Monday, May 03, 1999

Author says peace comes from within

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BY DANA DiFILIPPO
The Cincinnati Enquirer

        High school shootings in Littleton, Colo. Ethnic killings in Kosovo.

Richard Carlson speaks with Silent Messages owner Linda Ewing, right, and her daughter-in-law Kim Gardner and baby Chance Gardner, 5 months. (Yoni Pozner photo) | ZOOM |

        For a guy whose philosophy is “Don't sweat the small stuff,” Richard Carlson still can find lessons in really big stuff. It's the small stuff that creates the big stuff, he reasons.

        Increasing inner peace, showing compassion and thinking about what you have instead of what you want could make a better world, one person at a time, and prevent such tragedies as Littleton and Kosovo, he says.

        The Martinez, Calif., author and self-styled “stress consultant” visited the Sharonville Convention Center on Sunday afternoon to share his perspectives on peace.

        About 500 people — most of them women — attended the talk. It was sponsored by Silent Messages, a Cincinnati business that encourages self-discovery.

        Mr. Carlson has written several best-sellers. including 1997's Don't Sweat the Small Stuff ... and it's all small stuff. He urged his listeners to increase peace in themselves.

        Peace, he added, spreads like the common cold.

        “One of the most important contributions you can make for a peaceful world is to be more peaceful yourselves.”

        He said people also should:

        • Cherish the present in stead of obsessing about the future or past. “You can't have a better past, so to spend any time of your life complaining about the past is a waste of time.”

        • Avoid falling victim to “analysis paralysis.” The more people obsess about things, the less they function fruitfully.

        • Calm down.

        • Show gratitude.

        “Happy people are constantly rejoicing what they have ... Unhappy people are constantly complaining about what they don't have.”

        Audience members said they found Mr. Carlson's advice helpful.

        “This is stuff I try to use in class,” said Sue Soldo, 48, of West Chester, who teaches third- and fourth-graders in Sycamore Schools.

       

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