposal to propel you to a better place tomorrow.
Resources
Read
Power of Now – Eckhart Tolle
Rejection Proof: How to Beat Fear and Became Invincible Through 100 Days of Rejection – Jia Jiang
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