10% Happier with Dan Harris

The Secrets of Gritty People | Angela Duckworth

This week on the show, we're exploring the interrelated themes of grit and resilience -- both massively resonant and relevant issues in the era of Covid and BLM. Today, my guest is Angela Duckworth. She's a psychologist who was deemed a "genius" by the MacArthur Foundation, and she is perhaps best known for popularizing the term "grit," which she defines as "a combination of passion and perseverance for a singularly important goal." She's written a bestselling book called Grit: The Power of Passion and Perseverance, and has a new podcast called "No Stupid Questions." In this episode, we talk about the secrets of gritty people, how to cultivate grit when it seems like the world is falling apart, and the possible downsides of grit. She's quite candid about a number of sensitive issues, including the recent passing of her dad, and the sharp criticisms her work on grit has received in light of America's racial reckoning. Where to find Angela Duckworth online:  Website: https://angeladuckworth.com/ Twitter: https://twitter.com/angeladuckw Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/angeladuckworthgrit Book Mentioned: Grit: The Power of Passion and Perseverance - https://bookshop.org/books/grit-the-power-of-passion-and-perseverance/9781501111112 If you want help developing grit and resilience to cope with the fear, stress, and anxiety caused by the pandemic, try our free collection of meditations called Coronavirus Sanity in the Ten Percent Happier app: https://10percenthappier.app.link/CoronavirusSanity  Other Resources Mentioned: No Stupid Questions Podcast: https://podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast/no-stupid-questions/id1510056899 #215: What's Your Motivation? | Thubten Chodron: https://podcasts.apple.com/zw/podcast/215-whats-your-motivation-thubten-chodron/id1087147821?i=1000457992635 #230: Work Less, Get More Done | Alex Soojung Kim-Pang: https://podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast/230-work-less-get-more-done-alex-soojung-kim-pang/id1087147821?i=1000468074697  K. Anders Ericsson - https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/K._Anders_Ericsson Catherine Cox: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Catharine_Cox_Miles The Apples in Stereo: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/The_Apples_in_Stereo  Additional Resources: Ten Percent Happier Live: https://tenpercent.com/live Coronavirus Sanity Guide: https://www.tenpercent.com/coronavirussanityguide Free App access for Frontline Workers: https://tenpercent.com/care Full Shownotes: https://www.tenpercent.com/podcast-episode/angela-duckworth-272

The Antidote to Burnout | Leah Weiss

At a time when work has become more challenging than ever, we're going to explore one myth and one revelation. The myth -- which many of us, myself included, have consciously or subconsciously incorporated into our lives — is that we need to grind ourselves into dust through faux "productivity" in order to achieve professional success. The revelation is that the more effective -- and cleaner burning -- fuel is that potentially sappy notion of finding your purpose. My guest is Leah Weiss, who has impressive bona fides on both the professional and contemplative fronts. She teaches Compassionate Leadership at Stanford Graduate School of Business, and she wrote a book called How We Work. She's also done four 100-day retreats and one 6-month retreat. This conversion was recorded pre-pandemic, but is deeply relevant nonetheless. And toward the end of the conversation, she drops some words that have been rattling around in my head for months. Where to find Leah Weiss online:  Website: https://leahweissphd.com/ Twitter: https://twitter.com/leahweissphd Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/leahweissphd/ Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/leahweissphd/ You can always get started with the Ten Percent Happier app with our flagship course, The Basics. In The Basics, Joseph Goldstein and Dan Harris discuss the fundamentals of mediation and dispel common myths about meditation in a seven-day meditation series. Visit https://10percenthappier.app.link/TheBasicsPod to get started.  Other Resources Mentioned: The Stanford Prison Experiment - https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Stanford_prison_experiment Christina Maslach - https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Christina_Maslach#:~:text=Known%20for,her%20research%20on%20occupational%20burnout. Kelly McGonigal - http://kellymcgonigal.com/ Thupten Jinpa - https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Thupten_Jinpa The Center for Compassion and Altruism Research and Education (CCARE) - http://ccare.stanford.edu/  Steve Cole, UCLA Researcher - https://people.healthsciences.ucla.edu/institution/personnel?personnel_id=45359 The Guest House by Rumi - https://gratefulness.org/resource/guest-house-rumi/ Additional Resources: Ten Percent Happier Live: https://tenpercent.com/live Coronavirus Sanity Guide: https://www.tenpercent.com/coronavirussanityguide Free App access for Frontline Workers: https://tenpercent.com/care Full Shownotes: https://www.tenpercent.com/podcast-episode/leah-weiss-271

You Don't Exist. But You Actually Do. Wait, What? | Guy Armstrong

In this episode, we take a simple, useful, and down-to-earth stroll through one of the most confounding -- but liberating -- concepts in Buddhism. On the one hand, Buddhists tell us the self is an illusion: "You don't exist!" On the other hand, they tell us, "Well actually, on some level, you do, of course, exist." So which is it? The answer is: both. But this concept -- call it not-self, selflessness, egolessness, or emptiness -- doesn't have to be some hopelessly esoteric riddle; it is actually a game-changer that we can all apply in our own lives. Here to tell us how is Guy Armstrong, who has been a meditation teacher in the insight tradition for decades. He's written a book called Emptiness: A Practical Guide for Meditators. He is the husband of Sally Armstrong, who appeared on the show just a few weeks ago. I actually conducted the interviews back-to-back last fall. But even though this was recorded before the wretched events of 2020, the concepts herein are, I assure you, perennially useful. Where to find Guy Armstrong online:  Website: https://www.spiritrock.org/guy-armstrong  Book: Emptiness: A Practical Guide for Meditators - https://bookshop.org/books/emptiness-a-practical-guide-for-meditators/9781614295266 You can always get started with the Ten Percent Happier app with our flagship course, The Basics. In The Basics, Joseph Goldstein and Dan Harris discuss the fundamentals of mediation and dispel common myths about meditation in a seven-day meditation series. Visit https://10percenthappier.app.link/TheBasicsPod to get started. Other Resources Mentioned: Compassion and Emptiness in Early Buddhist Meditation by Bhikkhu Anālayo - https://bookshop.org/books/compassion-and-emptiness-in-early-buddhist-meditation/9781909314559 Additional Resources: Ten Percent Happier Live: https://tenpercent.com/live Coronavirus Sanity Guide: https://www.tenpercent.com/coronavirussanityguide Free App access for Frontline Workers: https://tenpercent.com/care Full Shownotes: https://www.tenpercent.com/podcast-episode/guy-armstrong-270

The Sex Episode | Devon and Craig Hase

Buddhists don't tend to shy away from talking about body parts -- but usually it's more along the lines of meditating on things like spittle, defecation (otherwise known as poop) and the inevitable decay of the body. So where do sex and sexuality fit into this mix? Bottom line: how can we use sex to wake up? In this episode, I talk with dharma practitioners Devon and Craig Hase. They're not sexperts by any stretch, but as a married couple who recently emerged from a year of monastic vows (which included celibacy), they've spent a lot of time exploring the intersection of mindfulness, meditation and sex. In fact, their new book How Not to Be a Hot Mess includes a whole chapter called, "Make Sex Good." We start with a fascinating discussion about their own experimentation with esoteric, Tantric sex practices, but then veer directly into garden variety sex issues. It's a fascinating chat, and I appreciate Devon and Craig being so open and honest on an intensely personal issue. Where to find Devon & Craig Hase online:  Website: http://devonandcraighase.com/ Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/devonandcraighase Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/devonandcraig/ Book: How Not to Be a Hot Mess by Craig & Devon Hase: https://www.indiebound.org/book/9781611807981 There's still time to join and complete the Summer Sanity Challenge: a free 21 day meditation challenge. The goal here is to help you build resilience so that you are less buffeted by circumstances you can't control -- and are therefore calmer, happier, and better prepared to show up the way you want to for your family and your communities. To join the challenge, you can visit tenpercent.com/challenge. Other Resources Mentioned: Mentoring page: http://devonandcraighase.com/mentoring Urban Tantra: Sacred Sex for the Twenty-First Century by Barbara Carrellas: https://www.indiebound.org/book/9781587612909 Additional Resources: Ten Percent Happier Live: https://tenpercent.com/live Coronavirus Sanity Guide: https://www.tenpercent.com/coronavirussanityguide Free App access for Frontline Workers: https://tenpercent.com/care Full Shownotes: https://www.tenpercent.com/podcast-episode/devon-craig-hase-269

How to Get Sleep in Anxious Times | Dr. Donn Posner

I don't know about you guys, but my sleep has suffered quite badly during the last few months. Today's guest really got me thinking about this issue in a whole new way. First, he normalizes the sleep problems many of us are having. If you're sleeping poorly right now, he says, don't freak out; it is natural and normal. Second, he has a bunch of tips for how to deal with insomnia, some of which I had never heard before and am already starting to operationalize in my own life. His name is Donn Posner. He's one of the leaders in the field of Cognitive Behavioral Therapy for Insomnia. His titles are: Founder and President, Sleepwell Consultants, and Adjunct Clinical Associate Professor, Department of Psychiatry & Behavioral Sciences at Stanford University School of Medicine. Not only did he answer all of my questions, but we also played him some listener voicemails. One last thing to say before we dive in: our episodes this week have a theme: primordial needs. Today we're doing sleep; Wednesday it's sex. So it's a fun week here on the show.   Where to find Donn Posner online: Website: https://www.sleepwellconsultants.com/ Books: https://www.sleepwellconsultants.com/publications   Today is the first day of the Summer Sanity Challenge: a free 21 day meditation challenge. The goal here is to help you build resilience so that you are less buffeted by circumstances you can't control -- and are therefore calmer, happier, and better prepared to show up the way you want to for your family and your communities. To join the challenge, you can visit tenpercent.com/challenge.   Other Resources Mentioned: Society of Behavioral Sleep Medicine: https://www.behavioralsleep.org/ American Academy of Sleep Medicine sponsored site to search for local accredited sleep centers: http://sleepeducation.org/find-a-facility   Additional Resources: Ten Percent Happier Live: https://tenpercent.com/live Coronavirus Sanity Guide: https://www.tenpercent.com/coronavirussanityguide Free App access for Frontline Workers: https://tenpercent.com/care   Full Shownotes: https://www.tenpercent.com/podcast-episode/donn-posner-268

How Do You Optimize Your Performance When Everything Sucks? | Pete Carroll & Michael Gervais

How do you optimize your performance when life is utterly disrupted by a pandemic? Are optimism and confidence trainable skills? Can we get over our fear of other people's opinions? These are some of the questions we tackle in this episode. We have two guests. Pete Carroll is our first interviewee who has a Superbowl ring. He's been the coach of the Seattle Seahawks for ten seasons. He's also the co-author and co-founder of Compete to Create, which is many things: a firm that works with companies to create high-performing teams, an online course that anyone can take, and a new Audible Original audio book. Coach Pete's partner in all of this is our other guest. Michael Gervais is a high performance psychologist who has worked with MVPs from every major sport and Fortune 100 CEOs. He's also the host of a podcast called Finding Mastery. Where to find Pete Carroll online:  Website: https://petecarroll.com/ Twitter: https://twitter.com/PeteCarroll  Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/coachpetecarroll/ Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/petecarroll/ Book Mentioned: Compete to Create Audible Origional: https://www.amazon.com/Compete-Create-Approach-Leading-Authentically/dp/B08911JMJX Where to find Michael Gervais online:  Website: https://findingmastery.net/ Twitter: https://twitter.com/MichaelGervais Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/MichaelGervais/ Podcast Mentioned: Finding Mastery: http://smarturl.it/finding-mastery On July 27, we're launching the Summer Sanity Challenge: a free 21 day meditation challenge. The goal here is to help you build resilience so that you are less buffeted by circumstances you can't control -- and are therefore calmer, happier, and better prepared to show up the way you want to for your family and your communities. To join the challenge, you can visit tenpercent.com/challenge. Other Resources Mentioned: Compete to Create: https://competetocreate.net/ Additional Resources: Ten Percent Happier Live: https://tenpercent.com/live Coronavirus Sanity Guide: https://www.tenpercent.com/coronavirussanityguide Free App access for Frontline Workers: https://tenpercent.com/care Full Shownotes: https://www.tenpercent.com/podcast-episode/pete-carrol-michael-gervais-267

The Case for "Doing Nothing" in a Time of Crisis | Sebene Selassie & Jeff Warren

At a time of multiple, mutually-reinforcing dumpster fires, meditation can seem counterintuitive. Instinctively, many of us might prefer to rush to the barricades, or Twitter, or the fetal position. But there is immense value in "doing nothing," and we are going to explore that theme in this special episode. We're bringing on two amazing meditation teachers, Jeff Warren and Sebene Selassie, to take your questions about the value of meditation in this difficult time. We discuss: how to work with a wandering mind; how to navigate the social anxiety many of us feel as we start to reopen; whether it's possible to be mindfully depressed; and we explore the potential for gratitude at a time when it seems like everything sucks. The reason for this special edition of the show is that we at the Ten Percent Happier company are about to launch the Summer Sanity Challenge. It's a free 21 day meditation challenge, starting July 27. Every day you'll get a short video followed by a free guided meditation to help you establish -- or reboot, or reinvigorate -- your meditation habit. You can do it solo, or you can invite your friends and family and see one another's progress. To receive updates on the challenge, visit tenpercent.com/challenge   Where to find Sebene Selassie online:  Website: https://www.sebeneselassie.com/ Twitter: https://twitter.com/sebeneselassie Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/sebeneselassie Book Mentioned: You Belong by Sebene Selassie: https://www.sebeneselassie.com/youbelong Where to find Jeff Warren online:  Website: https://jeffwarren.org/ Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/_jeffwarren_/  Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/jeffwarren.org/ YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/user/jeffwarren1001 Summer Sanity Challenge On July 27, we're launching the Summer Sanity Challenge: a free 21 day meditation challenge. The goal here is to help you build resilience so that you are less buffeted by circumstances you can't control -- and are therefore calmer, happier, and better prepared to show up the way you want to for your family and your communities. To receive updates on the challenge, visit tenpercent.com/challenge   Additional Resources: Ten Percent Happier Live: https://tenpercent.com/live Coronavirus Sanity Guide: https://www.tenpercent.com/coronavirussanityguide Free App access for Frontline Workers: https://tenpercent.com/care Full Shownotes: https://www.tenpercent.com/podcast-episode/summer-challenge-266

The Upside of Desire | Cara Lai

In Buddhism/meditation circles, desire or wanting is often considered a no-no. But is this line of thinking sometimes taken too far — or simply misunderstood? Can we turn our desires — for food, sex, etcetera — into areas to apply our meditation practice? Today we're going to explore that notion with Cara Lai. She is a mindfulness teacher, psychotherapist, and artist. She is also a coach on the Ten Percent Happier app. (Side note: shout-out to all the coaches on the app. The fact that we have these highly trained individuals standing by to take your questions is yet another reason to subscribe!) Anyway, back to Cara. I first encountered her when I was on a retreat last year, and she was one of the teachers. She gave a dharma talk that was incredibly funny and shockingly honest. And, as you will hear, she brings that same spirit to this conversation. Where to find Cara Lai online:  Website: http://www.caralai.org/ On the Ten Percent Happier app, you can chat directly with living, breathing meditation coaches (including Cara), about your meditation questions. Once you've downloaded the app at tenpercent.com, you can navigate to your profile, then click "Ask A Question" under the coaching section to be connected with one of our experienced coaches. Other Resources Mentioned: Dukkha: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Du%E1%B8%A5kha Additional Resources: Ten Percent Happier Live: https://tenpercent.com/live Coronavirus Sanity Guide: https://www.tenpercent.com/coronavirussanityguide Free App access for Frontline Workers: https://tenpercent.com/care Full Shownotes: https://www.tenpercent.com/podcast-episode/cara-lai-265

The Brain Science of Enlightenment | Rick Hanson

Today we're going to nerd out about what enlightenment (or, if that word is triggering, let's just call it "high doses of meditation") can do to your brain — and, more practically, how we can derive these benefits even if we don't plan to spend decades living in a cave. My guest is Rick Hanson, Ph.D., psychologist and author of the new book Neurodharma. We go into the deep end, yes, but we also get very down-to-earth, talking about how anyone, including you, can "reverse engineer enlightenment," and have "Nirvana operationalized in your nervous system." Quick note that this was recorded right before the pandemic, but enlightenment is evergreen. Where to find Rick Hanson online:  Website: https://www.rickhanson.net/ Twitter: https://twitter.com/drrhanson Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/rickhansonphd Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/rickhansonphd/ YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/c/RickHanson Book Mentioned: Neurodharma by Rick Hanson: https://www.rickhanson.net/books/neurodharma You can find meditations from our world-class teachers and more wisdom from Rick Hanson on our app. Visit tenpercent.com to download the Ten Percent Happier app and kickstart your meditation practice. Visit tenpercent.com to sign up today. Other Resources Mentioned: Hippocampus: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Hippocampus U Pandita: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/U_Pandita Enlightenment: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Enlightenment_in_Buddhism Nirvana: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Nirvana_(Buddhism) Robert Thurman: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Robert_Thurman Mark Epstein: http://markepsteinmd.com/ Joseph Goldstein: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Joseph_Goldstein_(writer) Jhanas: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Dhy%C4%81na_in_Buddhism Stephen Batchelor: https://www.stephenbatchelor.org/index.php/en/ Neurodharma Online Program: https://www.rickhanson.net/teaching/neurodharma-online-program/ More Books: https://www.rickhanson.net/books/ Being Well Podcast: https://podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast/being-well-with-dr-rick-hanson/id1120885936 Additional Resources: Ten Percent Happier Live: https://tenpercent.com/live Coronavirus Sanity Guide: https://www.tenpercent.com/coronavirussanityguide Free App access for Frontline Workers: https://tenpercent.com/care Full Shownotes: https://www.tenpercent.com/podcast-episode/rick-hanson-264

The Buddha's Four-Part Strategy for "Ultimate Happiness" | Sally Armstrong

"Mindfulness" has become a buzz phrase. There are books on mindful parenting, mindful lawyering, even mindful sex. But what does the word even mean? And how do you actually do it? In one of his most famous and foundational discourses, the Buddha was said to have laid out, in great detail, four ways to establish mindfulness. In today's episode we're going to walk through these four "foundations" of mindfulness with Sally Armstrong, who started practicing in 1981, began teaching 15 years later, and now leads retreats all over the world. Before we start, I should note that we recorded this interview shortly before the pandemic and the racial justice protests, but we thought it might be a good time to drop a good, old-fashioned, meat and potatoes, stick to your ribs dharma episode to help us get back to basics.  Where to find Sally online:  Spirit Rock Profile: https://www.spiritrock.org/sally-armstrong Sally Armstrong on Dharmaseed.org: https://dharmaseed.org/teacher/153/ You can find meditations from our world-class teachers and much more on our app. Visit tenpercent.com to download the Ten Percent Happier app and kickstart your meditation practice. Visit tenpercent.com to sign up today. Other Resources Mentioned: S.N Goenka / https://www.dhamma.org/en-US/about/goenka  The 3 Characteristics / https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Three_marks_of_existence The Four Noble Truths / https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Four_Noble_Truths Ajahn Sumedho / https://dharmaseed.org/teacher/10/ Insight Meditation Society / https://www.dharma.org/ Joseph Goldstein's Book Mindfulness / https://www.amazon.com/Mindfulness-Practical-Awakening-Joseph-Goldstein/dp/1622036050  Additional Resources: Ten Percent Happier Live: https://tenpercent.com/live Coronavirus Sanity Guide: https://www.tenpercent.com/coronavirussanityguide Free App access for Frontline Workers: https://tenpercent.com/care Full Shownotes: https://www.tenpercent.com/podcast-episode/sally-armstrong-263

Why We're All Suffering from Racial Trauma (Even White People) -- and How to Handle It | Resmaa Menakem

It's easy to think of racism as a virus that lives in your head. But my guest today makes a compelling case that it also lives, in very profound and often unseen ways, in your body. Resmaa Menakem is a therapist and trauma specialist based in Minneapolis. He's also the author of an excellent book called My Grandmother's Hands, which people in my life have been recommending to me for years. Resmaa's work is all about healing our bodies -- and, by extension, our nation -- from racialized trauma. And in Resmaa's philosophy, racial trauma lives on in bodies of all colors, including white bodies such as mine. Resmaa gives voice to a new lexicon -- terms like "white body supremacy" and "somatic abolitionism" -- and don't worry, he'll explain it all as the interview progresses. He will also share practices that bring you into your body. And he has very provocative thoughts about how white people can do their part way beyond the current news cycle. Where to find Resmaa Menakem online:  Website: https://www.resmaa.com/ Twitter: https://twitter.com/ResmaaMenakem Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/resmaa  Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/resmaamenakem/  YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/user/rmenakem Book Mentioned: My Grandmother's Hands: https://www.resmaa.com/store/my-grandmothers-hands-hardcover Check our our new, free collection of meditations called Relating to Race in the Ten Percent Happier app: https://10percenthappier.app.link/RelatingToRace  Other Resources Mentioned: Malcolm X: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Malcolm_X Stamped from the Beginning By Ibram X Kendi: https://www.ibramxkendi.com/stamped-from-the-beginning  Cherry Blossom Experiment: https://www.bbc.com/future/article/20190326-what-is-epigenetics Resmaa's courses: https://www.resmaa.com/courses Additional Resources: Ten Percent Happier Live: https://tenpercent.com/live Coronavirus Sanity Guide: https://www.tenpercent.com/coronavirussanityguide Free App access for Frontline Workers: https://tenpercent.com/care Full Shownotes: https://www.tenpercent.com/podcast-episode/resmaa-menakem-262

Can Faith Be Useful - Even for Atheists? | Elizabeth Mattis Namgyel

Faith is a loaded word in some circles, but in this episode, Elizabeth Mattis Namgyel makes her case for it - in ways that might surprise you. We also discuss: what she means by the phrase "being realistic," the power of exploring open questions, and how sitting like a log is the new activism. She's been practicing for 35 years in the Tibetan tradition. She is the retreat master of Samten Ling in Crestone, Colorado and has spent over six years in silent retreat. She's the author of The Power of an Open Question and The Logic of Faith, and host of the new podcast Open Question.   Where to find Elizabeth Mattis Namgyel online:  Website: https://www.elizabethmattisnamgyel.com/ Twitter: https://twitter.com/EMattisNamgyel Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/ElizabethMattisNamgyel/ Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/elizabethmattisnamgyel/  Books: The Power of an Open Question - https://www.elizabethmattisnamgyel.com/the-power-of-an-open-question The Logic of Faith - https://www.elizabethmattisnamgyel.com/the-logic-of-faith  Other Resources Mentioned: Thinley Norbu Rinpoche - https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Thinley_Norbu Faith by Sharon Salzberg - https://www.amazon.com/dp/B00AG0BRCE/ref=dp-kindle-redirect?_encoding=UTF8&btkr=1  Shantideva - https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Shantideva Mahayana - https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Mahayana The Way of the Bodhisattva - https://www.amazon.com/dp/B006L8SE58/ref=dp-kindle-redirect?_encoding=UTF8&btkr=1 Dzigar Kongtrul Rinpoche - https://www.mangalashribhuti.org/VDKR Open Question podcast - https://podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast/open-question/id1507249383  Additional Resources: Ten Percent Happier Live: https://tenpercent.com/live Coronavirus Sanity Guide: https://www.tenpercent.com/coronavirussanityguide Free App access for Frontline Workers: https://tenpercent.com/care  Full Shownotes: https://www.tenpercent.com/podcast-episode/elizabeth-mattis-namgyel-261

The Science of Happiness | Emiliana Simon-Thomas

In this episode, at this fraught moment in history, we're bringing on a leading scientist to help us tackle one of the most pernicious misconceptions that humans have ever fostered. The very roots of the word "happiness" reflect our assumption that happiness is something that happens to us, rather than something we can cultivate. "Hap" is the same root of words such "hapless," or "haphazard." It implies luck. But again, happiness is a skill that we can cultivate. Emiliana Simon-Thomas helps people learn this skill for themselves. Her online course - The Science of Happiness - has reached over half a million people worldwide. She's the science director of the Greater Good Science Center at UC Berkeley. And in this interview, we discuss how to make ourselves happier through generosity, which is literally part of our biology; how the pleasure of caring for others means we'll do it again. How empathy fatigue is real - and I debate with Emiliana about the meaning of selfishness. And, how we've got love wrong. Before we dive in, I want to flag that this is a conversation we recorded late last year, prior to the pandemic and recent racial justice protests in America, but the insights are as vital as ever. Where to find Emiliana Simon-Thomas online: Website: https://greatergood.berkeley.edu/profile/emiliana_simon_thomas Course: https://www.edx.org/course/the-science-of-happiness-3 You can find meditations on compassion and much more on our app. Visit tenpercent.com to download the Ten Percent Happier app and kickstart your meditation practice. Visit tenpercent.com to sign up today. Other Resources Mentioned: Tania Singer - https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Tania_Singer Bill Harbaugh - https://harbaugh.uoregon.edu/ Darryl Cameron, compassion collapse - https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Collapse_of_compassion Tonglen practice - https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Tonglen Love 2.0 by Barbara Fredrickson - https://www.amazon.com/dp/B008BM0LMG/ref=dp-kindle-redirect?_encoding=UTF8&btkr=1 Additional Resources: Ten Percent Happier Live: https://tenpercent.com/live Coronavirus Sanity Guide: https://www.tenpercent.com/coronavirussanityguide Free App access for Frontline Workers: https://tenpercent.com/care Full Shownotes: https://www.tenpercent.com/podcast-episode/emiliana-simon-thomas-260

How You Can Help Transform America's Racial Karma | Dr. Larry Ward

What can you, as an individual, do to help break the cycles of rage, pain, fear, and violence that continue to grip America - and many other parts of the world - relating to the issue of race? Even though our guest this week was shot at by white police officers at the age of 11, and later had his house firebombed by racists, he is hopeful that now is a moment of true potential- an opportunity to transform what he calls "America's racial karma," and, by extension, ourselves. Dr. Larry Ward is a lay minister in the lineage of the great Vietnamese Zen master, Thich Nhat Hanh. He's an advisor to the Executive Mind Leadership Institute at the Peter F. Drucker School of Management. He has done consulting work with Fortune 500 companies around the world. And he has a PhD in religious studies with an emphasis on Buddhism. His forthcoming book is called America's Racial Karma. Where to find Dr. Larry Ward online: Website: https://www.thelotusinstitute.org/ Book Mentioned: America's Racial Karma Pre-order: https://www.penguinrandomhouse.com/books/651864/americas-racial-karma-by-larry-ward/ Blog Post Mentioned: America, The Business That Tried to Become A Country: https://www.thelotusinstitute.org/blog/thebusinessthatbecameacountry Other Resources Mentioned: Margaret Mead: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Margaret_Mead 8:46 - Dave Chappelle: https://youtu.be/3tR6mKcBbT4 Outliers by Malcom Gladwell: https://www.amazon.com/Outliers-Story-Success-Malcolm-Gladwell/dp/0316017930 Carl Jung: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Carl_Jung Tricycle Article: https://tricycle.org/trikedaily/racial-karma/ Lions Roar: https://www.lionsroar.com/race-reclamation-and-the-resilience-revolution/ Additional Resources: Ten Percent Happier Live: https://tenpercent.com/live Coronavirus Sanity Guide: https://www.tenpercent.com/coronavirussanityguide Free App access for Frontline Workers: https://tenpercent.com/care Full Shownotes: https://www.tenpercent.com/podcast-episode/larry-ward-259

Why Your Bad Habits (and Addictions) May Be Getting Worse - and How Mindfulness Can Help | Dr. Jud Brewer

Do you find yourself overeating during this stressful time? Maybe drinking or smoking more than you would like? What about shopping or gambling? And how's your relationship to your phone these days? Our guest this episode, Dr. Judson Brewer, is an addiction psychiatrist - with a special interest in how mindfulness can help. He says we all sit somewhere on the spectrum of addiction. And when you add stress into the system- in this time of pandemic, recession and racial strife- many of us move the wrong way along the spectrum, toward hardcore addiction. And of course, for people who already have full blown addictions, the current conditions can be an utter disaster. But again, Jud has good news. He's used mindfulness and meditation to treat people with addictions to cigarettes, food, and opioids. He is the Director of Research and Innovation at the Mindfulness Center at the School of Medicine at Brown University. He has written a book, called The Craving Mind, and founded three apps to help people with eating, smoking cessation, and anxiety. Before we dive in, I want to mention that we recorded this episode a few weeks ago - right before the recent protests. As you will hear, though, this conversation is still fully relevant. With that said, here we go with Jud Brewer. Where to find Jud Brewer online: Website: https://drjud.com/ Twitter: https://twitter.com/judbrewer Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/judson.brewer.9 YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCi6bQu-Df7Wh2x3gFT5a8aw Other Resources Mentioned: Borkovec's model of GAD - https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC3073849/#:~:text=Borkovec's%20model%20of%20GAD%20 Mindfulness-Based Relapse Prevention for Addictive Behaviors: A Clinician's Guide - https://www.amazon.com/Mindfulness-Based-Relapse-Prevention-Addictive-Behaviors/dp/1606239872 New Research Shows Results for Smartphone Intervention for Obesity - https://osher.ucsf.edu/news/new-research-shows-results-smartphone-intervention-obesity Eat Right Now - https://goeatrightnow.com/ Craving to Quit - https://www.cravingtoquit.com/ Unwinding Anxiety - https://www.unwindinganxiety.com/ Additional Resources: Ten Percent Happier Live: https://tenpercent.com/live Coronavirus Sanity Guide: https://www.tenpercent.com/coronavirussanityguide Free App access for Frontline Workers: https://tenpercent.com/care Full Shownotes: https://www.tenpercent.com/podcast-episode/jud-brewer-258

The Dharma of Harriet Tubman | Spring Washam

I had always known Harriet Tubman as a conductor on the Underground Railroad, repeatedly risking her own life to lead slaves out of the South. But in this episode, my friend, the great meditation teacher Spring Washam, draws the link between Tubman and the Buddha, who also made it his business to lead people to freedom. Spring is teaching a new, five-week, online course called The Dharma of Harriet Tubman, through the East Bay Meditation Center. In the course, and in this interview, she uses stories from Tubman's life to teach the kind of meditation that will equip us with both the ferocity and warmth that we need in these trying times. Spring is one of the most important teachers for me in my own personal practice. We are an odd couple - she freely uses words such as "heart" and "soul." She likes to get all ooey-gooey and touchy-feely, with a giant side dish of shamanism. In fact, I often suspect that, since she knows this kind of talk makes me a little uncomfortable, she triples down on it when I'm around. But make no mistake, Spring is hardcore - both in terms of her meditation practice and her personal background. You can go back and listen to some of the prior episodes with her (we will put links in show notes), but the short version is that, in her upbringing, she experienced divorce, poverty, addiction, abuse, and racism - and emerged to be a meditation teacher and author (her book is called "A Fierce Heart"), and one of the most impressive human beings I have personally encountered. So if someone as badass as Spring is drawing inspiration from Harriet Tubman, so can we. Quick note: this conversation was initially scheduled just to be a personal phone call, but when I saw an email from Spring announcing the Harriet Tubman course, I asked her to let us use our scheduled time to record a podcast. Where to find Spring Washam online: Website: https://www.springwasham.com/ Twitter: https://twitter.com/springwasham Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/teacher.springwasham/ Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/springwasham/ YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCvoIv70jZKKXT2-ctKGhr7A Book Mentioned: A Fierce Heart: Finding Strength, Courage, and Wisdom in Any Moment https://www.amazon.com/Fierce-Heart-Finding-Strength-Courage/dp/1401959393?tag=smarturl-20 Check our our new, free collection of meditations called Relating to Race in the Ten Percent Happier app: https://10percenthappier.app.link/RelatingToRace Other Resources Mentioned: Register to Spring's course, The Dharma of Harriet Tubman & The Underground Railroad: https://www.eventbrite.com/e/the-dharma-of-harriet-tubman-and-the-underground-railroad-tickets-107495600234 Samsara: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Sa%E1%B9%83s%C4%81ra The Eightfold path: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Noble_Eightfold_Path Siddhartha: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Gautama_Buddha Harriet (2020): https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=GqoEs4cG6Uw Bodhisattva: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Bodhisattva The Underground Railroad: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Underground_Railroad Mahayana: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Mahayana Bodhicitta: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Bodhicitta Additional Resources: Ten Percent Happier Live: https://tenpercent.com/live Coronavirus Sanity Guide: https://www.tenpercent.com/coronavirussanityguide Free App access for Health Care Workers: https://tenpercent.com/care Full Shownotes: https://www.tenpercent.com/podcast-episode/spring-washam-257

White People, Drop the Shame and Get Curious | Shelly Graf

In this episode, we go there. All the way there. All those horrifying little thoughts that white people might have - eg: Have you ever felt superior to, or suspicious of, black people? - let's drag them out of the subconscious and look at them. We don't need to submerge them or swat them away. But here's the thing: can we do it with some semblance of mindfulness and even friendliness? This isn't an exercise in ritual shaming; guilt and shame are just self-centeredness cul-de-sacs. After all, we didn't summon these thoughts; they were injected into us by the culture. So fellow white people, instead of just looking at the race discussion as something supremely discomfiting, let's also look at it as an opportunity to do what we've been attempting to do in meditation all along: to know our minds better so that we don't blindly act out all of our conditioning. Our guest this week is the magnificent Shelly Graf. Shelly was recommended to me by my TPH colleague, Matthew Hepburn. Shelly is a social worker and a staff dharma teacher at the Common Ground Meditation Center in Minneapolis. To be clear, Shelly doesn't pretend to be an expert who has it all figured out - simply a meditation teacher who has committed to deeply engaging on the issue of race. So in that spirit, here we go: Shelly Graf. Where to find Shelly Graf online: Website: https://commongroundmeditation.org/ STwitter: https://twitter.com/cgmed Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/CommonGroundMeditation/ Check our our new, free collection of meditations called Relating to Race in the Ten Percent Happier app: https://10percenthappier.app.link/RelatingToRace Other Resources Mentioned: Refuge (Buddhism) - https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Refuge_(Buddhism) Karma in Buddhism - https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Karma_in_Buddhism Maitr? - https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Maitr%C4%AB Ruth King - https://ruthking.net/ Episode 164: Ruth King, Being Mindful of Race - https://open.spotify.com/episode/5p3BTgqKgke7PYSUbzvPrR Three Marks of Existence: Anicca, Dukkha, Anatta - https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Three_marks_of_existence M?na - https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/M%C4%81na Common Ground Meditation Center - https://commongroundmeditation.org/ The Characteristics of White Supremacy Culture - https://www.showingupforracialjustice.org/white-supremacy-culture-characteristics.html Detour-Spotting for White Anti-Racists - https://www.racialequitytools.org/resourcefiles/olson.pdf List of resources from Resmaa Menakem - https://www.resmaa.com/resources Racial Affinity Group Development Program - https://ruthking.net/learning-with-ruth/ra-gdp/ Additional Resources: Ten Percent Happier Live: https://tenpercent.com/live Coronavirus Sanity Guide: https://www.tenpercent.com/coronavirussanityguide Free App access for Health Care Workers: https://tenpercent.com/care Full Shownotes: https://www.tenpercent.com/podcast-episode/shelly-graf-256

The View of American Turmoil from the Other Side of the World | Yongey Mingyur Rinpoche

We have spent the past few episodes talking with black and white Americans about race. But for this episode I wanted to get the view from outside. So I called up a man on the other side of the planet who is widely recognized to be one of the world's greatest living meditation masters. Yongey Mingyur Rinpoche is the author of such books as The Joy of Living and In Love with the World. He's only in his mid-forties - which is young by my standards - but as the child of another great meditation master, he began doing long retreats in his teens. He now teaches all over the world, with centers on five continents. He's known for his candor and humor. We cover an enormous range of topics here, including: love, hate, panic, boredom, relationships, death, and whether we humans are fundamentally good. And as a bonus, he guides a brief meditation toward the end. Quick audio note: Mingyur Rinpoche spoke to us from his busy home in Kathmandu, Nepal, so you'll occasionally hear some background noises, including barking dogs. Try to use your practice to just let it go. Where to find Yongey Mingyur Rinpoche online: Website: https://tergar.org/about/mingyur-rinpoche/ Twitter: https://twitter.com/mingyurrinpoche Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/mingyur.rinpoche/ Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/mingyurrinpoche/ YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/user/MingyurRinpoche Book Mentioned: In Love with the World: A Monk's Journey Through the Bardos of Living and Dying: https://www.amazon.com/Love-World-Journey-Through-Bardos/dp/0525512535 Additional Resources: Ten Percent Happier Live: https://tenpercent.com/live Coronavirus Sanity Guide: https://www.tenpercent.com/coronavirussanityguide Free App access for Health Care Workers: https://tenpercent.com/care Full Shownotes: https://www.tenpercent.com/podcast-episode/mingyur-rinpoche-255

White People Talking About Whiteness | Eleanor Hancock

Many, if not most, white people don't think of themselves as racialized. Race, we might tell ourselves, is an issue for people who have different skin colors than ours: black people, Hispanic people, Asian people, indigenous people, etcetera. But, of course, white is a racial category. (Important side note: race, for the record, is not a biological thing; it's socially constructed.) Sadly, the white people who seem to have most clearly grasped that white is a race are white nationalists. But now it's time for white people to see whiteness, to talk to one another about it. This, many people in the racial justice world argue, is the key first step towards white people engaging fully in creating a more equitable society. My guest is Eleanor Hancock, who is the Executive Director of a group called White Awake, which employs "educational resources and spiritual practices" to engage white people "in the creation of a just and sustainable society." Eleanor was recommended to me by Sebene Selassie, who is one of the core teachers on the Ten Percent Happier app. Eleanor and I talk about why this work is so important, why so many white people resist it, the barriers white people face when they begin the work, the role of meditation, and the problematic aspects of white wokeness in these discussions. Where to find Eleanor Hancock & White Awake online: Website: https://whiteawake.org/ Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/White-Awake-325759947539605/ For updates on upcoming courses from White Awake, check our their website and social media pages. Other Resources Mentioned: Assata Shakur / https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Assata_Shakur COINTELPRO / https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/COINTELPRO Kara Dansky / https://www.shambhalamountain.org/teacher/kara-dansky/ Anne Braden / https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Anne_Braden Ann Atwater / https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Ann_Atwater C. P. Ellis / https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/C._P._Ellis 7 thoughts on "Roots Deeper than Whiteness" / https://whiteawake.org/2018/10/27/roots-deeper-than-whiteness/ Neoliberalism / https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Neoliberalism Bacon's Rebellion / https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Bacon%27s_Rebellion Jacqueline Battalora / https://www.speakoutnow.org/speaker/jacqueline-battalora Down Home NC / https://downhomenc.org/ What is white supremacy? By Elizabeth 'Betita' Martinez / http://www.pym.org/annual-sessions/wp-content/uploads/sites/7/2017/06/What_Is_White_Supremacy_Martinez.pdf Ian Haney López / https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Ian_Haney_L%C3%B3pez Solidarity for Survival / https://www.davidbfdean.com/ian-haney-lopez Defund Police: Keeanga-Yamahtta Taylor Says Budgets Wrongly Prioritize Cops Over Schools, Hospitals / https://www.democracynow.org/2020/6/1/keeanga_yamahtta_taylor_defund_us_police Birth of a White Nation / https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=riVAuC0dnP4 Who Invented White People? / http://uuwhiteness.us/wp-content/uploads/2017/06/READING_-Who-Invented-White-People.pdf Handout 2: Not Somewhere Else, But Here | Building the World We Dream About | Tapestry of Faith / https://www.uua.org/re/tapestry/adults/btwwda/workshop7/handout2 White Awake Summer Study & Action Group / https://mailchi.mp/whiteawake/study-support-action-summer-2020 Resources to support: List of Bail Funds for Protestors across the Country / https://bailfunds.github.io/ National Bail Fund Network / https://www.communityjusticeexchange.org/nbfn-directory The Bail Project / https://bailproject.org/ Color Of Change / https://colorofchange.org/ Additional Resources: Ten Percent Happier Live: https://tenpercent.com/live Coronavirus Sanity Guide: https://www.tenpercent.com/coronavirussanityguide Free App access for Health Care Workers: https://tenpercent.com/care Full Shownotes: https://www.tenpercent.com/podcast-episode/eleanor-hancock-254

An Uncomfortable (But Meaningful) Conversation About Race | Lama Rod Owens

Many of us come to meditation for comfort. But, especially for white people, right now is a time to embrace our discomfort. Lama Rod Owens encourages me to step way out of my comfort zone in this conversation, and I am grateful to him for it. Owens is the author of the soon-to-be-released book, Love and Rage. As it says in the bio on his website, his story sits at the "cross sections" of so many aspects of American life "as a Black, queer male, born and raised in the South." He was officially recognized by the Kagyu school of Tibetan Buddhism after he completed a three-year silent retreat, during which time he says he dealt with years of past pain and trauma. As you will hear him say in this interview, he "worked his butt off to feel ok." After retreat, he completed a Master of Divinity at Harvard. I hope you get as much out of this conversation as I did. Where to find Lama Rod Owens online: Website: https://www.lamarod.com/ Twitter: https://twitter.com/lamarod1 Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/lamarod/ Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/lamarodowens/?hl=en Books: Love and Rage - The Path to Liberation Through Anger / https://bookshop.org/books/love-and-rage-the-path-of-liberation-through-anger-9781623174095/9781623174095 Radical Dharma - Talking Race, Love and Liberation / https://www.amazon.com/Radical-Dharma-Talking-Race-Liberation/dp/1623170982 Ten Percent Happier Challenge Update We've decided to postpone the Pandemic Resilience Challenge while we recalibrate it to better meet the needs of this moment. We want to make sure we're supporting you in coping with our current social crisis as well as the pandemic. We're not cancelling the challenge, just postponing - if you signed up for updates, you'll continue to receive information. Thank you for your patience and for giving us the time to get this right. You can find updates on the challenge at tenpercent.com/challenge Other Resources Mentioned: Narrative 4 Additional Resources: Ten Percent Happier Live: https://tenpercent.com/live Coronavirus Sanity Guide: https://www.tenpercent.com/coronavirussanityguide Free App access for Health Care Workers: https://tenpercent.com/care Full Shownotes: https://www.tenpercent.com/podcast-episode/lama-rod-owens-253

You Can't Meditate This Away (Race, Rage, and the Responsibilities of Meditators)

There is fury in America's streets - and we, as meditators, have the opportunity to use our practice to do the hard work of seeing things clearly (including the ugliness in our own minds), and responding wisely. I'm incredibly grateful to my guest, meditation teacher Sebene Selassie, for agreeing to come on this show on short notice (like, two hours beforehand) to discuss such a painful subject. This episode is in response to the protests that have broken out nationwide in the wake of the case of George Floyd, a black man who died after nearly nine minutes with his neck under the knee of a white police officer in Minneapolis. Our conversation is personal and raw. Most of all, we hope it is useful. Where to find Sebene online: Website: https://www.sebeneselassie.com/ Instagram @sebeneselassie // https://www.instagram.com/sebeneselassie/ Other Resources Mentioned: W. E. B. Du Bois // https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/W._E._B._Du_Bois KAREEM ABDUL-JABBAR L,A Times Op-ED // https://www.latimes.com/opinion/story/2020-05-30/dont-understand-the-protests-what-youre-seeing-is-people-pushed-to-the-edge The 1619 Project by New York Times // https://www.nytimes.com/interactive/2019/08/14/magazine/1619-america-slavery.html Seeing White - Scene on Radio // https://www.sceneonradio.org/seeing-white/ Well Read Black Girl // https://www.wellreadblackgirl.com/ Additional Resources: Ten Percent Happier Challenge: https://www.tenpercent.com/challenge Ten Percent Happier Live: https://tenpercent.com/live Coronavirus Sanity Guide: https://www.tenpercent.com/coronavirussanityguide Free App access for Health Care Workers: https://tenpercent.com/care Full Shownotes: https://www.tenpercent.com/podcast-episode/sebene-selassie-252

The Dalai Lama's Advice for Right Now

How do we handle pandemic-induced anxiety or grief? What does a spiritual guru do to relax while on lockdown? We put those questions - and more - to His Holiness the Dalai Lama. The man needs little introduction. He's the spiritual leader of the Tibetan people, and a global cultural icon who has been featured in an Apple ad, a Martin Scorsese biopic, and in a classic Bill Murray scene from Caddyshack. We spoke to His Holiness from his home in Dharamsala, India. Also on the line: Richard Davidson from the Center for Healthy Minds at the University of Wisconsin in Madison. Richie (that's what everyone calls him) is an old friend of the Dalai Lama's. They've been collaborating for decades on scientific research into the effects of meditation on the brain. After we hear from the Dalai Lama - who makes a series of surprising statements - we'll unpack it all in a separate convo with Richie. Where to find The Dalai Lama online: Website: https://www.dalailama.com/ Twitter: https://twitter.com/DalaiLama Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/DalaiLama Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/dalailama/ YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/user/gyalwarinpoche Ten Percent Happier Pandemic Resilience Challenge: On June 10, we're launching the Pandemic Resilience Challenge: a free 21 day meditation challenge to help all of us cope with the anxiety, uncertainty, loneliness, boredom and all the other fun emotions we're experiencing during this pandemic. To join the waitlist and receive updates, visit https://tenpercent.com/challenge. Where to find Richie Davidson online: Healthy Minds Innovations // https://hminnovations.org/hmi/about Center for Healthy Minds // https://centerhealthyminds.org/ Twitter: https://twitter.com/healthyminds Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/centerforhealthyminds/ Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/healthy.mind Additional Resources: Ten Percent Happier Live: https://tenpercent.com/live Coronavirus Sanity Guide: https://www.tenpercent.com/coronavirussanityguide We want to deeply thank and recognize healthcare workers, teachers, warehouse workers, grocery and food delivery workers for the essential role that they play in our lives. For FREE access to the app and hundreds of meditations and resources visit https://tenpercent.com/care Full Shownotes: https://www.tenpercent.com/podcast-episode/the-dalai-lama-251

Holding it Together When Things Fall Apart | Pema Chodron

Pema Chodron has seemingly been trying to prepare us for this pandemic for years, through a series of popular books, with titles such as When Things Fall Apart, Welcoming the Unwelcome, and The Wisdom of No Escape. But as you will hear, she is anything but gloomy. Like all of the great meditation teachers I've met, she has a lightness and a sense of humor about her. Notwithstanding her chipper demeanor, she has worked hard to point out to her readers and students that groundlessness and uncertainty are fundamental facts of life - which are becoming increasingly salient in our current crisis. Pema Chodron was born Deirdre Blomfield in Connecticut. She lived a conventional life, going to UC Berkeley, becoming a school teacher, and having a pair of kids. But after a rough divorce, she found herself adrift. During this time, she discovered Tibetan Buddhism, shaved her head, and became a nun. Now in her mid-eighties, she lives in rural Nova Scotia, where she is the director of Gampo Abbey. We connected with her on an old-school landline. We talked about how to actually welcome the unwelcome. We also discussed how to: befriend your demons, sympathize without being stupid, lighten up in the face of fear, and embrace chaos as "extremely good news." Where to find Pema Chodron online: Website: https://pemachodronfoundation.org/about/pema-chodron/ Twitter: Pema Chödrön (@AniPemaChodron) / https://twitter.com/AniPemaChodron Facebook: Pema Chodron / https://www.facebook.com/Pema.Chodron/ Instagram: AniPemaChodron (@anipemachodron) / https://www.instagram.com/anipemachodron/ Books Mentioned: When Things Fall Apart: Heart Advice for Difficult Times by Pema Chodron / https://www.amazon.com/When-Things-Fall-Apart-Difficult-ebook/dp/B00BBXJH2C Welcoming the Unwelcome by Pema Chodron / https://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B07V77TZ33/ref=dbs_a_def_rwt_bibl_vppi_i1 Emotional Awareness by The Dalai Lama and Paul Ekman / https://www.amazon.com/Emotional-Awareness-Overcoming-Psychological-Compassion/dp/0805090215 Other Resources Mentioned: Theravada Tradition / https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Buddhist_meditation#Contemporary_Therav%C4%81da Tonglen Practice / https://www.lionsroar.com/how-to-practice-tonglen/ For a limited time, we're offering a 40% discount on a year-long subscription to the app. Visit tenpercent.com/podcast40 to get your discount and get support for your meditation practice today. This promotion is only available to users without a current Ten Percent Happier app subscription. Additional Resources: Ten Percent Happier Live: https://tenpercent.com/live Coronavirus Sanity Guide: https://www.tenpercent.com/coronavirussanityguide We want to deeply thank and recognize healthcare workers, teachers, warehouse workers, grocery and food delivery workers for the essential role that they play in our lives. For FREE access to the app and hundreds of meditations and resources visit https://tenpercent.com/care Full Shownotes: https://www.tenpercent.com/podcast-episode/pema-chodron-250

Don't Let This Crisis Go To Waste | Roshi Joan Halifax

Roshi Joan Halifax is definitely not arguing the pandemic is a good thing, but she also believes we shouldn't let this crisis go to waste. It's a wake-up call, she says - a chance for us to really take a beat and ask ourselves what actually matters, both individually and as a culture. Roshi Joan Halifax is a buddhist teacher, zen priest, anthropologist, and pioneer in the field of end-of-life care. She is founder, abbot, and head teacher of Upaya Institute and Zen Center in Santa Fe, New Mexico. And her motto for this crisis, as you will hear, is: strong back, soft front. Where to find Roshi Joan Halifax online: Website: https://www.upaya.org/about/roshi/ Twitter: Joan Halifax (@jhalifax) / https://twitter.com/jhalifax Facebook: Joan Halifax / https://www.facebook.com/joan.halifax For a limited time, we're offering a 40% discount on a year-long subscription to the app. Visit tenpercent.com/podcast40 to get your discount and get support for your meditation practice today. This promotion is only available to users without a current Ten Percent Happier app subscription. Other Resources Mentioned: Glassman Roshi / https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Bernie_Glassman Arnold van Gennep / https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Arnold_van_Gennep What is Jukai? / https://www.lionsroar.com/what-is-jukai/ Biography of Nelson Mandela – Nelson Mandela Foundation https://www.nelsonmandela.org/content/page/biography Malala - Girls' Education / https://malala.org/advocacy?sc=header Heather McTeer Toney / https://www.momscleanairforce.org/team/heather-mcteer-toney/ The Sun My Heart by Thich Nhat Hanh / https://www.amazon.com/Sun-Heart-Thich-Nhat-Hanh/dp/0712654224 Aldo Leopold / https://www.aldoleopold.org/about/aldo-leopold/ Robert Bly / http://www.robertbly.com/ Stanislav Grof / https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Stanislav_Grof Venerable Tara Tulku Rinpoche Additional Resources: Ten Percent Happier Live: https://tenpercent.com/live Coronavirus Sanity Guide: https://www.tenpercent.com/coronavirussanityguide Free App Access for Journalists, Teachers, Healthcare, Grocery and Food Delivery, and Warehouse Workers: https://tenpercent.com/care Full Shownotes: https://www.tenpercent.com/podcast-episode/joan-halifax-249

How to Be a Good and Sane Citizen in Ugly Times | Ezra Klein

Rest assured, this is not an episode where we're going to argue about politics. Instead, it's about how to maintain our happiness, calm, sanity, generosity, and compassion in the face of an increasingly ugly political dynamic that impacts all of us during this pandemic. Ezra Klein is the founder and editor-at-large of Vox.com, host of the Ezra Klein Show podcast, and author of the new book, Why We're Polarized. In this episode, we talk about the roots of what he calls the "Coronavirus culture war," the role of mindfulness in depolarizing ourselves, and the limited benefits of varying your media diet (and why podcasts are better than Twitter in this regard). As you'll hear, Klein acknowledges his own struggle to remain un-polarized but as a journalist he is committed to providing dispassionate analysis. Towards the end, Ezra speaks candidly about his anxiety and his struggles with his own meditation practice during this crisis. For a limited time, we're offering a 40% discount on a year-long subscription to the app. Visit tenpercent.com/podcast40 to get your discount and get support for your meditation practice today. This promotion is only available to users without a current Ten Percent Happier app subscription. Where to find Ezra Klein online: Vox: https://www.vox.com/authors/ezra-klein Twitter: Ezra Klein (@ezraklein) / https://twitter.com/ezraklein Facebook: Ezra Klein - Home / https://www.facebook.com/ezraklein/ Book Mentioned: Why We're Polarized by Ezra Klein / https://www.amazon.com/Why-Were-Polarized-Ezra-Klein/dp/147670032X Other Resources Mentioned: Better Angels / https://www.thebetterangelssociety.org/ Weather Underground / https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Weather_Underground Civil Rights Act / https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Civil_Rights_Act_of_1964 Ross Douthat / https://www.nytimes.com/by/ross-douthat Twitter's Flawed Solution to Political Polarization / https://dupri.duke.edu/news-events/news/twitters-flawed-solution-political-polarization The Weeds Podcast / https://www.vox.com/the-weeds Morning Joe / https://www.msnbc.com/morning-joe Pod Save America /https://crooked.com/podcast-series/pod-save-america/ The Federalist / https://thefederalist.com/ The Ben Shapiro Show / https://www.dailywire.com/show/the-ben-shapiro-show The Argument / https://www.nytimes.com/column/the-argument Ethan D. Hersh / https://www.eitanhersh.com/ Additional Resources: Ten Percent Happier Live: https://tenpercent.com/live Coronavirus Sanity Guide: https://www.tenpercent.com/coronavirussanityguide Free App Access for Journalists, Teachers, Healthcare, Grocery and Food Delivery, and Warehouse Workers: https://tenpercent.com/care Full Shownotes: https://www.tenpercent.com/podcast-episode/ezra-klein-248

Weird Dreams, Family Relationships, and Collective Trauma | Dr. Mark Epstein

Why are so many of us having such weird dreams these days? How do we successfully interact with family members while on lockdown? Are we all experiencing some sort of trauma? These are just some of the questions with which we grapple during this discussion with Dr. Mark Epstein. It is no exaggeration to say that Mark has played a pivotal role in my life. My then-fiancé (and now wife), Bianca, gave me one of Mark's books (called Going to Pieces Without Falling Apart) back in 2009, and it genuinely changed my life. It was my first introduction to Buddhism. And to hear someone with actual medical experience (Mark is a Harvard-trained psychiatrist) extol the virtues of meditation made me reconsider a practice I had long considered ridiculous. In this chat, we also talk about blurring the line between meditation and therapy, and the profound value of not taking yourself too seriously. Enjoy. Where to find Mark Esptein online: Website: http://markepsteinmd.com/ Twitter: @Mepstein108 / https://twitter.com/Mepstein108 Facebook: Mark Epstein, MD / https://www.facebook.com/markepstein108/ Book Mentioned: The Trauma of Everyday Life / https://www.amazon.com/Trauma-Everyday-Life-Mark-Epstein/dp/0143125745 Other Resources Mentioned: Joseph Goldstein / https://www.dharma.org/teacher/joseph-goldstein/ Roberth Thurman / https://bobthurman.com/ Ram Dass / https://www.ramdass.org/ Samuel Beckett / https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Samuel_Beckett Jack Kornfield / https://jackkornfield.com/ Additional Resources: Ten Percent Happier Live: https://tenpercent.com/live Coronavirus Sanity Guide: https://www.tenpercent.com/coronavirussanityguide Free App Access for Teachers, Healthcare, Grocery and Food Delivery, and Warehouse Workers: https://tenpercent.com/care Get more focus and clarity by bringing mindfulness to your company with a team subscription to Ten Percent Happier! Visit tenpercent.com/work to learn more. Full Shownotes: https://www.tenpercent.com/podcast-episode/mark-epstein-247

Losing Your Patience? Here's How to Get it Back

This pandemic is a colossal test of our patience - from dealing with family to interminably long wait times on calls with the unemployment office to just wanting this whole nightmare to evaporate so we can go back to the movies. We've got a special, two-part episode this week. In the first part, we bring on a pair of researchers who study patience. The good news: they have found that patience is a quality we can train and develop through meditation and other strategies, including cognitive reappraisal, transcendence, or just learning how to fake it until you make it. (Side note: we also fall into an interesting chat about the benefits of defensive pessimism versus strategic optimism.) After the researchers, we bring on legendary meditation teacher Sharon Salzberg for a deeper dive into how to use meditation to increase our patience, especially when it comes to interpersonal stuff (which, let's be honest, includes other people and ourselves). Our patience experts are Dr. Sarah Schnitker from the Psychology and Neuroscience Department at Baylor University, and Dr. Kate Sweeny from the Psychology department at the University of California, Riverside. Where to find our guests online: Dr. Kate Sweeny / http://www.katesweeny.com/ Dr Sarah A. Schnitker / https://www.baylor.edu/psychologyneuroscience/index.php?id=950614 Sharon Salzberg / https://www.sharonsalzberg.com/ Other Resources Mentioned: Wendy Wood University of Southern California (Habits Research) / https://www.marshall.usc.edu/personnel/wendy-wood Richie Davidson Research on Pain and meditation / https://news.wisc.edu/meditation-expertise-changes-experience-of-pain/ Walter Mischel Marshmellow Test / https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Stanford_marshmallow_experiment Additional Resources: Ten Percent Happier Live: https://tenpercent.com/live Coronavirus Sanity Guide: https://www.tenpercent.com/coronavirussanityguide Free App Access for Teachers, Healthcare, Grocery and Food Delivery, and Warehouse Workers: https://tenpercent.com/care Get more focus and clarity by bringing mindfulness to your company with a team subscription to Ten Percent Happier! Visit tenpercent.com/work to learn more. Full Shownotes: https://www.tenpercent.com/podcast-episode/patience-246

The Other Side of the Pandemic | Rev. angel Kyodo williams

What will we be like when this thing is finally over? Will we be even more fearful and divided? Or is there a realistically rosier scenario? This is just one of the subjects we explore in a wide-ranging conversation with Rev. angel Kyodo williams. We also talk about the disutility of guilt in the face of all the horror we're witnessing in the time of COVID, and how to reclaim the word "love" from the land of hopeless cliché. I really enjoyed this conversation, especially how it warmed up as it went. By way of background, Reverend angel is the author of such books as Radical Dharma and Being Black. She is the second black woman to be recognized as a teacher in the Japanese Zen lineage. One of her main areas of interest is how to apply meditation to social issues such as race, climate, and economic inequality. A lot of people think meditation and activism are two separate things, but Rev. angel argues that "without inner change, there can be no outer change." In this chat, we start with big-picture issues, and increasingly move toward more personal stuff. She's one of those people who gets even more fascinating the more time you spend with her. Where to find Rev. angel Kyodo williams online: Website: https://angelkyodowilliams.com/ Twitter: angel Kyodo williams (@ZenChangeAngel) / https://twitter.com/zenchangeangel Facebook: Rev. angel Kyodo williams / https://www.facebook.com/zenchangeangel Instagram: angel Kyodo williams (@zenchangeangel) / https://www.instagram.com/zenchangeangel/ YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/c/ZenChangeAngel We've been nominated for two Webby awards. If you love and want to support our work, please vote for us via links in the episode description. Vote for us in the health & fitness app category / https://vote.webbyawards.com/PublicVoting#/2020/apps-mobile-and-voice/apps-mobile-sites-general/health-fitness Vote for us in the voice category / https://vote.webbyawards.com/PublicVoting#/2020/apps-mobile-and-voice/general-voice/health-fitness-lifestyle Other Resources Mentioned: Tonglen Practice / https://www.lionsroar.com/how-to-practice-tonglen/ James Doty / https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/James_Doty_(physician) All About Love by bell hooks / https://www.amazon.com/All-About-Love-Visions-Paperback-ebook/dp/B078GL796R Loving Kindness Practice / https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Maitr%C4%AB Additional Resources: Ten Percent Happier Live: https://tenpercent.com/live Coronavirus Sanity Guide: https://www.tenpercent.com/coronavirussanityguide We want to deeply thank and recognize teachers, warehouse workers, grocery and food delivery workers, and healthcare workers for the essential role that they play in our lives. For FREE access to the app and hundreds of meditations and resources visit https://tenpercent.com/care Full Shownotes: https://www.tenpercent.com/podcast-episode/rev-angel-kyodo-williams-245

Small Ways to Improve Your Everyday Life Right Now | Gretchen Rubin

I call Gretchen Rubin the "Swiss Army Knife for Happiness." Present her with a problem, and she will flood you with practical, customized solutions. I love having Gretchen on this show not only because she's smart and funny and we're friends, but also because she provides some compelling counterprogramming. Most of our guests come from the meditation world, but Gretchen approaches happiness from a very different angle. She's a lawyer by training - she began her career clerking for Supreme Court Justice Sandra Day O'Connor - who went on to write a series of books that examine small, doable ways to boost our happiness in everyday life. Her books include her breakout memoir The Happiness Project, and then follow-on bestsellers such as The Four Tendencies (which is a fascinating look at how different kinds of people form habits). In this interview, we explore a bunch of ways to improve your day-to-day life in this pandemic. We talk about: family relationships, decluttering, setting priorities, managing your relationship to technology, treating yourself without overindulging, and going easy on yourself versus expecting more from yourself. Where to find Gretchen Rubin online: Website: https://gretchenrubin.com/ Twitter: https://twitter.com/gretchenrubin Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/GretchenRubin Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/gretchenrubin/ Book Mentioned: Outer Order, Inner Calm by Gretchen Rubin / https://gretchenrubin.com/books/outer-order-inner-calm/about-the-book We've been nominated for two Webby awards. If you love and want to support our work, please vote for us via links in the episode description. Vote for us in the health & fitness app category. / https://vote.webbyawards.com/PublicVoting#/2020/apps-mobile-and-voice/apps-mobile-sites-general/health-fitness Vote for us in the voice category. / https://vote.webbyawards.com/PublicVoting#/2020/apps-mobile-and-voice/general-voice/health-fitness-lifestyle Other Resources Mentioned: Susan Kaiser Greenland / https://www.susankaisergreenland.com/ Some Good News / https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCOe_y6KKvS3PdIfb9q9pGug The Four Tendencies Quiz / https://quiz.gretchenrubin.com/ Additional Resources: Ten Percent Happier Live: https://tenpercent.com/live Coronavirus Sanity Guide: https://www.tenpercent.com/coronavirussanityguide We want to deeply thank and recognize teachers, warehouse workers, grocery and food delivery workers, and healthcare workers for the essential role that they play in our lives. For FREE access to the app and hundreds of meditations and resources visit https://tenpercent.com/care Full Shownotes: https://www.tenpercent.com/podcast-episode/gretchen-rubin-244

Can You Be OK With Uncertainty? | Jack Kornfield

On this episode, a bad news / good news situation. Let's start with the bad news: human beings are not wired for uncertainty. It short circuits our system. The mind wants to plan, to work things out - and, in a pandemic, that is basically impossible. The good news: meditation is perfectly designed to take the edge off, if not more. Our guest this week is Jack Kornfield, a pioneering meditation teacher, prolific author, a former Buddhist monk, and a clinical psychologist. We talk about: how to use meditation to embrace uncertainty, the importance of getting in touch with your own "tainted glory," and why we shouldn't fear the schmaltz. (That last one was mostly for me.) Where to find Jack Kornfield online: Website: https://jackkornfield.com/ Twitter: https://twitter.com/JackKornfield Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/jkornfield Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/jack_kornfield/ YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/channel/UC5JayBKk-Bynk6XnUnU7vLA Other Resources Mentioned: Lady Gaga Kicks Off 'One World: Together at Home' With Performance of 'Smile' / https://variety.com/2020/music/news/lady-gaga-smile-together-at-home-1234584282/ Spring Washam / https://www.springwasham.com/ Ram Dass / https://www.ramdass.org/ Neem Karoli Baba / https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Neem_Karoli_Baba Wangari Maathai / https://www.greenbeltmovement.org/wangari-maathai Preah Maha Ghosananda / https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Preah_Maha_Ghosananda Dolly Parton's Poem / https://www.instagram.com/p/B-xdJu6FCR9/ Insight Meditation Society / https://www.dharma.org/ Jack Kornfield's Meditations / https://jackkornfield.com/meditations/ Tara Brach / https://www.tarabrach.com/ Additional Resources: Ten Percent Happier Live: https://tenpercent.com/live Coronavirus Sanity Guide: https://www.tenpercent.com/coronavirussanityguide Free App access for Health Care Workers, Grocery Store & Food Delivery Workers: https://tenpercent.com/care Full Shownotes: https://www.tenpercent.com/podcast-episode/jack-kornfield-243