The Importance of Overcoming Communication Regrets

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We often overestimate the risks involved in taking action, particularly when it comes to connecting with others. Many people regret not reaching out to friends or loved ones due to fear of awkwardness or rejection. However, research shows that these concerns are often unfounded. When we take the risk to reconnect, it's usually much less awkward than anticipated, and the other person is often appreciative of the gesture. Instead of constantly playing it safe, we should embrace a bias for action and take smart risks, as inaction is what we're more likely to regret in the long run.

“What people regret over time are things they didn't do. They didn't take that trip, they didn't ask that person out on a date. They didn't start that business,” says former political speech writer and best-selling author Dan Pink. “I think it's because we are slightly over-indexed on risk. We overstate the risk in many circumstances.”

On this episode of Think Fast, Talk Smart, strategic communications lecturer Matt Abrahams sits down with Pink to hear how we should all take more risks and how leaders can inspire others by focusing on the why instead of the how.

“There's almost incontrovertible evidence that sense of purpose is the most cost effective performance enhancer that organizations have,” Pink says.

They also discuss the power in taking breaks, which Pink considers part of performance, not a deviation from it. “What we know from many domains is that professionals take breaks. It's not that amateurs take breaks and the professionals don't, it's the exact opposite.”

Pink’s latest book is The Power of Regret, How Looking Backward Moves Us Forward.

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