Share a lesson you wish you had learned earlier in life.
Honestly, I wish I had learned earlier in life to practice more restraint. Restraint in the way I experienced my own emotions and those of others. I didn’t know that being so opinionated and stubborn in the expression of my own feelings was causing offense to others. Had I known, I would like to believe I would have handled myself and situations a little differently.
Another lesson I didn’t learn until later was the importance of how to receive apologies. I used to say “that’s ok” when someone would apologize no matter the level of offense, but I always felt conflicted- almost as if I was co-signing the behavior. It wasn’t until I was teaching my own son how to receive apologies that it really dawned on me: perhaps we could thank someone for apologizing. Yeah, just thank them. I’ll never forget the day my son first thanked ME for apologizing. Trust me, it has a major effect. I was stunned, but it created an opportunity for me to pause and reflect. Ultimately, this improved BOTH of our mental well being.
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