Untangle, The Podcast From Meditation Studio

Today’s guest is Dr. Rick Hanson — a Psychologist and NY times Best Selling author of several books, including the book we discuss in this interview “Hardwiring Happiness: The New Brain Science of Contentment, Calm, and Confidence." He shares how we can hardwire our brains for happiness using practices that help us cultivate and experience the good in our lives while reducing our natural negativity biases. He shares why is it easier to ruminate over hurt feelings, negative feelings rather than to bask in the warmth of being appreciated or positive feelings. ? The negative stuff is like velcro…it sticks to us. But it doesn’t have to.  He says we can build our inner strengths and capacity to override the brains habit of defaulting to pessimism.  He suggests a simple method that uses the hidden power of everyday experiences to build new neural structures full of happiness, love, confidence, and peace. Encore. Visit rickhanson.net to see what he’s up to.  And don’t forget to check out your free 30 days with the m

Today’s guest is Judson Brewer, a Psychiatrist, Neuroscientist and Author who specializes in the field of mindfulness and addiction. He is widely recognized for his work on understanding the mechanisms of craving and developing effective strategies to overcome addictive behaviors. One of his notable contributions is his research on the "Hunger Habit." He discussed this in his book, The Hunger Habit: Why We Eat When We're Not Hungry and How to Stop. The Hunger Habit is a concept that explores the parallels between overeating and other forms of addiction. Brewer's research suggests that the root cause of many addictive behaviors, including overeating, lies in the craving and reward-based learning processes of the brain. Brewer's approach to breaking the Hunger Habit revolves around mindfulness. He believes that by bringing mindful awareness to our eating behaviors, we can develop a deeper understanding of our cravings and make more conscious choices. Mindfulness allows us to observe our thoughts, emotions, and

Today’s guest is David Nichtern, a senior Buddhist teacher who has been practicing and teaching meditation for over 40 years. He is also a highly regarded, award winning composer, producer and guitarist, as well as the founder of two record companies. David has recorded and played with Stevie Wonder, Jerry Garcia, Paul Simon and many others. And to round out his background, he’s also a business consultant and author of the book, Creativity, Spirituality and Making a Buck — which is what we discuss today.  David’s grasp of spirituality, mindfulness, music and entrepreneurship make him a unique animal, so to speak. The underlying principle of this book is that it’s possible to move toward balance, prosperity, happiness, and basic sanity in our lives as human beings. The core of the operating system that will get us there is recognizing how our minds work and how the world works to deepen our understanding of ourselves and the world around us. He shares useful advice and practical tools for integrating all of wh

Today’s guest is one of my favorites of all time. When I first interviewed Parker Palmer, the writer, teacher, poet and all around wise and soulful human — it was near a birthday that was giving me some pause as I was feeling the weight of time passing. I felt such a rush of pure humanity from listening to his words. It was the best birthday gift. The book we discussed is called On the Brink of Everything: Grace, Gravity, and Getting Old. It’s one of 10 amazing books that he’s authored. He says we must accept all of who we are…our wholeness and our brokenness. Wholeness involves integrating your imperfections along with whatever degree of perfection you may have achieved. It means embracing brokenness as an important part of our lives. It all belongs. I loved when he said that our hearts stay supple when we learn to embrace the little heartbreaks of everyday life. Eventually, he says, we can say...Yes, I am my strengths and my weaknesses. I am my successes and my failures. I am a source of light and I can be

Andrés González is a Puerto-Rican American teacher, author, and musician. He has taught yoga and meditation to diverse populations worldwide for twenty years and is a Co-Founder of the Holistic Life Foundation, founded in 2001. Andrés is a certified Health Coach through the Institute of Integrative Nutrition and maintains a B.S. in Marketing and an MBA from the University of Maryland. His teaching and music center around the liberation of marginalized individuals and communities through personal empowerment, healing, and love. Let Your Light Shine is his first book.  Ali Smith is a teacher and author, born and raised in Baltimore, Maryland. Ali’s life-long study of yoga, meditation, and mindfulness has served as the impetus for his pioneering work bringing trauma-informed yoga and mindfulness to underserved youth–and influencing education curriculum worldwide. He is the longtime Executive Director of the Holistic Life Foundation, a non-profit organization he co-founded in 2001 that brings yoga and mindfulness

Sarah Stein Greenberg is Executive Director of Stanford University's d School (Design School) and is the author of the book, “Creative Acts for Curious People. How to Think, Create and Lead in Unconventional Ways’’. A quote from the book sums it up: “In an era of ambiguous, messy problems, as well as extraordinary opportunities for positive change, it’s vital to have both an inquisitive mind and the ability to act with intention. This book is filled with ways to build those skills with resilience, care, and confidence”. The tools and exercises in the book are a gift to the rest of us who’ve not yet had the opportunity to go through their programs designed to spark creativity, foster connection, and solve problems. From her Linkedin profile: Sarah leads a community of designers, faculty, and other innovative thinkers who help people unlock their creative abilities and apply them to the world. Sarah speaks regularly at universities and global conferences on design, business, and education. She holds an MBA from

Ben Angel, author of "Unstoppable, A 90-Day Plan to Biohack Your Mind and Body for Success" shares how his early depression and lack of energy led him to ‘find solutions’ he never imagined would make him feel better. He made it his mission to explore alternatives beyond medicine and ‘self-help.’ His journey paid off! He talks about how you can close the gap between where you are and where you want to be, and shows us how to get fired up and focused with some tools that may have the power to change our lives forever. Encore. Check out the Meditation Studio App to get meditations for performance, focus and more. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Monique Billings is a professional basketball player for the Atlanta Dream of the Women's National Basketball Association. She was drafted into the WNBA in 2018. She shares her personal story about growing up with a strong family foundation, her meditation practice, her commitment to self-care, and her healthy routines. She has an amazing inner compass and an ability to follow her gut, her intuition, and her spirit. All of this makes her a great player...and a great human. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Today’s guest is Katy Milkman, Wharton University Professor and author of the national bestseller, How to Change, The Science of Getting from Where you are to Where you Want to Be. The book was named one of the top 8 books for healthy living in 2021 by the NY Times. Katy has devoted her career to the study of behavior change, inspired by the fact that 40% of premature deaths are due to behaviors and habits we can actually change. She discusses the importance of understanding the barriers that stand between you and the change you’re trying to make so that you can find the right solution to each particular roadblock. Turning an uphill battle into a downhill one is one of the keys to success. She goes through the most common barriers which tend to be short-term rewards or instant gratification, procrastination, and forgetfulness. She provides some great research and tools to support habit change. Encore. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Kristin Neff is an expert and pioneer in the field of self-compassion. Her most recent book is called Fierce Self Compassion: How Women can Harness Kindness to Speak Up, Claim their Power and Thrive. She discusses how self-compassion allows us to be tender with ourselves in difficult situations, but also that it sometimes needs to be fierce — like the mama bear energy that comes from a place of love, service, and a desire to reduce harm. We must, she says, act courageously to protect ourselves from harm and injustice — and to motivate necessary change in ourselves and society. Her message…women can be fierce and tender. Best quote from the book: "Tender Self-Compassion harnesses the energy of nurturing to alleviate suffering while fierce Self-Compassion harnesses the energy of action to alleviate suffering." We need both. Encore. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Dr. Ellen Hendriksen is a clinical psychologist whose focus is on helping millions of people calm their anxiety so they can be more comfortable with their true selves. She serves on the faculty at Boston University's Center for Anxiety and Related Disorders and is the author of the book we discuss today, How to Be Yourself: Quiet the Inner Critic and Rise Above Social Anxiety. In this episode, we talk about the fear of being judged or rejected, and how to manage our somewhat distorted (and often annoying) negative thoughts. We’ve heard this before…your thoughts are NOT always true. Ellen discusses many ways to quiet the inner chatter that takes us down a rabbit hole and prevents us from living life, and enjoying it, to its fullest. She shares how we can actually rewire our brains through our behavior, make changes and let go of the 'monkey mind' inner critic. It’s not easy…but she suggests lots of small steps we can take. Encore. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Today’s guest is Richard Hawkes, thought leader, change expert, author and Founder & CEO, of Growth River — an international consulting firm. His book is called Navigate the Swirl, 7 conversations for Business Transformation. He specializes in helping organizations and individuals scale and grow. In fact, he was my executive coach over 15 years ago and a big reason I made some pretty important changes in my life at that time.  What I liked about this discussion was all of the connections I started thinking about between business transformation and personal transformation. They both involve activating purpose, driving focus, shifting mindset, aligning strategy and implementing initiatives. When we discuss the kind of team you need to build a high performing organization, I wondered about the teams we build as individuals — those in our tribes, so to speak, that support and encourage our own transformation.  Some of the things we discuss:  How do we actually navigate change in organizations and in our lives?

10% Happier Author and Former ABC News Anchor Dan Harris joined us in the early days - almost 6 years ago on Untangles 7th episode. In this interview he shared the story of how he came to believe that Meditation is, in fact, a way for all of us to be at least 10% happier, and a great way to tame the monkey mind or as he says, get centered again when you’re wayward thoughts are yanking you around. He’s funny and honest, and shares how meditation has helped him handle conflict and everyday annoyances with those who matter most in his life. He discusses tools for learning meditation--especially for those who say they can’t sit still.  Unlock 30 days of Meditation Studio for free at choosemuse.com/meditationstudio. Transform your brain's potential with 15% of Muse. Use code UNTANGLE15 at checkout or visit choosemuse.com/UNTANGLE15.  Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Dr. Epstein is a family physician, palliative care Dr., author, researcher, and teaches communication and mindful practice in medicine. His book, Attending: Medicine, Mindfulness, and Humanity explores how the foundations of mindfulness can help clinicians expand their capacity to provide high-quality care, and how doctors, patients, and their families can more collaboratively and mindfully approach medical decisions. He shares how the practice of mindfulness in medicine helps support a deeper understanding and connection between clinicians and patients, how we can flourish and be more resilient in the midst of uncertain situations, and how healthcare professionals can more skillfully cope with the discomfort of ambiguity. He also discusses his hope that the human aspects of medicine can become at least as important as the technical aspects of the future. Encore episode. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Todays guest is Cheryl Richardson. Cheryl has written 7 books and has dedicated her life to the practice of self care. When we begin to care for ourselves, we naturally begin to care for others…families, friends, the environment and the world. There are so many wisdom nuggets in this episode. She invites us to look at what’s draining our energy so that we can let go of what no longer serves us; she shares how to make our inner lives more of a priority and discusses how to set up priorities and boundaries. I love her phrase; “stop doing things that bore you.” This can be the biggest energy drain of all. She also suggests that doing the opposite of what you normally do or even think you can do can be a great way to change stagnant habits and break some old patterns. Cheryl shares why focusing on self care is so important for all of us. She also discusses how to make soul vs. ego more of a focus as you move into your later years; how to look at what’s draining your energy by making a list and eliminating each

Todays guest is Ozan Varol. Ozan is a native of Turkey and moved to the US to study astrophysics when he was 17. He started out as a rocket scientist and later became a law professor. In our interview, he reflects on how there were so many moments where on paper everything looked great, but intuitively there was something deep down in his gut that felt very wrong. He couldn’t rationally explain the feeling…but he knew he needed to make some changes in his life. And he did. His mission now is to help others reimagine the conventional wisdom that led them to decisions that govern their lives…but no longer need to. I like when he says “is your safety net really a straight jacket?” His book is called Awaken your Genius. Escape Conformity, Ignite Creativity and Become Extraordinary. Genius, to him, means being who you were meant to be; not what others expect. Unlock your originality and unleash your unique talents to discover your true nature. I think you’ll find his perspectives super interesting, and a great

Welcome to another meditation edition of Untangle.I’m excited to introduce you to Shawn Moore. Shawn is a meditation and yoga teacher, and loves to create spaces for stillness and self-inquiry to help leaders and all of us… align our strengths, intention, and impact. Today’s meditation lives in the Optimal Brain States Collection on the Muse app. Shawn leads all of the community initiatives at Muse and is passionate about bringing people together to connect, learn and be inspired by one another. Today’s meditation is about the gifts of a growth vs. fixed mindset. He invites us to leave lot’s of room for reflection here. My favorite part? He asks us to ponder this question. How do you react when working outside your comfort zone? Head over to choosemuse.com to check out his meditations on the Muse app. Use Untangle15 for your discount code. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Todays guest is Rob Schwartz. You may not know him, but you’ve likely heard of his dad, Morrie. Bestseller, “Tuesdays with Morrie,” sold over 18 million copies after it was released in 1997. While Morrie, a beloved dad and professor at Brandeis University, was dying of ALS, Mitch Albom, one of his students, sat down to interview him every Tuesday for 12 weeks. This became a treasure trove of his philosophy as his health declined. It was very early in our understanding of ALS or Lou Gehrig’s disease. Several years after “Tuesdays with Morrie," and the death of his father, Rob, found an almost finished manuscript in his dad’s desk drawer. He decided to edit this book as a tribute to his dad. Now, “The Wisdom of Morrie," recently released, is a new look at Morries’ life wisdom and lessons. I was happy to be reminded of the spirit and light that filled his life, despite that he was dying. A reminder from Morrie: “Dying is only one thing to be upset about; living an unhappy life is something else.” Show Not

Enjoy this lovely meditation, by Kate Johnson, in honor of World Meditation Week. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Guest interviewer > Ariel Garten! Do you want to wake up feeling great, and be productive through the rest of the day? Make the most of your day by optimizing your mornings. Charming British brother and sister therapists, Toby and Kate Oliver, give dozens of practical, science-backed techniques to try at the start of the day, to improve your morning and the whole day. Whether you’re a morning person or a night owl, this episode will help you transform your life, one morning at a time. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices