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Finding Peace

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Finding Peace

Letting Go and Liking It

Sourcebooks,

15 min read
10 take-aways
Text available

What's inside?

Serenity, now.

Editorial Rating

5

Qualities

  • Applicable

Recommendation

When happiness is a function of Nasdaq direction, the concepts of peace and serenity don’t get much play. But Paula Peisner Coxe offers a quickie guidebook to inner tranquility. You won’t learn anything new here; Coxe’s wisdom is the off-the-shelf variety. Each of the book’s brief chapters focuses on one way to achieve peace, like forgiving, accepting and loving. These notions don’t seem very original, but perhaps Coxe deserves the benefit of the doubt: Millions of Buddhists achieve a sense of well being from writings that are centuries old, and you don’t hear them complaining about too many clichés. In fact, Coxe does present her advice in a manner that is both soothing and compelling, and suggests several interesting stress-relieving exercises. getAbstract recommends this book to readers who welcome a dose of spirituality, faith and God, particularly those who come to the book with a pre-existing New Age bent. But if you last felt a sense of overwhelming contentment while watching CNBC, this book may not be quite down-to-earth enough for you.

Summary

What Is Peace?

Peace is the feeling of serenity and confidence with which you approach life. It includes "quieting the noise in your mind" and accepting yourself and your life, as it exists now. When you feel peace, you are able to trust more and worry less. You feel self-love and don’t need to compare yourself to others. You have achieved "peace of mind."

Achieving this state is marked by an attitude of acceptance toward all your mistakes, so you can come to think of them as lessons to be learned. Mistakes - like any pain you experience due to loss - can help you grow. Peace of mind involves coming to terms with what you have been in the past, what you are now and whatever you might become.

First, think about your past, so you can come to terms with it. Examine why things happened the way they did, so you can better "deal with the present and plan for the future." Essentially, you can seek peace of mind by working with the three main periods of your life:

  • The You of Yesterday - The hurt and pain of past memories can interfere with gaining the most from your life today.
  • The You of Today - This is what you are now. If you fully live your life...

About the Author

Paula Peisner Coxe is a management consultant and the author of Finding Time: Breathing Space for Women Who Do Too Much. She has her master’s degree in business administration from the University of South California, and lives in southern California.

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