Your Next Move Matters More

Two weeks back in Sydney, I was spending time with my younger son on his semester break. He’s an avid sportsman who takes his cricket very seriously. One evening, he came back from a game, replaying in his head the shots he hadn’t played well. As we spoke, it struck me how easily our “not-so-good” moments hijack our story.

He kept replaying those shots, imagining the correct strokes he could have played in a game that was already over.

Isn’t that what we do at work, too? A presentation falls flat, and we spend days scripting perfect comebacks for an audience that has long moved on. A relationship breaks down, and we relive conversations that we can’t pull back from.

We all waste a lot of emotional energy trying to rewrite the past instead of working on the future. The past is meant to teach, not to judge. What matters isn’t the mistake you made—it’s the move you make next.