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

Think Like a Monk: Train Your Mind for Peace and Purpose Every Day by Jay Shetty combines personal anecdote, metaphor, scientific studies, and wisdom from various monastic texts. Shetty’s aim is to help readers embody the monastic mindset. This includes learning to let go of negativity, ego, and fear; embarking on a journey of personal growth; and investing in acts of gratitude and service. Shetty himself spent three years as a practicing monk, living at an ashram in India, before using his skills in social media and business. He now hosts a popular podcast, On Purpose, and offers life coaching and courses on topics such as purpose and building successful habits. He channels this experience into advice and specific goals for modern millennials and others looking to find meaning and fulfillment in their lives. Published in 2020, Think Like a Monk guides readers on a journey away from the constant distractions and shallow gratifications of contemporary life to a lasting sense of peaceful intention and profound purpose.

Summary

In Part 1, Shetty advises his readers to “Let Go” of the expectations and opinions of others, including the clamor that is media, in order to understand and establish their own values: “The only way to build a meaningful life is to filter out the noise and look within. This is the first step to building your monk mind” (7). He also counsels his readers to cast off negativity, both in their thinking about others and in their assessment of themselves. When people are openly critical of others, that negative energy turns back on them; instead, bringing positive people and thoughts into one’s life creates the space for positive outcomes. Shetty uses a metaphor to illustrate this: “Petty, negative thoughts and words are like mosquitos: Even the smallest ones can rob of us of our peace” (32). Instead, he suggests implementing the “spot, stop, and swap” method (45). First, one becomes aware of the negativity (spots it), then pauses to contemplate the negative thought or behavior (stops it) before realigning it toward the positive (swaps it). Shetty also emphasizes that forgiveness—for self and for others—is key to establishing peace of mind.

In addition, one must let go of fear to fully engage with the world and to reap from its possibilities. Viewing fear not as an obstacle but as an opportunity for growth can be powerful: “We fear the stresses and challenges of change, but those stresses and challenges are the wind that makes us stronger” (50). He argues that the surest cure for fear is detachment, observing the fear from an emotional distance in order to act decisively rather than to react impulsively. Fear can be a motivating factor, creating urgency in the process of decision-making, but it is ultimately unsustainable. In order to establish clear and lasting intentions, Shetty encourages his reader to move beyond fear and material gratification toward the higher goals of duty and love: “Purpose and meaning, not success, lead to true contentment” (71). And, Shetty tells his readers, this purpose and meaning are ascertained through responsibility and care for others, not simply via personal achievement.

In Part 2, Shetty turns his attention to the personal growth that follows after letting go. In particular, he urges his readers to find their dharma—what he defines as “’your calling’” (94)—in order to find greater purpose leading to a fulfilling life. Ideally, dharma is discovered in the intersection between one’s passion and one’s skillset, coupled with a sense of how this calling can be useful. Understanding one’s own varna, or personality type, can help with discovering one’s dharma; Shetty describes these types in Chapter 5 and provides a Vedic Personality Test in his Appendix. In the end, Shetty argues, “[d]harma isn’t just passion and skills. Dharma is passion in the service of others. Your passion is for you. Your purpose is for others” (122). Throughout the book, Shetty emphasizes the significance of service to others in leading a meaningful life. He also addresses the role that routine can play in following dharma. Somewhat counterintuitively, routine frees the mind to focus on remaining present in the moment and allows creativity to flourish. Shetty advises his readers to “[b]uild routines and train yourself as monks do, to find focus and achieve deep immersion” (144). Waking early and engaging in meditation are excellent ways to stay grounded, Shetty frequently notes.

Shetty reminds his readers that the mind, like any other muscle in the body, must be trained—especially if one is to embody the monastic mindset. Rather than allowing the “monkey mind,” with its directionless swinging from branch to branch, to dominate, the reader should cultivate the “monk mind,” with its maturity and focus, its self-control and reason. Instead of allowing the senses to steer the chariot, training the intellect to take over brings the destination into clearer focus. Reframing thoughts, finding self-compassion and empathy for others, and staying rooted in the present all help to cultivate the monk mind. Shetty again emphasizes the importance of detachment in order to gain “new clarity and perspective” (171). Detachment will also be crucial in reigning in the ego and finding humility—two key components of building confidence rather than feeding egocentric desires. Shetty counsels his readers to remember “the bad we’ve done to others and the good others have done for us” and to forget “the good we’ve done for others and the bad others have done to us” (184-85). In this way, the ego is set aside in favor of humility and service.

In Part 3, Shetty reveals the most significant part of the journey toward meaning, purpose, and fulfillment: it is to “Give.” He urges his readers to welcome “true, intentional gratitude to our lives every day” (205). Not only does gratitude engender happiness but it is also beneficial to mental and physical health. Shetty highlights the importance of practicing gratitude on a daily basis, for each and every person, place, thing, and circumstance with which one is gifted. He discusses how to establish meaningful relationships with others, in which one engages in “loving exchanges” of “generosity, gratitude, and service” (241). Listening to others and being open to mutual experience creates lasting connections. Shetty also reminds his readers that self-love must be established for romantic love to flourish: Nobody else can provide everything one needs—except oneself.

Finally, Shetty addresses “The Highest Purpose” of a meaningful life, which is service (256). He writes that the Bhagavad Gita, one of India’s most sacred texts, “sees the whole world as a kind of school, an education system structured to make us realize one truth: We are compelled to serve, and only in service can we be happy” (257). Service engenders physical and psychological wellbeing, not to mention spiritual satisfaction. Shetty offers specific advice on how, when, and where to serve; he notes that everyone has something to offer and that the time for service can always be found.

Shetty provides his readers with numerous “TRY THIS” activities throughout the book, as well as several meditations designed to further the journey toward peace and purpose. He wants to spur his audience into action; the moment for meaning is always right now, tailormade for the individual. As Shetty cautions in the conclusion, “[w]e don’t want to arrive at the end of our days knowing we haven’t lived a purposeful, service-based, meaningful life” (279). Thus, it behooves the reader to start today.