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Forgive yourself for past mistakes

So you've made mistakes in the past you're not entirely proud of.

Maybe you cheated on a wonderful woman that you envisioned yourself marrying someday.

Perhaps you passed on what seemed life a once-in-a-lifetime job opportunity.

Or maybe you told a good friend something you knew you couldn't take back once the words came out of your mouth, effectively ending that friendship.

We've all had moments we wish we could redo, but the fact of the matter is that life doesn't afford us the opportunity to travel back in time.

As hard as it may be, you must accept the fact that it is all behind you now. The past cannot be changed. All you can do is move forward.

Beating yourself up over what you did won't do you any good. If anything, it only makes it more difficult to crawl out of his hole, mentally and emotionally.

The key is that you learned a valuable lesson and can assure yourself moving forward that you won't make the same mistake again. Because, if you do, then you're cheating yourself out of a happy life.

Mistakes can help turn us into better people so long as we leverage those lessons toward growth.

Hopefully, you learn the value of being faithful and can appreciate your next partner far more than you did your last.

Or, you learn to recognize a good job when you see one, never again letting a career-enhancing opportunity pass you by.

Or, you learn to think through what you're going to say to friends and loved ones before speaking.

You make mistakes -- they don't make you. We can always bounce back from our missteps, wiser and more appreciative of the things and people that better our lives in myriad ways.

And at the end of the day, they have the power to turn you into a better person than you were before.

Forgive yourself, leave the past behind, and look forward to a bright future.

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