The Pain of Regret

I recently heard this quote from Jim Rohn,

We must suffer from one of two pains: the pain of discipline or the pain of regret. The difference is discipline weighs ounces while regret weighs tons.

This quote has been sitting with me, ruminating, marinading, and stirring deeply.

I can’t seem to stop thinking about how much more the pain of regret hurts.

It is a deep and all-encompassing pain, so much that we naturally find ways to mentally circumvent its presence.

WE USE SELF-TALK

We say things like, “I didn’t really want to win anyway” or “I didn’t try my hardest” or “I wasn’t even really that interested in being with her anyways…”

Before business ventures, we argue, “it may not happen anyways” or “I may not make money” or “this idea will probably die in a year, so it is okay if I don’t succeed…”

When failing to lose weight, we reason, “my diet was not sustainable anyways” or “I wasn’t ready for the change, I’ll start again in a few weeks” or “It’s not my fault, too many things came up unexpectedly…” 

Read More: No Zero Days

Very rarely do we commit 100%. Very rarely do we put ourselves out there 100%. Why?

Because the Pain of Regret is too much to deal with.

It stirs deeply within us. 

When you decided to do something, then you committed to it, then you failed at it because of a lack of discipline and effort.

IT F’ING HURTS.

It hurts mostly because you didn’t fully exert yourself. 

If it’s worth doing, it’s worth overdoing. – Navy Seal Mantra

If you want to avoid this pain, all you have to do is what has to be done. In his speech to a bunch of insurance salesmen, Albert Gray ever-so-bluntly and ever-so-keenly uncovered the secret to success:

The common denominator of success — the secret of success of every man who has ever been successful — lies in the fact that he formed the habit of doing things that failures don’t like to do.

Successful people form the habit of doing the things that failures don’t like to do. Not just failures, these are things that no one likes to do.

It means waking up early. It means staying later. It means making more calls. It means getting rejected more times. It means casting away the norms of your various agencies for habits that are different. Actions that will move you away from everyone else and into the top 5%.

Read More: Become a Five Percenter

Sure, people will you whisper behind your back. They will say that you are “trying too hard.” They will openly and secretly dismiss your work ethic and drive to succeed.

Keep pushing forward, because what they don’t realize is that the Pain of Regret is much worse and when they feel its sting, it will be too late.

It will sit with them. It will ruminate, it will marinade, and it will stir deeply.

The things that failures don’t like to do are the very things that you and I and other human beings, including successful men, naturally don’t like to do. In other words, we’ve got to realize right from the start that success is something which is achieved by the minority of men, and is therefore unnatural and not to be achieved by following our natural likes and dislikes nor by being guided by our natural preferences and prejudices. – Albert Gray

Onward, 

Chief

If you are truly interested in beating the pain of regret, you must understand the principle of daily habits and consistent effort towards a driving vision. Check out this post on the accumulation of daily habits.