Proactive means control. Reactive means leaving things up to chance. As much as possible, do what you can to have proactive control over your life.

Reactive puts you on the back foot. Reactive only leads to regret. Regret that you didn’t do something when you could have.

Proactive can at times lead to regret, but you have the knowledge that you took what you thought was the best course of action at the time. Proactive gives you more control over what goes on.

Your response to feelings can also be reactive or proactive. You can wait until you experience something to prepare for it mentally, or you can be proactive and try to practice calming your mind under stress. Proactive gives you a better chance of getting through unscathed.