Don't Let the Past Dictate your future in 2019
Life is unpredictable and all of us are faced with challenges, stresses, choices and problems. Often, we question our past and wonder what would have happened if things had turned out differently.
We’ve all heard that we can’t dwell on the past and that we must get over whatever is holding us back and to move on with our lives. Why should you move on from your past? Well, frankly, because it can affect nearly every other aspect of your life if you don’t just let it go (now I know you are humming the theme song from Frozen)!
Few people devote time to thinking about how focusing on the past can be detrimental to their present and future. So, let’s consider the arguments for letting go of your past….
What’s so bad about focusing on the past?
Focusing heavily on the past, whether in a negative or a positive way, is detrimental to you and your ability to move forward with your life. Let’s consider the negative first: holding grudges. Holding on to a moment or event in the past due to a negative experience stunts your emotional, physical and mental growth.
The more you focus on that, the less attention you have to give to what’s happening in your present. On the positive side of things, if you’re fixated on one particular positive event that happened in the past, you’ll miss all the positive and great things happening now and in your future. You also run the risk of comparing everything that happens from then on to that one “perfect” event.
This fixation can lead to a few negative outcomes on your future. The more you focus on the past, the less you witness your present. You will tend to miss or become distracted about special occasions or important events.
How can focusing on the past dictate your future?
As we stated earlier, focusing on something in your past can manipulate how you view present moments. It can make you distracted during events you’d otherwise be fully immersed in or cause you to compare them to another moment on from which you can’t move.
These fixations can cause you to turn down new opportunities either because you’re afraid they won’t live up to the past experience or you don’t want to be taken away from it. Focusing on the past can negatively affect every decision you make, dictating your future.
How do you stop focusing on the past?
The first step in putting an end to this behavior is to resolve to let it go. We know, it’s easier said than done, but you have to first consciously decide to do it before you can actually successfully let the past go. Letting go of the issues, the stressed or the moments you’re holding onto will allow you to finally move forward with your life and grow as a person.
Fixated on a positive past event
If you’re fixated on a meaningful or positive past event, letting go doesn’t mean the same thing as it does for those holding onto a grudge. Letting go in this sense is to stop comparing other events to this one. It doesn’t mean that you have to forget the moment you’ve held so dear, but it does mean that you continue to experience and enjoy each new moment, rather than comparing it to and being distracted by said moment.
Fixated on a negative past event
If you’re holding a grudge or fixated on a past event, letting go is typically forgiving the person and moving on from the event. This can be very difficult, but the only person that can put an end to your holding onto the past is you. You have to be the one to forgive, apologize, let go, and move on.
We’ve all heard that we can’t dwell on the past and that we must get over whatever is holding us back and to move on with our lives. Why should you move on from your past? Well, frankly, because it can affect nearly every other aspect of your life if you don’t just let it go (now I know you are humming the theme song from Frozen)!
Few people devote time to thinking about how focusing on the past can be detrimental to their present and future. So, let’s consider the arguments for letting go of your past….
What’s so bad about focusing on the past?
Focusing heavily on the past, whether in a negative or a positive way, is detrimental to you and your ability to move forward with your life. Let’s consider the negative first: holding grudges. Holding on to a moment or event in the past due to a negative experience stunts your emotional, physical and mental growth.
The more you focus on that, the less attention you have to give to what’s happening in your present. On the positive side of things, if you’re fixated on one particular positive event that happened in the past, you’ll miss all the positive and great things happening now and in your future. You also run the risk of comparing everything that happens from then on to that one “perfect” event.
This fixation can lead to a few negative outcomes on your future. The more you focus on the past, the less you witness your present. You will tend to miss or become distracted about special occasions or important events.
How can focusing on the past dictate your future?
As we stated earlier, focusing on something in your past can manipulate how you view present moments. It can make you distracted during events you’d otherwise be fully immersed in or cause you to compare them to another moment on from which you can’t move.
These fixations can cause you to turn down new opportunities either because you’re afraid they won’t live up to the past experience or you don’t want to be taken away from it. Focusing on the past can negatively affect every decision you make, dictating your future.
How do you stop focusing on the past?
The first step in putting an end to this behavior is to resolve to let it go. We know, it’s easier said than done, but you have to first consciously decide to do it before you can actually successfully let the past go. Letting go of the issues, the stressed or the moments you’re holding onto will allow you to finally move forward with your life and grow as a person.
Fixated on a positive past event
If you’re fixated on a meaningful or positive past event, letting go doesn’t mean the same thing as it does for those holding onto a grudge. Letting go in this sense is to stop comparing other events to this one. It doesn’t mean that you have to forget the moment you’ve held so dear, but it does mean that you continue to experience and enjoy each new moment, rather than comparing it to and being distracted by said moment.
Fixated on a negative past event
If you’re holding a grudge or fixated on a past event, letting go is typically forgiving the person and moving on from the event. This can be very difficult, but the only person that can put an end to your holding onto the past is you. You have to be the one to forgive, apologize, let go, and move on.