Searching for peace? Then do this!

If you want peace and tranquillity, focus on saying “no” to more things and doing less. Be selective with what you give your time, energy, and money to. Focus on what’s essential. Ask yourself: what makes the most positive impact on your life from a mental, social/relational, spiritual, financial, and physical standpoint? How can you keep doing those things (or if you’re not doing enough of those, how can you do it more often)?

On the flip side, what are the biggest/most negative stressors in your life? What are things that need to be done, but maybe not by you or not right now? How can you eliminate or minimize those?

Lastly, stop feeling like you’re obligated to say yes to everything. If it excites you and is good for you, say yes! If it needs to be done by you, even if it doesn’t excite you, say yes. But if it doesn’t, you can just as easily decide to say no if that’s what you really want to do.

Greatness and inner peace

“Nothing is great unless it’s also at peace.” – Seneca

Outward greatness can be deceiving. Someone can be the best at what they do but have inner demons that none of us would want. We wouldn’t trade our life for theirs.

Think of Antonio Brown…possibly the best WR in the NFL just over a year ago, probably even a top 5 or top 10 WR of all-time. But within the past 12-18 months, despite being an elite NFL receiver, he has been cut or traded from three teams. In a league that has a short season (16 games compared to 82 for basketball or 162 for baseball), that prioritizes winning above all else, three teams have moved on from a tremendous talent because of his inner demons. This goes to show that no matter how great you are (or think you are), there’s more to it than just being good at what you’re paid to do.

Do not be envious of others who only know how to excel at their job. You have to look at the whole picture. Are they still a good family member, friend, teammate/co-worker, and citizen? Do they have peace in their life? If so, that person might be a great role model or mentor. If not, don’t mistake their performance at work as overall greatness.