Think Like a Monk: Train Your Mind for Peace and Purpose Every Day

by Jay Shetty

Reflect instead of judging. Be curious. Don’t pretend you understand. Ask clarifying questions. Ask questions that help

you define practical steps toward improvement.

if the person is willing to invest in your growth.

These three steps—soliciting, evaluating, and responding to feedback—will increase your confidence and self-awareness.

Do you think this is a realistic path for me?

Do you have any recommendations when it comes to timing?

They remind me of who I was and what I might have become if I hadn’t met people who inspired me to change.

You are not your success or your failure.

Be gracious in the moment, and afterward remind yourself of how hard you worked, and recognize the sacrifices you made. Then ask yourself who helped you develop that skill.

Someone had to invest their time, money, and energy to make you who you are today.

The measure of success isn’t numbers, it’s depth.

If you feel safe, that’s when you’re most vulnerable;

“Believe those who search for the truth; doubt those who have found it.”

The most powerful, admirable, captivating quality in any human is seen when they’ve achieved great things, but still embrace humility and their own insignificance.

Before giving a speech, I often prepare by visualizing myself going on stage to deliver it.

if you meditate on a place where you feel happy and relaxed, your breath and pulse shift, your energy changes, and you draw that feeling into your reality.

concentration and think, Oh, I’m so bad at this. Part of the practice of meditation is to observe the thought, let it be, then come back to what you were focusing on. If it isn’t hard, you’re not doing it right.

Whenever your mind wanders, gently and softly bring it back to your body. No force or pressure. No judgment.

At some point you may come across pain you were not aware of before. Be present with that pain. Observe it.

You can also express gratitude for different parts of your bo...

Appreciate everything, even the ordinary. Especially the ordinary.

Gratitude has been linked to better mental health, self-awareness, better relationships, and a sense of fulfillment.

Try feeling jealous and grateful simultaneously. Hard to imagine, right? When you’re present in gratitude, you can’t be anywhere else.

“Once you start seeing things to be grateful for, your brain starts looking for more things to be grateful for.”

gratitude plays a major role in overcoming real trauma.

Even if your life isn’t perfect, build your gratitude like a muscle.

Don’t judge the moment.

The universe may have other plans in store for you.

“My imperfection has brought beauty to those around me,”

“There’s more for me out there.”

The most important aspect of the practice of grateful living is trust in life.

“Be kinder to yourself. And then let your kindness flood the world.”

When we make the effort to connect with those around us, we create opportunities for gratitude instead of languishing in anonymity.

These are the little events that fill our lives, and how much pleasure they give us is largely up to us. Specifically, it depends on how much kindness we bring to these interactions and how much gratitude we take from them.

but they arguably do as much for the donor as they do for the recipient. Service helps us transform negative emotions like anger, stress, envy, and disappointment into gratitude.

“The salt is the pain of life. It is constant, but if you put it in a small glass, it tastes bitter. If you put it in a lake, you can’t taste it. Expand your senses, expand your world, and the pain will diminish. Don’t be the glass. Become the lake.”

Receiving gratitude requires vulnerability and openness. We block these feelings because we’re afraid of being hurt.

the focus is always on healing the internal before dealing with the external. In your own pace, at your own time.

The rich complexity of life is full of gifts and lessons

Gratitude is the mother of all qualities.

compassion, resilience, confidence, passion—positive traits that help us find meaning and connect with others.

Whenever you give out any energy—love, hate, anger, kindness—you will always get it back. One

Whatever love you give out, it always comes back to you.

This is an example of karma, the idea that your actions, good or bad, bring the same back to you.

different people serve different purposes, with each role contributing to our growth in its own way. We

These people practice what they preach. They have good reputations, strong opinions, and down-to-earth advice. They are trustworthy.

What is my genuine intention for getting involved in this relationship?

competence, caring, and character.

all three qualities were necessary for soldiers to trust their leaders.

set realistic expectations based on what a person actually gives you, not what you want them to give you.