Many of the people I talk to have been through hard things. A lot of them are still in the midst of grappling with the fall-out from losses and changes that rocked their boat hard. Many of them are gripped with regret. And many of them are stuck on the woulda-shoulda-coulda train to nowhere.
When people tell me they can’t imagine ever feeling at peace again, even when they’re able to put on a good face for the outside world, I get it. Because there was a time when I felt that way too. I know what it feels like to believe deep down that it’s impossible. And that is a hard place to be.
But there actually is a way to reclaim inner peace. And it’s surprisingly simple. Even when you’re struggling to reckon with yourself and your life in the aftermath of hard times, you can regain a sense of basic well-being and serenity. I call it The Four Ps of Inner Peace: Practice, Perseverance, Patience, and Perspective.
Practice, Practice, Practice…
Practice is all about repetition. You do new things, over and over again, on purpose. That’s how you make new habits of mind (what you think), body (what you do), and spirit (what you feel). Habits are hard to break but easy to make. Practice is how that happens. And it’s pretty simple, in essence.
Perseverance
Keep on keepin’ on. Get going when the going gets tough. Don’t, don’t, don’t give up. If you’re like most people, there are going to be times when it all just feels too hard. And that’s okay. Remember that “you might lose a battle but you’ll still win the war.” Remind yourself that you can start over as many times as you need to. Every moment is new, and you’re new in every moment. Turn the page, turn over a new leaf, press your re-set button. Steady will always win the race.
Patience
Rome wasn’t built in a day, right? There’s no abracadabra-poof to the process. It’s not magic. It’s all and only a function of your moment-to-moment practices.
It’s natural to feel impatient.
But once you’re on board with the idea that the journey is the destination, your day to day sense of serenity, inner peace, and even joy will greatly increase.
Perspective
Most of us are pretty attached to the way we see things. In fact, most people tend to think that the way they see things is the way things ARE. But the truth is that there is more than one way to look at things.
The late, great Wayne Dyer said, “When you change the way you look at things, the things you look at change.” And the good news is that there are some simple ways to do it. And if you learn and practice them, you’ll get some pretty quick results.
To learn more about Perspective click here.
Click below to watch the short video I made about “The Four Ps of Inner Peace.” And then I’d love to hear your own thoughts. Feel free to post them below.