By Nadia Koligman

Feeling a little overwhelmed lately?

If so, it’s not surprising. Modern life assaults us with a daily barrage of visual, auditory and emotional noise, all vying for our attention and appealing to our appetites and weaknesses.

Besides putting us into sensory overload, the frenetic pace of modern living throws us off balance and creates an ever increasing sense that something is lacking in our lives. We think that if only we had more time, more money, a bigger house, a slimmer body, fewer responsibilities, a suitable spouse, a promotion, or a new car we would finally be happy. We pursue these elements with tremendous energy, focus and determination. Like obsessed hunters, we endeavor to capture that elusive creature called inner peace.

The sad irony is that our blind zeal is actually moving us away from it. We run around in circles and never make any real progress toward our target. We all want to be successful and happy, but we don’t really know what it would take to get us there. Many of us say that we want to have more peace in our lives, but would be hard pressed to define “inner peace”, let alone describe how to finding it.

The truth is, if we don’t know where we’re going, chances are we probably won’t get there. So, the first step to cultivating inner peace in our lives is to better understand what it is and, just as importantly, what it isn’t.

Many people think that having more peace in their lives means being free of problems and difficulties. But problems and difficulties are an inherent part of the human experience. Inner peace is not an absence of problems nor is it a respite, holiday or vacation from the chaos of daily life. It is an intrinsic part of daily living, problems and all.

We don’t have to “bliss out” at a commune nor live a hermit’s life up in the mountains somewhere in order to feel at peace. So why are we rarely successful in our attempts to find it? Because we are looking for it in all the wrong places. It can’t be found in external things. It lives inside of us. It’s an internal structure, an inner centeredness, which helps us to ride out the turbulent storms of modern life and deal more effectively with whatever life flings at us.

The sea is a good metaphor for inner peace. It’s vast, fluid, dynamic and in constant motion. Beneath its turbulent, often stormy surface are the quiet depths. The same is true of our lives.

Society has trained us to focus on what is outside of us and to live in response to external circumstances. When our external circumstances change or conflict, which they do more often then not, we’re easily thrown off balance. We feel confused, helpless and frustrated and end up living at the mercy of the chaos outside of us. However, beneath the chaotic surface of our lives there is a deep, quiet source of power and inspiration. At our center there is peace and tranquility in spite of the trials and tribulations that life brings our way. When we tap into our “center” we access clarity and wisdom that helps us to ride out the storms of our lives.

There’s no single act or simple recipe that will get us inner peace. It’s not a linear process that can be described in a step-by-step fashion. It’s an ongoing process with many facets. It’s a process of introspection, self-knowledge, self-acceptance and authentic living. Of shutting out the noise of modern life, keeping a clear mind, and staying anchored to our core values. Of seeking out solitude, simplicity, laughter and joy. Of seeing the oneness of all things and learning from nature. Of understanding the underlying patterns in life and seeking out balance and harmony. It’s a process of living from deep within our center, bringing our unique gifts to the world, and being of service to others.

Although inner peace has many facets, they’re not disjointed. They’re intrinsically related and are all vital pieces of the overall puzzle. As with any precious gem, the facets of inner peace work together to release the inherent brilliance and splendor of that which lies deep inside each of us.

However, inner peace will not simply “show up” in our lives just because we want it to. If we find that we don’t feel its presence in our lives it’s because we haven’t given it the priority it requires. We must nurture it and make it an important part of our daily lives. And we can’t capture it and lock it away for safekeeping. It must be cultivated day by day. To do that, we must learn to live from inside out. True happiness and peace are, after all, an inside job.

© 2008 by Nadia Koligman. All rights reserved.

About the Author
Nadia Koligman is an author, Life Design Strategist, and founder of Dreamnautics Media, a company which produces personal development learning tools. She developed the Dreamnautics® Life Design technology and is living her dream of helping others launch their lives and live their dreams. For additional articles, tools and resources to help you design and build a life you love, visit Nadia’s web site at www.dreamnautics.com.

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