Did some shit, right?

Okay, that's normal. But how do you get past it?

First, forgive yourself. You'll be stuck with yourself for a long time.

Apologize for what you did and for what it caused, and never curse yourself. You wouldn't let someone else insult you like that, right? Don't do it to yourself.

Forgiving yourself doesn't remove your responsibility, and there's no magic here. You have to understand the mistake, learn from it and turn it into something useful. That means making a plan and doing the right thing next time.

Forget about regret. Instead of "if only I had…", say "now I know what to do when this happens again". You can't change anything in the past, ever.

Focus on making today better, and your future gets better with it. Everything you do today prepares you for tomorrow.

Nothing good lasts forever, and nothing bad does either. If it's bad, it has to change. Nothing is permanent.

Getting stuck in a rut, or feeling you can't change your situation, is dangerous. If you keep doing what you've always done, you'll keep getting what you've always had. Keep changing: fix what isn't working, and do something completely different from what you usually do or who you usually are.

Learn something new, do what you've never done, and think of and do something nobody would expect from you.

Does thinking about it scare you? Great. If you're not afraid, you're not trying something worthwhile or taking enough risks.

Everyone has a plan until they get punched in the mouth. What counts is what you do after that.

Originally published on Medium