Finding Inner Peace: 4 Strategies to Nurture Yourself
Finding Inner Peace goes beyond personal needs or goals for yourself – it’s a major contributing factor to cultivating peace in the world. That starts with the individual, so when you make strides toward achieving inner peace, you’re really contributing on a much larger level. Feels like a big responsibility, right?
Let’s not look at it as a responsibility but as a privilege. It’s a wonderful thing to be able to contribute by working on yourself. What are you waiting for? Let’s get started on cultivating inner peace with these go-to strategies!
Finding Inner Peace
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And it is. But it’s not easy. The good news is though that in each moment, you have the chance to be mindful again. Taking up this one practice will literally change your life.
Finding Inner Peace:
2. Don't take things too personally
You’re focusing on yourself, but you shouldn’t be internalizing. There’s a huge difference there. If you find yourself insulted easily, try to remember that it’s not a reflection on you. The person who was grouchy at you may have just had a rough day or fought with their spouse this morning. The truth is, people rarely think about us as much as we believe they do.
Finding Inner Peace:
3. Be still
It’s hard to be still and fully present. It’s do-able, though. And peace is found in the trying or practicing. Take time to sit on a beach or the grass outside, maybe at your local park. Instead of looking at all the people passing by and watching where they go, just sit still. Maybe you’ll want to close your eyes. Just let people pass by like clouds in the sky. You’re being present and refraining from overthinking. Enjoy the sensations of the wind blowing your hair and the sun on your face. Hear people talking without getting caught up in what they are saying. When your mind rushes ahead or wonders why a child is crying, just bring it back to your breath. You’ll find yourself smiling without even thinking about it. Now, that's inner peace.
Finding Inner Peace:
4. Let your actions speak louder than words
This tip leads us back to where we started – cultivating peace in the world by finding it in ourselves. When you’ve found a sense of inner peace, you will naturally want to share it with others. You’ll want nothing more than to show others that peace isn’t as elusive as we believe in our fast-paced modern world. You spread peace by being kind, compassionate, and loving to others. Allow the peace you feel within fill the space and the people around you by the way you behave.
Finding Inner Peace:
Is it even possible?
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Many people who have struggles in life often pooh-pooh inner peace and like to claim that true happiness is not even possible. The truth is there are different levels of happiness that you can experience in your life. It’s not a straight line. There are ups and downs that you will experience all throughout life but whether you are happy or not is all about your feelings.
You Have It in You Just by virtue of the fact that you’re a human being and you can experience feelings, peace being one of them, you know that true inner peace does exist. You can probably write down many days and things that have brought happiness to your life over the years since you were born up until today. |
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Look Around
You
It’s amazing but while it’s easy to say that people cannot be at peace unless they have their basic needs met. You’ll find that there are people all around you who do not have their needs met but who are very happy. That bores out as true when you study rich people and realize they are not happier than poor people overall.
It’s Not About Stuff
If you look at a list of the happiest countries in the world, you will realize that being happy isn’t about the stuff you have. The happiest people right now happen to live in Denmark. Most people who live there pay high taxes, live in small homes and tend to not be as consumer-driven as people in the USA, for example. But the USA is 17 on the list. That shows that peace is not about stuff.
It’s Not Even About Goals
You may think that peace is about reaching your goals too. But, it’s not. If you often say things like “I’ll be at peace when…” then it’s not likely you will be happy. You can be happy today, before you reach your goals, while you’re on the path to reach those goals. It’s honestly more about the day to day living and not moments.
It’s Not About Your Circumstances
Now, of course, some things in life can really get you down. However, for happy people, even the worst events will not make them unhappy at least not permanently. A peaceful person usually has the skills to navigate things about their circumstances. Dr. Gillian Mandich, a happiness expert, states that our circumstances account for only 10 percent of our happiness.
True happiness is about accepting that you can experience it, plus understanding what it really means. A happy person isn’t going to be the same level of happy 24/7, 365 days a year. When you observe that people who are sick with cancer are happy, that children who aren’t getting enough to eat are happy, and people living in huts in Africa are also happy it makes you realize that you can find inner peace, too.
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Finding Inner Peace:
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