Learn from the past and enjoy a brighter future

Everyone has past experiences that are good and bad. It is the past that sometimes drag us down and make us feel that we may never achieve our dreams and be happy. However, there are things you and I can do that will help us understand the past, learn from it and then put it away. The first step in this process is to reflect on it. To find insight and value from the past, we must first reflect on it. This may seem unnecessary but it must be done so that we understand the past.

Then, it is important to study it. The goal of this step is to understand what was happening at the time and what you can learn from it. This step will help you create a mental list of ideas and actions that will help you make better, more informed and wiser decisions in the future. This step is most important because it will give you an insight on the past and why you did what you did. The next step is to replay the past. Go back to the situation or situations like you are reliving the situation; however, with the knowledge and perspective you now have after the many days, months or years. This replay is necessary because it will give you a new perspective on how you may do something better the next time a situation or situations occur.

Then, generalize the situation or situations. Keep in mind; what happened to you in the past may never revisit you again in the future.  However, this doesn’t take away from the value of looking aback. By going back to the past, you may find common generalities of situations that you can use to create ideas and plans for the future. This step will provide a more focused feeling on what happened and perhaps why it happened. Once you do this, release yourself from it. Remember, what has happened in the past is over, no matter how bad or embarrassing it might have been. Once you experience pain going through this step, let it go and keep learning and growing.

The next step is to reframe the past. When you reframe something it is a different way of looking at a problem or relationship by changing its meaning. In other words, by reframing your past, you look at situations from a different perspective. An example might be looking at a bad relationship by examining it from a different perspective such as what was going on with each person during the relationship. What other factors were involved?

Examine the past and then use what happened in the past so that you can move closer to a more positive future. Use what you have learned in the above steps; put those lessons in motion now and in the future. Keep in mind; there are several great benefits of learning from the past such as lowering emotional stress, developing a more spiritual mindset and getting the most out of life. Most importantly, don't be too critical of yourself;  everyone goes through good and bad periods but you can do better, especially if you draw on a higher power, which is God. He will show you the way...

 Copyright Toni Star 2018