Let That Guilt Go

We have all done something we are not proud of. It’s apart of human nature. Words or actions that we use can hold huge value and when we use them improperly they can have even bigger consequences. Sometimes those consequences include hurting others and damaging our credibility. Maybe you told a white lie and ended up getting caught. You could of snapped on a friend and accidentally hit a weak spot. Cheated on a major project? Cheated on your partner? Whatever you’ve done, you know it was shitty, you know it was wrong, and now you feel bad. So now what? Do you just live life with that baggage on your shoulder and punish yourself for the rest of your life? That’s an option, but a better option is to let that guilt go by following these next few steps.

Take All Responsibility
The first step to dealing with guilt is to take all responsibility. This means coming to terms that what you did was truly wrong. Also, don’t try to make excuses for the behavior. Normally when we f*ck up, we try to blame all factors in our life for why we did it. Even if some factors may have contributed to doing wrong, the only one to blame is yourself and you need to accept that.

Apologize to those Affected
Whatever you did, it probably affected someone else negatively. With that being said, it is very important to fess up to whoever was wronged and apologize. It’s not going to undo what you did, but it shows the person you realize what you did wasn’t cool and you want to make it right. Sometimes, you can perform another action to take away the damage from what you did. For example, maybe you stole something, return what you stole to the owner. If you are in a situation like this, absolutely do whatever you have to to make it right. However, there are some situations where the damage is done and you can’t make it right. These are the hardest to deal with. Nevertheless, you should sincerely apologize to show them you want to take responsibility for your actions.
It is important to note that in some situations, whoever you hurt will not be willing to forgive you. Sometimes, that's understandable if the damage was tough. Also, some people need time to process everything in order to forgive you. Regardless, do not let this keep you from moving on. If you did everything you can to try and make it right, them holding negative energy towards you is their problem.

Accept the Consequences
Now let's be real here, karma is real. So if you did something wrong, you better believe that it's going to come back to you. Just being sorry isn’t going to eliminate that in most cases. So be responsible and accept whatever consequences you brought upon yourself. Yes, it will suck but that’s what happens when you f*ck up. Use dealing with your consequences as a motivating force and reminder not to do what you did again.

Move On
Once you have completed all of the previous steps, you must allow yourself to move on. You have done everything to try and make the situation right. So now instead of waiting for someone else to forgive you, you need to forgive yourself. This is a step a lot of people skip, which results in them carrying guilt for far too long. You can’t change the past so the best thing you can do now is try to improve your actions to make for a better present and future.

Remember, we all have done things we are not proud of, It’s in our nature we are only human. However, when you do do something that probably wasn’t the right thing to do it is important to follow these steps and use it as a lesson to make better decisions in the future.