"Do not brood over your past mistakes and failures as this will only fill your mind with grief, regret and depression. Do not repeat them in the future"

Past errors are real, but rumination gives them a second life. Turning them over and over in the mind breeds emotions that drain energy and clarity: grief over what was, regret over what could have been, and a low mood that saps initiative. Brooding narrows attention to losses and shuts down curiosity, making it harder to see options and act. The mind mistakes repetition for importance; what you rehearse becomes your reality.

There is a difference between remembering and brooding. Remembering is purposeful: it asks what happened, why it happened, and what would prevent it next time. Brooding is circular: it asks why you are the kind of person who fails, and then answers with self-accusation. One clarifies; the other fogs.

Refusal to brood is not denial. It is a disciplined choice to extract lessons and move. The second instruction, do not repeat them, turns memory into responsibility. Learn the principle, not just the episode: locate the trigger, the faulty assumption, the missing skill, the poorly designed system. Then install guardrails. Change the environment so the path of least resistance is the right one. Use checklists, alarms, precommitments, and social accountability. Practice the skill you lacked in small, low-stakes settings. When possible, repair harm and make amends; this converts remorse into restitution and restores integrity.

Self-compassion is not indulgence; it is fuel. You can hold yourself accountable without attacking yourself. Say, “I did X; it had Y consequences; next time I will do Z,” and then rehearse Z. Keep the focus on behavior that can change rather than identity labels that freeze you in place.

The present is the only lever. Attend to what you can do now that reduces the chance of the same mistake. Carry forward the lesson, not the wound. Let memory serve action, and let action close the loop so the past becomes teacher rather than jailer.