The Power of Regret: How Looking Backward Moves Us Forward
Daniel H. Pink
From the #1 New York Times-bestselling author of When and Drive, a new book about the transforming power of our most misunderstood yet potentially most valuable emotion: regret. Everybody has regrets, Daniel H. Pink explains in The Power of Regret. more
239 pages, Hardcover
First published Riverhead Books
3.85
Rating
11472
Ratings
1222
Reviews
Daniel H. Pink
132 books 28615 followers
Daniel H. Pink is the author of six provocative books — including his newest, When: The Scientific Secrets of Perfect Timing.WHEN has spent 4 months on the New York Times bestseller list and was named a Best Book of 2018 by Amazon and iBooks.
Dan's other books include the long-running New York Times bestseller A Whole New Mind and the #1 New York Times bestsellers Drive and To Sell is Human. His books have won multiple awards and have been translated into 39 languages.
He and his wife, who live in Washington, DC, have three children -- a college senior, a college sophomore, and a high school sophomore.
Community reviews
I gave it 3. 5 stars. This book has a good title, "The Power of Regret," which attracted me to read it. We thought regret was a negative emotion, but it is actually a good force that can help us make better decisions in the future. People often regret not taking risks, not spending time with loved ones, not living authentically, and not learning from mistakes. more
In a fitting moment, I considered whether I regretted reading this book. Mostly because, like some of his other books, I felt like I was reading a large amount of fluff for a few nuggets of thought on the actual subject(sub-title)=. But, he writes the fluff in an entertaining enough way that I don't end up minding so much. more
You could do your future self a real favor by reading this book. In understanding the most common things that people come to regret, you’ll know what to avoid in your own life. Daniel Pink launched two extensive research projects in support of this book—The American Regret Project and The World Regret Survey—that collected the regrets of more than 20,000 people from the US and around the world. Pink then categorized these regrets into four core areas—foundation, boldness, moral, and connection regrets—and in the process has shown us what a life well-lived looks like by comparison. Pink covers why regret is often misunderstood, how regret can be used to your advantage, what the most common regrets are, and how to deal with regret productively. more
بگذارید زحمتتون رو کم کنم و کل کتاب رو براتون خلاصه کنمپشیمانی دو نوعه: برای کارهایی که انجام دادیم و برای کارهایی که انجام ندادیم. ما از کارهایی که انجام ندادیم بیشتر پشیمون می‌شیم تا کارهایی که انجام دادیم(نصف ریلزهای انگیزشی اینستاگرام همینه که):پشیمانی‌های اصلی چهار دسته هستنیک. پشیمانی‌های پایه‌ای مثل تحصیلات و تصمیمات اصلی زندگیدو. پشیمانی‌های مربوط به نترس بودن مثل ریسک نکردنسه. پشیمانی‌های اخلاقی مثل انجام دادن کار اشتباهچهار. more
2. 5, RTCMostly fluff. The introduction is all about how full of shit people are if they say they don’t have regrets. I think there’s a misunderstanding there that Pink isn’t taking responsibility for. One interesting thing I learned is that the part of our brain that can time-travel, as he calls it, to a past decision, and imagine ourselves making a new choice with a different outcome is not something we develop until somewhere between the age of 5-8. more
Never regret saying “I have no regrets”, is the powerful message that best-selling author Daniel Pink stives to convey to his readers in his newest book, “The Power of Regret”. As the title prosaically suggests, the hitherto scorned, sympathised and negatively viewed emotion of regret can be harnessed towards positive and fulfilling outcomes, both personal and professional. Regret is a phenomenon “into” which one can look, both going backward into the past and forward into the future. Hence before getting yourself a tattoo that boldly exclaims “No regrets”, think twice, because as Daniel Pink helpfully suggests, the tattoo removal industry is a burgeoning and lucrative profession. Removing a tattoo costs at least ten times more than getting one. more
This is a whole lot of words to say that critical self-reflection is a good thing. 2/10. more
I've been a Dan Fan since Free Agent Nation, and his latest doesn't disappoint. In some ways, it may be (at least for me) his most relatable book. I'm in my fifties, and I've started assessing my life–– personal and professional decisions I've made; relationships that have endured decades (and those I've allowed to drift away); relationships with family, friends, business acquaintances, and neighbors; and interactions with strangers. Of course I have regrets, and of course I realize there are some things I can't undo. What makes this book so powerful is how Dan delineates the kinds of regrets, offering sage advice drawn from experts across many different disciplines. more
“Regret is not dangerous or abnormal, a dilation from the steady path to happiness. It is healthy and universal, an integral part of being human. Regret is also valuable. It clarifies. It instructs. more
Pink points to three benefits of regret:* Regret can improve decisions. Studies have shown that when people think about what they regretted not doing in the past, they made better decisions later on. * Regret can raise performance. Researchers have found that experiencing even vicarious regret “infused people’s subsequent deliberations with more strength, speed, and creativity. ” (p. more
In The Power of Regret, Daniel Pink explores how regrets are a fundamental part of life and how if we address them, rather than ignore or pretend they don’t exist, it can help us make better decisions and improve our sense of meaning. There are 4 core types of regrets: foundation regrets, boldness regrets, moral regrets, and connection regrets. Pink delves into each of these — I hadn’t ever classified regrets by types so and found this informative. Pink also shares that people are often more bothered by “couldas” than “shouldas” and how we can remedy regrets in some cases, and accept them in others by identifying “at least” silver linings. We can also use anticipated regrets to help us in decision making. more
From a website so that i can look back and remember: https://www. charterworks. com/power-of. Pink points to three benefits of regret:Regret can improve decisions. Studies have shown that when people think about what they regretted not doing in the past, they made better decisions later on. more
I usually like his books. This felt like a book in which the author ran out of ideas. Keeping a journal of regrets was recommended. That is a terrible idea. Too much time was spent articulating regrets rather than how to use the experience to move forward. more
Once I found out there is a new book by Daniel H. Pink, there was no other option - I put it at the beginning of my reading queue. But I failed to fall in love with it - the message the author is trying to pass here is far too contradictory to my stoic way of thinking. To make it even worse, I'm not 100% certain how to interpret the message. It's clearly contradictory to "no regrets", so (according to DHP) the regrets DO MATTER, but I don't feel he sets a proper boundary between diving into the past (that we can't change) and drawing conclusions for the future. more
Regrets, we all have a few. In the Power of Regret, Pink argues why we shouldn't live by the motto "No Regrets" because regrets actually make us better. He outlines what he considers the four core regrets: foundational regrets, moral regrets, boldness regrets, and connection regrets. He shares research on how to undo or reframe those regrets so we learn from them, and also the benefits (and drawbacks) of anticipating regret in order to make better decisions. I do wish this was either really condensed into an article, or that he'd really gone into more depth on the topic. more
A rather pointless book that went nowhere. The start made sense: human beings are "counterfactual" and are locked into what could be or could have been modes of thinking. This is where regret, as an emotion, enters the human condition. Then, without any scientific evidence or understanding of linguistics, Pink parallels emotions with Chomskyan grammar and claims that regret has deep structures. There are four emotional grammatical(. more
"When you feel the spear of regret, you have three possible responses. You can conclude that feeling is for ignoring - bury or minimize it. That leads to delusion. You can conclude that feeling is for feeling - and wallow in it. That leads to despair. more
Part of the ever expanding universe of pop-science books that picks a topic and tries to make it the most important thing in life. It’s fine. Not great. But some interesting thoughts here and there. Four core regrets:- Foundational (saving more, caring for health)- Boldness- Moral- ConnectionResolving regrets:- if the decision is one of the big four, take time to deliberate. more
When someone tells me not to regret anything, I used to ask myself why. I am human and I will definitely feel bad feelings from time to time. It is an alarm clock that tells me that I am doing something that harms me or those around me. this book is really good, it talks about the basic types of regrets we feel and how we can use them to improve our quality of life and our future. I'm glad to start the new year with this book. more
I’m not too into nonfictional books, but I thought this was a really interesting book from the name because I used to think that we should try to avoid regrets. However I think this book brought a lot of insight and aha moments with how I’ve seen myself act. I think the key part of the book that I took away is that we must be aware of our regret to grow but NOT identify with it. We have to see the actions that we so regret as human imperfections than an “incapacitating flaw. ” We should not see regret as a “judgement of our underlying character,” and I feel that learning this would lift the weight and burden some people I know carry (if they ever read this review, I think they will know who they are). more
Between a three and a four on this as regret is a pretty interesting subject (especially reading other people’s which there were plenty of due to the extensive research done) but some of this felt like stating the obvious. However categorising regrets into 4 different types and snippets like the parts on silver medalists and the origin of the Novel Peace prize plus how easy and enjoyable a read it was, swings it for me. Definitely worth a read. more
I am already using some of the techniques outlined in this deep dive into regret research. I am practicing "at least" language for some of my biggest regrets. I have found some needed perspective and peace in unexpected places in my life that have been painful to think about until now. That's a win. more
Існують наукові дослідження жалю та жалкування. Соціологічні опитування показують, про що найбільше шкодують (переважно американці, на жаль, але ж в різних культурах цінності різняться, та жалі, напевне, теж). - Найчастіше люди визнають, що жалкують про помилки у стосунках. Саме стосунки роблять нас щасливими та навіть здоровішими фізично у старості. Цікаво, що про сімʼю та стосунки більше шкодують жінки, ніж чоловіки. more
Surprisingly good, given that several years ago, I grokked "To Sell is Human" on a library new books shelf, saw Pink's claim that "we're all in sales now" and immediately shut the book and put it back on the shelf. The only reasons this isn't 5-starred is that it's relatively thin, and it is a bit on the "pop psychology" side. That said. Pink book notesOne basic distinction, and a biggie, is action regrets vs. inaction regrets. more
Funny thing about this book. I bought it just by reading the FIRST part of the title "The Power of Regret", and I somehow just didn't see the part that said "How Looking Backward Moves Us Forward". So I was assuming it was about how regret was a negative thought or feeling and how we need to just move on. When, in fact, it was the complete opposite. I really enjoyed this and it completely changed my mindset on how to learn from past mistakes (regrets) and make changes and improvements going forward. more
WARNING: this is an anti-abortion book in disguise. I'm pretty disgusted by the number of stories of 20 year old women saying "I regret my abortion" in this book. Totally agenda-driven by Daniel Pink to include so, so many examples of this. WHERE are all the stories of the millions of women who regret becoming mothers. A far more pressing concern. more
Regrets, we all have a few. In the Power of Regret, Pink argues why we shouldn't live by the motto "No Regrets" because regrets actually make us better. He outlines what he considers the four core regrets: foundational regrets, moral regrets, boldness regrets, and connection regrets. He shares research on how to undo or reframe those regrets so we learn from them, and also the benefits (and drawbacks) of anticipating regret in order to make better decisions. I do wish this was either really condensed into an article, or that he'd really gone into more depth on the topic. more
I've always considered it absurd that so many people believe in the mantra "No regrets". I guess because I have so very many and I think about them all the time. I just could never relate or even muster up enough confidence to pretend I have no regrets, so I found this book to be incredibly validating and valuable. It talks about why regret is important and gives very easy advice about what to do with one's regrets. I liked it a lot. more