If You Could Relive the Last 10 Years of Your Life, What Would You Do Differently?

If you could relive the last 10 years of your life, what would you do differently? Before I advise on answering this question, I would like to state ‘Regret is a useless emotion’. An interviewer really doesn’t want to see regret or weakness in your answer to this question. Instead the best way to approach this question is from a ‘Learning curve’ angle. Try and fit personal and non-personal responses into each answer and always mention that you REGRET nothing but learned something. Here are some examples of how you can structure that:

Example Answers

#1

“If I could relive the last ten years I don’t think I would do anything differently. I believe that every choice I have made has led me to this conclusion. I do believe in life that you need to make some mistakes in order to know the correct way in which to behave, both professionally and personally. For example I left school instead of staying for A Levels like everyone said I should. I haven’t regretted that, because I have worked my way to the position I might have gotten a few years sooner if I had gotten A Levels, however, the experience gained in working my way up is something that cannot be learned from a book, or gifted upon you from a grade on paper. Growing up I also wanted to continue living with my parents as long as possible, but I am pleased that they encouraged me to move out when I was 18, as I became a lot more mature and self-dependent than my peers much quicker.”

#2

“I think looking back over the last ten years I can honestly say that everything I did, I would still do. I was always the first to ask questions and learn. I always performed my jobs to the best of my ability. Where it was possible to improve on myself I did so. I could say “I wish I had put myself forward for promotion” but I truly believe that regret is a useless emotion, and that if I had been ready for promotion at that point in my life I would have been given it. I prefer to look forwards in life, not backwards, so I would much rather be asked where I see myself in the next ten years.”

#3

“I lost a pet recently to diabetes that we didn’t know he had. By the time it was diagnosed it was quite progressed and hard to manage. I could say if I could relive my life I would go back and train to be a vet, and then I might have spotted the symptoms sooner. But then I might lose a relative to cancer, and wish I could go back and train to be a doctor. There are so many things that can and will go wrong and you can’t regret them, you just have to learn from them. After my dog passed I bought a book all about dog illness and how to spot signs of common illnesses. I’m nowhere near being a vet, but can be a little more confident that if I ever own another I might be better equipped to spot a problem.”

Good luck.

Photo by: HansKristian