10 Ways to Live a More Peaceful Life

We live in a chaotic and anxious world but finding peace is easier than you might think. Read below for 10 Ways to relax into a more peaceful state of mind.

1. Make a commitment to change:

Changing your mindset is one of the most difficult things you will ever do but not only can you do it, putting in the work will change your life. Approach each day with a purpose and ask yourself, “What is it that I want to achieve today?” Maybe it’s getting through the day without arguing or not allowing anyone to get under your skin. It could be something as simple as drinking more water in an effort to feel healthier. Each time you find yourself going negative, think of your goal and use it as inspiration to keep moving forward.

2. Take Control of Your Life:

You cannot know the best path to take if you have no idea where you want to go. Sit down and think about 5-10 things you want to achieve and then brainstorm 5-10 ways you can work on them daily. For example: If you want to broaden your social network you can start volunteering, ask friends to introduce you to new people, hold a cocktail party at your place and invite people over or join a class of some kind and invite other students to coffee.

You cannot know the best path to take if you have no idea where you want to go. Sit down and think about 5-10 things you want to achieve and then brainstorm 5-10 ways you can work on them daily. For example: If you want to broaden your social network you can start volunteering, ask friends to introduce you to new people, hold a cocktail party at your place and invite people over or join a class of some kind and invite other students to coffee.

3. Don’t Take Shortcoming’s Personal: We don’t always know why other people do what they do but too many of us take nasty comments, betrayals and hurtful responses personally. Understand that we are all different people with different communication styles, boundaries and value systems and that we are all solely responsible for what we choose and chose not to do and say. Yes, people will hurt you but to re-victimize yourself by taking the blame for bad behavior is toxic to joy.

We don’t always know why other people do what they do but too many of us take nasty comments, betrayals and hurtful responses personally. Understand that we are all different people with different communication styles, boundaries, and value systems and that we are all solely responsible for what we choose and chose not to do and say. Yes, people will hurt you but to re-victimize yourself by taking the blame for bad behavior is toxic to joy.

4. Stay Grounded: 

We can’t always walk away from situations and people immediately but we can make a choice as to how much we allow them to affect us. Sure, with so many people yelling, judging, stirring and projecting, it can be tempting to throw your dignity to the side and join the chaos but he or she who stays calm, centered and focused is the one who will make it out of the storm in one piece.

5. Cut out Toxic People:

Good people do bad things but if you have someone in your life that consistently steps on your boundaries and makes you feel bad about yourself,- even if they don’t mean to – they aren’t allowing you the chance to be your best self and live your best life. It’s not always easy to say goodbye or set boundaries with people who have walked all over you (and they don’t react well when you do) but having people like this in your life is like sipping a bit of poison every day. No wonder you never feel healthy and strong.

6. Keep Hope in Its Place:

There is a beauty in looking forward to a brighter day but hope can become a prison when you are sacrificing everyday happiness in the hopes of a future that never presents itself. Give situations and individuals enough time to change for the better but know when to walk away.

7. Accept That You’re Not a Superhero:

It’s not your job to save every day, make someone else happy, or build a better life for them.

8. Face your Fears:

Instead of living in a place of worry and stress about what might happen, make the best decisions for your life right now and deal with each day as it comes. Sure, divorcing a spouse who doesn’t respect or value you might bring up fears of being alone but if you’re alone, you’re not going to be disrespected and devalued and since when is that worse?

9. Put a Positive Spin on Things:

It sounds like a cliche to look on the bright side, but staying focused on your blessings is the best way to diffuse negativity. Think about the ways in which the most successful press agents handle crisis control for their celebrity clients. Knowing that salacious headlines are fueled by negativity, they encourage their clients to focus on doing something positive or make no comment at all. You can’t always ignore negative situations and people but you can decide how much power you’re going to hand over to them.

10. Learn to Love Yourself:

This is a likely the toughest task on the list. Take some time to sort through and toss the hurtful, mean and negative messages that have been sent to you by parents, siblings, friends and lovers and forgive yourself. Do something each and every day to celebrate the fact that you are growing stronger, lovelier and wiser as each hour passes and cherish your time alone. Get to know yourself as who you are and not who you think you should be. The more you believe in, love and respect yourself, the easier life becomes.