When you think of the term “inner peace,” there are several images that may come to mind. This term is often portrayed as a devout monk practicing meditation atop a mountain somewhere, the overly relaxed yoga practitioner you run into at your local smoothie place or some mystical term that sounds great but doesn’t really define a specific thing.
Inner Peace
Stereotypes aside, inner peace is something that people from all walks of life should strive for. Regardless of if you are, in fact, a monk currently sitting cross-legged on a hill or just a typical 9-5’er trying to keep from verbally assaulting your fellow man in a traffic jam, being able to keep your mind free from excess worry, stress and guilt is invaluable.
This is especially true given the world we currently find ourselves living in. We are constantly being bombarded with enormous amounts of information, usually negative and struggling to keep up with more and more to-do’s despite not a single second being added to an already crammed clock. This is simply the state of things.
However, boosting your inner peace doesn’t happen by waiting for the world around you to change. Rather, doing so requires you to modify your personal thoughts and actions. In this article, we will describe 10 tips that, if put into action, will promote a heightened sense of that ever so elusive “inner peace.”
1. Fix The Mindset That You Lack Peace
This is a point that simply had to make the top of our list. If you currently consider yourself to be devoid of any sense of inner peace, dwelling on these thoughts alone may be your biggest issue. You see, our minds have a strong tendency to default to emotions and thoughts that we repeat most often. In other words, if you constantly ruminate over the fact that you lack inner peace, this negative emotion is only going to gain traction.
Although it may be difficult at first, make an attempt to simply shift these recurring thoughts to those that tell yourself you do feel at peace. While your long held thoughts to the contrary will most likely put up quite the fight at first, the more you reaffirm the idea that you have a strong sense of inner peace, the greater the amount you will actually feel.
2. Avoid Comparison
To be very direct, if you constantly compare your life to the lives of other people that you see on social media, your workplace or any other space you frequent, your perception of your own life is probably going to be skewed in a harmful way.
The problem is that we now have the ability to show other people only the aspects of our lives that we want them to see. The posts, pictures and external appearance that most people portray is basically just the highlight reel of their lives. Nobody is going to show you the failures, embarrassments and low points. Since you don’t see these things, it can be easy to assume that other people aren’t experiencing the same negative things that you are.
Rest assured that they certainly are. You and everyone around you are constantly experiencing the natural highs and lows that we call life. Stop comparing yourself to the polished facade that those around you are presenting, you are not going to win that game.
3. Be Present, But Actually
Being present is a term that has been chronically overused at this point. While the idea is actually very beneficial, so many hashtags and motivational memes have adopted it that it has been pretty watered down.
However, if you simply take the term at its literal meaning, which is to focus only on the here and now instead of the past or present, good things start to happen. Being truly present allows your mind to experience and perceive the little things that each moment offers, noticeably increasing your sense of inner peace.
4. Strive For Something
Lacking a sense of direction or purpose-driven actions can cause a considerable amount of mental turmoil. Daily life is challenging enough on its own, not having any reasoning or passion behind why you do the things you do make it even more so.
A great way to boost your inner peace is to set goals for yourself and then letting your daily actions include things that bring you closer to those goals. Having a sense of motivation and intent behind the hard work you are probably doing anyway makes life much more peaceful.
5. Take Pride In Your Personal Surroundings
While this idea should not come as a surprise, your external environment, the aspects of it that you can control, have a direct impact on your internal environment. Think about your personal spaces that you occupy on a daily basis such as your home, office or vehicle. Do you put forth any effort into keeping these areas clean, organized and free of clutter?
If you feel like you lack inner peace, taking pride in the cleanliness and organization of your immediate surroundings can go a long way to alleviate some of this angst.
6. Write Things Down
There is something extremely cathartic about jotting things down in your own handwriting. Whether it is your daily schedule, creative ideas or the worrying thoughts taking up space in your mind, transferring things to an outside medium can lessen your mental load.
Experiment with the habit of writing down any parts of your life that you find yourself dwelling on consistently. Moving these thoughts to a different location may be just the solution.
7. Life Is Precious, But Don’t Take It Too Seriously
We are not going to challenge the idea that your life is precious. After all, you are a unique and capable individual navigating your personal perspective on limited time. Your own certain feelings and emotions deserve acknowledgment.
With that being said, you cannot let every negative thing that happens to you have a disastrous effect on your inner peace. The minor setbacks and inconveniences that inevitably happen each day must not be allowed to carry unnecessary weight in your mind. Don’t take life too seriously.
8. Don’t Work Hard To Earn Your Worth
A poor sense of inner peace often goes hand in hand with a low sense of self worth or the idea that your worth is determined by how much you succeed. When this is the case, there is a constant need to do more, do it better and work even harder.
To break this cycle and boost the amount of peace you feel, separate your worth from your productivity. Realize that you are worthy simply because you exist and that anything you achieve or all the success you experience is simply a byproduct of this inherent worth.
9. Be Good To People
Whether you realize it or not, the way you treat other people greatly affects the way you feel about yourself. You cannot be unkind, dishonest or outright mean to those around you and expect a strong sense of internal peace.
Be good to people. There are so many reasons this is important, not the least of which is how peaceful you feel inside.
10. Settle Resentment & Conflicts
Harboring bitterness and resentment for extended periods of time is one of the biggest detriments to your inner peace. This effect is even more pronounced the longer you allow these feelings to fester mentally.
If you are currently maintaining an argument with someone or holding on to negative emotions regarding any subject, try your hardest to resolve these issues. Bitterness is a mental cancer that will quickly consume your peace.