What exactly is inner peace and is it missing from your life? Learn its importance, along with simple steps you can implement to find your inner peace.
There may be several images that pop into your head when you think of the term inner peace. Maybe you picture a Buddhist monk meditating high on a mountainside, or a yoga teacher that is full of Zen. Maybe it’s the feeling you get when you envision yourself relaxing on your dream vacation—or perhaps, you don’t picture anything because you don’t think inner peace is even achievable.
Inner peace can exist, and not just for a yogi sitting cross-legged on a hilltop, but for anyone that seeks it out. People from all walks of life will find their inner peace to be invaluable as they keep their minds free of excess worry, stress, and guilt, especially in the turbulent times we are living in.
We are constantly being bombarded with enormous amounts of negative information, while we struggle to keep up with more and more added to our already packed to-do lists. So, with the stressors that pop up regularly in the hectic lifestyles we lead, is it even possible to find inner peace? Yes, but it won’t happen by waiting for the world around you to change. It is going to require releasing some negative thinking and modifying some actions.
What is Inner Peace?
What exactly is inner peace anyway? It is defined as a state of mind where calmness and contentment exist despite constant unwanted stressors. Being at peace is considered healthy and the opposite of being stressed out or anxious.
Peace of mind is generally associated with building up bliss, happiness, and contentment. It’s the absence of anxiety and mental stress, with the experience of knowing your true self. Having inner peace does not mean that your life will suddenly become problem-free, but rather it is the state in which your mind performs at an optimal level for a positive outcome.
Peace of mind comes about by putting self-care practices into place that help you find and restore your core beliefs and identity.
Why is Inner Peace Important?
Finding inner peace is important because it allows for a clear, calm mind. With that, you can direct your focus on keeping track of and reaching the goals you are aiming for. You’ll be more confident and ready to take on issues or tasks you try to avoid.
Inner peace reduces mental clutter, letting you see and appreciate all the little things in life that can easily be taken for granted.
Some benefits of inner peace are:
- Lessens your fears and worries
- Increases positive thinking
- Boosts emotional wellness
- Teaches patience
- Promotes mindfulness
- Improves health and wellness
How To Find Your Inner Peace
Something important to note is that what works for some may not work for others. There are many tips below for achieving inner peace, find the combination that works the best for you.
Adjust Your Mindset
One of the biggest issues when trying to find inner peace is believing it can’t be achieved. Our minds often revert to thoughts and emotions that we are accustomed to. Therefore, if you constantly dwell over your lack of peace of mind, that negative thought becomes a reality.
Adjusting your mindset is no easy task, but it can be done. Start by attempting to shift those negative recurring thoughts into positive ones that tell yourself you can and do feel at peace. No doubt your long-held thoughts will be resistant at first, the more you reaffirm that you do indeed have a sense of inner peace, the greater the amount of peace you will actually feel.
Be Mindful
Take a deep breath and stop stressing yourself out. It’s time to think about becoming more mindful to find peace and joy in life. Mindfulness is the self-care practice of being completely aware and present at any given moment. It has been shown to make you feel happier, healthier, and less stressed by focusing on being present with an open mind.
Resist worrying about the past or the future and concentrate on the present moment. It allows your mind to experience and perceive the little things that each moment has to offer and will noticeably increase your sense of inner peace.
Be Kind
The way you treat those around you greatly affects how you feel about yourself. Learning how to become a kinder person and practicing it daily helps you find happiness, wellness, and inner peace.
Being kind to yourself is equally important. Treat yourself well by following a healthy diet and giving your body the rest it deserves. Once you do that, it will be much easier to be good to others.
Avoid Comparisons
Comparing your life to the life of others, such as acquaintances on social media, co-workers, and even family and friends will skew your perception of your own life.
Thanks to social media, we see the best of aspects of everyone’s life. Keep in mind that you are being shown what they want you to see. It most likely portrays just the select highlights. Not many are willing to show you their failures, embarrassments, and low points. When you aren’t seeing those things, it can be easy to assume they don’t exist. Trust me, they do.
Everyone experiences highs and lows in life. Don’t compare yourself to the polished facade of someone’s highlight reel—you will never find peace of mind that way.
Set Goals
It’s important to have direction. If you are lacking a sense of purpose or direction, it can weigh heavy on you. Look for the passion behind why you do what you do.
A great way to boost inner peace is to strive for something for yourself and then let your daily actions include steps to bring you closer to that goal. Healthy motivation and intent behind your hard work will always provide more peace to your life.
Write It Down
There is something very healing about jotting things down in your own handwriting. It could be your daily to-do list, creative brainstorming, or a journal. Whatever it is, transferring things from your head to a piece of paper can lessen your mental load.
Try to make a habit of writing down any parts of your life that you find taking up too much space in your mind. Moving these thoughts out of your head can be very cathartic.
Stay Organized
The environment that you surround yourself in has a direct impact on you. Do you put forth enough effort in keeping the personal spaces that you occupy daily clean, organized, and decluttered?
If you feel like you are lacking inner peace, make sure you begin taking pride in the cleanliness and organization of your immediate surroundings. It can go a long way in lessening anxiety and increasing a sense of calm.
Settle Conflicts
Harboring resentment or holding on to bitterness for long periods of time can be catastrophic to your inner peace. The longer you let these things fester, the more pronounced they become, and they will even creep into other areas of your life.
If you have an ongoing dispute or argument with someone, holding on to those negative emotions will consume any peace of mind you have. Work on resolving your conflicts or just letting them go completely.
Laugh
They say laughter is the best medicine, and it really is true. Find ways to smile and laugh more. It’s okay to take a break from heavy thoughts that may be weighing on you. Watch a sitcom, play with a puppy, chat with a friend, do whatever you need to keep laughing when life gets tough.
By following these steps, you will have laid a wonderful foundation on which to build up your inner peace for a happy, peaceful life.
Tools to Help Achieve Inner Peace
Finding serenity in your life takes commitment and patience. I have created the following resources to aid in your journey for inner peace.
Calm Your Mind Workbook
A printable workbook that assists in decluttering your life and acquiring calming spaces. Learn to create habits and routines that quiet the mind and turn off stress and anxiety.
21 Day Worry Journal
Journal your worries away with this mind-calming tool filled with exercises specifically designed to quiet your anxiety and worries while helping you gain inner peace.
Positive Mindset Toolkit
This is a huge collection of printable tools that will help to improve a negative mindset with exercises focused on positive thoughts, a growth mindset, and by eliminating limiting beliefs.
