What makes you calm?
Chances are a few things popped into your mind. A warm bath. A cozy fire. A mug of tea. A good friend.
Calm changes for each of us, but certain qualities ring true.
Calm is contentment.
Another way of defining calm is to find your inner peace.
Inner peace is more about being than doing. It’s about staying present and focused on the task at hand.
If you have inner peace, you have well-being, better relationships, and a more happy, joyful life experience. And that’s something we all desire. But creating it sometimes gets lost in the shuffle. Outside influences set in and take the calm away.
Calm is a mindset we must work on every day. Here’s how.
Accept what is. We spend a lot of our time resisting and trying to change things beyond our control. These fights block energy and prevent us from doing what’s important. Detach yourself from the situation and accept what is. Then move forward in a way you can control.
Leave nothing unresolved. There are many things in our lives we can never finish. It can drive you crazy with an unfinished project on your plate. But unfinished and unresolved aren’t the same things. You might be able to finish small tasks and do your part as much as you can while leaving the project unresolved for the foreseeable future.
Take responsibility. Have you ever reacted to someone else’s bad behavior? You can’t control those around you. You can only control your reactions. Take responsibility for the things you can control. Choose your behavior.
Be aware of feelings. Language can be construed in many ways. We don’t have the same perspectives as the person in front of us, and sometimes messages aren’t delivered as they are truly intended. Listen for interactions gone bad. Then face them rather than ignore them. If you don’t, feelings will come to light in entirely different ways and disrupt your peace later.
Prioritize peace. There’s an exercise you might have performed back when you were in school that had you write your own obituary. It allows you to reflect on your life and how you would like it to play out. It’s a healthy exercise that gives you priorities; healthy relationships, work you enjoy, travel opportunities you experienced. Nowhere in there do people list the rush-rush world many experience daily in their lives. The to-do list won’t matter; the time you spend with your child, your spouse, or your friend will.
Inner peace comes from knowing who you are and your place in this world. As you find your own calm, you let everything else go.