Jon Bon Jovi is thankful his career has been a “rollercoaster” rather than a “firecracker”.

The 58-year-old rocker insisted it is better to endure the ups and downs that come with a long stint at the top because it has given him a real “appreciation” of everything he has than to have a “big quick pop” and suddenly burn out.

He told Big Issue magazine: “Half of the fun is the rollercoaster of a real career for and a real career for me doesn't come into play until you've done it for 20 years. Its about the ebb and the flow.

"You have to have success and you have to have doubt and you have to have failure and you have to have tears that you shed so that when you come through it you can honestly say, 'Now I understand.'

"If it all happens early and quickly, there's probably not the same appreciation.

"You could be like a firecracker just have a big quick pop and it's over, or the ebb and flow of a real honest-to-God career with all of its pain and joy. I'd rather have that."

The Bon Jovi frontman wishes he’d taken more time to “enjoy” his success as it happened rather than constantly focusing on his next goal.

He said: “The biggest mistake I made in my life is that I didn't take enough time to stop and look around and enjoy it.

"I was always so focussed on the next step and the next and the next, that it cost me a lot of my great memories.

"And it caused a lot of sleepless nights that weren't warranted. It's my biggest regret.

"The one thing I would tell the younger self is, enjoy it more, relax.

"It's gonna have ups and downs but keep the faith."