What Is Your Peace Worth?

What is peace really worth to you? Is it something you actively think about? Consider your typical day: transitioning from one task to another, merely going through the motions. Then, suddenly, everything starts to blur together, and it’s hard to tell one moment from the next. It’s like trying to put toothpaste back into the tube—impossible when you feel out of control and unsure of what to do next.

Let me open your eyes with some personal insights that might help. The beauty of this journey is that there are no wrong answers. It’s all about finding and maintaining your peace in whatever way works best for you.

Understanding Stress: The Good and The Bad

 

Not All Stress Is Bad

First off, not all stress is detrimental. While stress often gets a bad rap, it’s important to discern between stress that spurs you on—enhancing your performance—and stress that drags you down, causing frustration and irritability.

 

Identifying Sources of Stress

Stress can infiltrate from every corner of your life—your job, your family, friends, hobbies, or ongoing life events. Nowadays, claiming to be “stressed” has become a default response for many, leading only to complaints rather than proactive handling.

Taking Action Against Stress

So, what does it mean to take action against stress? It involves setting boundaries and controlling how you spend your time. Consider whether you are dedicating your hours to people and activities that replenish you or those that drain your energy.

 

Setting Boundaries Without Conflict

Setting boundaries is crucial, but it doesn’t have to mean starting conflicts. If you’ve always aimed to please, any deviation from this can seem confrontational. However, prioritizing yourself and drawing clear lines is essential—not conflict. Maintain your stance without letting emotions dictate the terms, which helps prevent these necessary boundaries from escalating into disputes.

 

Managing Your Time Wisely

Time management is equally crucial. With only 24 hours in a day—and eight ideally spent sleeping—you really have only 16 hours to make your mark. For instance, while dinner with friends might sound appealing, consider if it’s worth neglecting responsibilities like your side hustle or even a pet at home. Socializing is vital, but so is maintaining balance.

 

Keeping Work and Personal Life Separate

Feel like work never ends? Keeping your professional and personal lives separate is key, especially if you’re not in a management or ownership role. I’ve personally found that removing work emails from my phone and not responding to texts or calls after hours helps immensely. This might mean occasionally breaking your own rules, but consistent boundary setting will show others that your personal time is not up for negotiation.

 

Prioritizing Self Care

Self-Care is NON-NEGOTIABLE!

Self-care is just like breathing, eating, and sleeping. You need it to survive! Stop buying into all the stupid bullshit posts that talk about how you suck at putting yourself first. What I hear is that you have no respect for yourself.

 

Self Care Comes in Three Forms: Your Health, Your Body, and Your Mind

 

• Your Health: Go get a routine check-up. Make sure your body is healthy and there are no issues hiding that you don’t know about. Maybe there’s an issue you’ve always put off. Stop procrastinating and go see a doctor!

 

• Your Body: The human body is a clear visual representation of self-care. You can tell a lot about a person by just looking at them. Are they ready for a fitness challenge, or are they auditioning for My 600 Pound Life? Controlling what you eat and getting some exercise isn’t about becoming a gym rat and squatting 800 solid ass pounds (that’s a Ronnie Coleman reference)—it’s about taking control of your life. So, control what you shove down your throat and maybe take a walk a few times a week.

• Your Mind: If you have no control, your mind is a mess—a shit show. Depression, anger, hate, suicidal thoughts (like I used to have), worrying about pointless crap that’ll never happen… Regulating your thoughts and emotions should be your top priority. Clean up the dumpster fire in your head, and watch how everything else starts to fall into place.

 

How Do You Gain Control?

First question, what do you consume on social media? Does it make you mad? Are you fed up with seeing friends just complaining about everything? That’s your media diet. Examine it and begin to filter out the bad. Yes, even your BFF from middle school might need to be unfollowed if all they do is whine about their exes and play the victim. Replace the junk with healthier options—like a book or a podcast. Not a big reader? Try an audiobook.

 

Meditation and More

Yes, even some “hippie shit” like meditation might help you clear your mind and recharge. Personally, I like to hit up a float tank. That’s some real gangster stuff! The first time I came out of the float tank, I felt weightless and clear—a high like no other. Other times, to relax, I lay on the floor, put my legs up on a chair, and listen to some guided meditations on YouTube. Find whatever relaxes and provokes thought for you, and just do it!

Transforming Challenges into Opportunities

 

Embrace the Challenge

Does everything we’ve discussed so far seem scary and challenging? Good! It’s supposed to feel that way. This is my favorite part, and I still embrace this approach every day!

 

Taking the First Steps

You might feel overwhelmed but ready to make some sort of change, and that’s perfectly okay. Any attempt you make is valid and welcomed. If it turns out it wasn’t for you, that doesn’t mean you’ve failed. It means you’re learning more about yourself than ever before. But please, give everything you try a real shot. Just because you tried meditating for 15 minutes and only managed 7 doesn’t mean you failed. YOU JUST DID 7 MINUTES OF MEDITATING! That’s 7 more minutes than you’ve ever done before! Now, it’s time to cultivate a routine and adjust it to your liking. Push yourself to reach that 15-minute goal.

 

Discovering New Passions

 

Imagine you find a passion for writing. This leads to setting a challenge: write five pages a day. That adds up to 35 pages a week, 140 pages a month. You begin to write faster and more effectively. Your vocabulary expands, and your creativity overflows. There’s an ad for a short story contest—something the old you would have shied away from in fear. But the new you? You’re drawn to it. You see that the opportunity of tackling this challenge will enhance all your future writing endeavors. Winning isn’t the goal; it’s the lessons learned along the way to become even better. So, you do something you would have never considered before and enter a contest that ignites your passion.

 

Conclusion

 

Let's circle back to that first tough question: What is peace really worth to you? Through all we've talked about—managing stress, committing to self-care, facing down challenges—it's clear that peace isn't just about steering clear of trouble. It's about actively taking control of your life, crafting your own calm in the chaos.

We've tackled the notion that not all stress is the enemy. Sometimes, it's the very push we need to level up. You've learned how to spot where stress is messing with you and how to flip those challenges into your new strengths. Remember, setting boundaries doesn't mean you're picking fights. It's about showing some damn respect for your own time and energy.

Managing your time, making yourself a priority, and keeping an eye on your media diet—are all critical pieces of the peace puzzle. Whether it's hitting a float tank to clear your head, tweaking your habits, or stepping up to challenges that scare the hell out of you, each step is a brick in the fortress of your tranquility.

Now, consider this: every single challenge is a chance to dig deeper into who you are and come out stronger on the other side. Writing those five pages a day, jumping into a contest, or even pushing past your previous meditation record—these aren't just tasks. They're your proving grounds.

At the end of the day, the value of your peace isn't about what you dodge. It's defined by what you dare to take on. It's a journey that never really ends, where the paths you choose reflect the peace you're after. Grab it by the reins, challenge yourself to step out of your comfort zone, and always remember: real peace isn't found, it's forged.

Remember, be RUTHLESS in your pursuits, OWN your choices, practice KINDNESS to yourself and others, IMPROVE daily, and TRANSFORM every obstacle into a stepping stone.

ROK IT