We ought to turn to Allah always in repentance begging for His mercy and forgiveness. That is the Prophetic virtue we must all develop. We learn from the Quran that the prophets were in the habit of turning to Allah always in repentance. The reason being that no matter how good we humans are, we can never claim perfection.

That is why the Prophet, peace be upon him, told us: “O people, seek repentance and beg for the mercy of Allah, for I do turn to Allah in repentance and seeking forgiveness hundred times a day.” (Al-Bukhari)

If the Prophet was doing so, all of us must do that as often as we can, more than a hundred times a day.

You may read the the following duaa:

Rabbi ighfir warham wa tub alayya innaka antha al-ttawwaabu al-rraheem

(My Lord, forgive me and have mercy on me and accept my repentance for You are indeed the accepter of repentance and the Merciful.)

Furthermore, you should also develop the habit of reading the last two verses of surah Al-Baqarah. It teaches two critical principles:

Firstly, Allah is Merciful towards His servants, and He never orders us duties that are beyond our ability as humans. He is our Creator; He knows our weaknesses as well as our strengths.

Secondly, He wants us, therefore, to turn to Him for His mercy always. Once we do so, we can expect His mercy.

Almighty Allah knows best.