Reader TTS

I finally jumped into the critically acclaimed show THE MAN IN THE HIGH CASTLE. It’s an alternate history of World War II based on the book of the same title. In this history, Japan and

Germany won the war and had divided up the United States. It’s interesting so far. We’ll see how long I stick with it. Alternate histories intrigue me. They open up the idea of possibility.

If you had the ability to change one part of your history, how might it have impacted the rest of your life? That’s pretty amazing. MY ALTERNATE HISTORY It got me started on a fun exercise.

What if I could write my alternate history? I tried tinkering with a few different story lines. 1. In 1998, I left the Hotel Management business and took a job as an entry-level computer

programmer. What if I had taken an entry-level writing job instead? How would my history have played out? I might have led a more fulfilling career and achieved some of the goals I’m only

now pursuing. 2. In 2003 I moved to Colorado for two years. I had to sell my apartment in NYC. I moved back to NYC in 2005. What if I had held onto that apartment until I left NYC for good

in 2011? I would have made an extra $250,000 in profit. Ouch! Perhaps writing about this alternate history was a bad idea. 3. In 2006 I turned down an awesome job opportunity over a salary

difference of $3,000. How would my life had played out had I taken that job? Again, I might have been much further down the road of fulfillment and prosperity. I said _No_ over what amounted

to a meaningless pay difference. THE MOST DANGEROUS WORD In each of these alternate histories, there is a disturbing trend. I’m assuming that the alternative outcome would have been better

than my current state. It gives added weight to the cliche _the grass is always greener on the other side_. It’s easy to fall into the trap of dwelling on what could have been. We always

jump to the positive. We fail think about what might have gone wrong if we took that _better _choice. _If only I would have said yes…_ _If I had just chosen X over Y_ _If I had only

recognized he was a jerk in the beginning…_ “If” is a dangerous word. It can lead you down a dark path of a self-destructive regret. DON’T DWELL Now that I’ve completed the alternate history

exercise I’m changing my earlier recommendation. Don’t dwell on alternate histories. You can’t change the past. Thinking about what could have been will only depress you. And chances are,

you’ll only consider the POSITIVE side of what could have been, not the downside. In each of my alternative realities, there would almost certainly would have been downsides, ones that are

impossible to predict.