10% Happier With Dan Harris

Many of us can feel burnt out, tired or stretched too thin. It can be hard to balance everything on our plates, especially in work environments that require long hours and multi-tasking. But Alex Soojung-Kim Pang says that overworking can actually hinder productivity, and that working less can help you get more done. After struggling to deal with the pressure of numerous projects as a technology forecaster and consultant, Pang took a sabbatical at Microsoft Research in Cambridge. He realized that he had accomplished more in just a few short months than he typically did at work. Now, Pang challenges the relationship we have with work, claiming that cramming in all those overtime hours is not beneficial to the mind and body. He says working too hard blocks creative flow and has negative effects on quality. Pang discusses how he came to this realization and how it can be applied to your life. Plug Zone Website: http://www.askpang.com/ Website: http://www.strategy.rest/ Books: https://www.amazon.com/Alex-Soojung-

Stephen Batchelor is a Buddhist teacher who takes an unconventional approach to the practice. He was more of a scholar, studying logic and philosophy rather than mantras and deities. In his early life, Stephen traveled to India and met the Dalai Lama, which led him to become a monk who practiced Tibetan Buddhist tradition. Throughout his practice, Stephen felt torn between reason and faith, which ultimately resulted in his secular approach to Buddhism. He follows it as an ever-changing awakening rather than as a religious belief. Stephen eventually transitioned from Tibetan to Zen practice, as he was drawn by the meditation and existential questions of the world. He says keeping an open and questioning mind is key to the practice, and Zen frees the mind from what holds it back, allowing creativity and the ability to embark on the arts. Stephen says that though it’s important to have a sense of where the Buddhist teachings come from, we shouldn’t get stuck trying to preserve or replicate something that has sur

Valerie Brown grew up in poverty in Brooklyn, New York. When she was a teenager, her mother passed away and her father left her to fend for herself. Valerie was forced to become an adult before anyone should have to. She put herself through school, becoming a successful lawyer and lobbyist before realizing that she had been running away from something her whole life. She had been trying to escape her past. Even with all of her success and overcoming hardships, Valerie still found herself unhappy and unfulfilled. That’s when she found mindfulness and meditation. With a new clarity in life, she no longer felt the need to run away because she could now happily live in the present. Valerie is now a leadership coach, educator and retreat leader, helping those in need of clarity in their lives. Though she loves to help everyone, Valerie focuses on people of color who face adversity. Plug Zone Website: www.leadsmartcoaching.com Books: www.amazon.com/Valerie-Brown/e/B00MDBD72M El Camino de Santiago in Spain Pilgrimag

Rhonda V. Magee is a Professor of Law at the University of San Francisco and an internationally-recognized thought and practice leader focused on integrating mindfulness into higher education, law and social change work. Born in North Carolina in 1967, Rhonda experienced a childhood of significant trauma and challenge. Yet, she was gifted with the insight that through a life of caring engagement, self-development, and service with others, she could find a way up and out. She has dedicated her life to healing and teaching in ways that support others in a journey to wholeness and justice. A student of a variety of Buddhist and other wisdom teachers, including Norman Fischer, Joan Halifax and Jon Kabat-Zinn, she trained as a mindfulness teacher through the Oasis Teacher Training Institute of the University of Massachusetts Center for Mindfulness. She teaches mindfulness-based interventions, awareness, and compassion practices from a range of traditions. Plug Zone Website: https://www.rhondavmagee.com/ Book: http

Yung Pueblo (Diego Perez) grew up in poverty after his family immigrated from Ecuador to Boston, Massachusetts. He fell into heavy drugs in his college years, consumed in misery and sadness, before going on his first Vipassana meditation retreat. There, he learned how to accept and embrace change in one’s self, be present in the moment and find joy in both the ups and downs of life. Now a well-known meditator, writer and public speaker, Yung Pueblo uses a plethora of social media platforms to help others on their own journeys towards a free life. Plug Zone Website: http://yungpueblo.com/ Book - Inward: https://www.amazon.com/Inward-Yung-Pueblo/dp/1449495753 Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/yung_pueblo Twitter: https://twitter.com/YungPueblo Ten Percent Happier Podcast Insiders Feedback Group: https://10percenthappier.typeform.com/to/vHz4q4 Have a question for Dan? Leave us a voicemail: 646-883-8326 See Privacy Policy at https://art19.com/privacy and California Privacy Notice at https://art19.com/privacy#

Sonja Lyubomirsky has been studying human happiness for 30 years. As a professor at the University of California Riverside, her research has centered around things people can do to become happier. In this episode she talks about her findings, including the power of social connection and how that might just be the key ingredient to happiness. She also talks about how we can increase our level of social connection. Show notes: www.tenpercent.com/podcast Sonja’s Website: http://drsonja.net/about-sonja/ Sonja’s Books: https://www.amazon.com/Sonja-Lyubomirsky/e/B001JP269S/ Sonja at UC Riverside: https://profiles.ucr.edu/app/home/profile/sonja Sonja on Ten Percent Happier: https://10percenthappier.app.link/0E69lbTsH3 Check out the new Ten Percent Happier course on Health Habits with Kelly McGonigal and Alexis Santos: WWW.TENPERCENT.COM/HABITS In the App: https://10percenthappier.app.link/gAd07mXoo2 References in the show: Quiet: The Power of Introverts in a World That Can't Stop Talking Susan Cain https://www.amazo

Being open to the feelings of anxiety and fear can be terrifying, but Tara Brach, a clinical psychologist and founder of the Insight Meditation Community of Washington, DC, has a method to guide us through our most difficult emotions. In this episode Brach details how her method, which goes by the acronym R.A.I.N., provides steps to help us face and process our own emotions. She has made strides within the meditation community by weaving together western psychology insights with meditation to begin the emotional healing process. Brach received her Ph.D. in clinical psychology and completed a five-year Buddhist teacher training program at the Spirit Rock Meditation Center. She leads silent meditation retreats, has numerous publications and a weekly podcast. She is the author of Radical Acceptance, True Refuge, and her most recent publication, Radical Compassion: Learning to Love Yourself and Your World with the Practice of R.A.I.N. Plug Zone Website: https://www.tarabrach.com/ Podcast: https://www.tarabrach.co

Jon Kabat-Zinn has been a key player bringing mindfulness meditation to the mainstream. In 1979, he introduced the now world-renowned Mindfulness-Based Stress Reduction program, a meditation therapy used to treat a variety of illnesses. In this episode, Kabat-Zinn talks about the importance of awareness and why now, more than ever, having awareness and being present in each moment is vital. He says meditation doesn't end when you get off the cushion. Rather, we should view every moment in life as a meditative practice. Plug Zone Jon Kabat-Zinn’s Website: https://www.mindfulnesscds.com/ Books: https://www.mindfulnesscds.com/pages/books-by-jon-kabat-zinn Previous podcast: https://www.tenpercent.com/podcast-episode/jon-kabat-zinn-75 Podcast References Spaceship Earth by Buckminster-Fuller: https://www.amazon.com/Operating-Manual-Spaceship-Buckminster-Fuller/dp/3037781262 Calmer Choice on Cape Cod: https://calmerchoice.org/ MIT Study of mindfulness with middle school children: http://news.mit.edu/2019/mindfulness

While in medical school in the mid-90's, Alexis Santos found himself in the midst of a spiritual crisis. At one of the top medical schools in the country, he felt unfulfilled and disillusioned by the stress and unhappiness around him and in his fellow students. After two years, he changed course and travelled to India, where he was first introduced to insight meditation on a 10-day retreat in the S.N. Goenka tradition. Interested to deepen his meditation practice, he happened across Sayadaw U Tejaniya, an unknown meditation teacher in Burma at the time. Recognizing his good fortune, Alexis decided to stay on, where he ordained as a Buddhist monk for two years. At the encouragement of Sayadaw U Tejaniya, Alexis began teaching and in 2016 he completed the Spirit Rock/Insight Meditation Society teacher training program with Joseph Goldstein, Jack Kornfield and others. He now teaches meditation retreats at centers throughout North America, Europe and Australia. In this episode, the conversation gets an interestin

Dr. Matthew Walker is a sleep scientist with a PhD in neurophysiology. His research investigates the impact of sleep on human health and diseases like Alzheimer's, Parkinson's, and cancer. In this episode, Dr. Walker shares significant findings on what happens to us when we do not get enough sleep. He also offers practical tips on how we can get more, quality sleep and how meditation can help. Join the New Year's Meditation Challenge: https://10percenthappier.app.link/IpETZ7CAX1 Plug Zone-- Book: Why We Sleep, https://www.amazon.com/dp/1501144316 Website: https://www.sleepdiplomat.com/ Twitter: https://twitter.com/sleepdiplomat?lang=en Podcast Insiders Feedback Group: https://10percenthappier.typeform.com/to/vHz4q4 Have a question for Dan? Leave us a voicemail: 646-883-8326 See Privacy Policy at https://art19.com/privacy and California Privacy Notice at https://art19.com/privacy#do-not-sell-my-info.

Dan shares four best practices to help you build and keep up the meditation habit. Join the Free New Years Meditation Challenge: https://10percenthappier.app.link/IpETZ7CAX1 Have a question for Dan? Leave us a voicemail: 646-883-8326 See Privacy Policy at https://art19.com/privacy and California Privacy Notice at https://art19.com/privacy#do-not-sell-my-info.

Award-winning registered dietitian Evelyn Tribole inspires people to rethink their relationship with food and enjoy eating. In today's diet culture, people have stopped trusting their bodies and are ignoring its cues. In her nutrition counseling practice, Evelyn helps people tune in to what their bodies are trying to tell them through awareness and intuitive eating. In this episode, Evelyn describes how her meditation practice has deepened her passion for her career. She further explains the ten principles detailed in her new book, "Intuitive Eating," about rejecting the diet mentality and making peace with all food. Join the New Years Meditation Challenge: https://10percenthappier.app.link/IpETZ7CAX1 Plugzone: Website: https://www.evelyntribole.com/ New Book: https://www.amazon.com/Intuitive-Eating-4th-Anti-Diet-Revolutionary/dp/1250255198/ Work book: https://www.amazon.com/Intuitive-Eating-Workbook-Principles-Relationship/dp/1626256225/ Books: https://www.evelyntribole.com/evelyns-books/ Instagram: https://

For as long as she can remember, Kelly McGonigal has felt motivated to understand the causes of pain and suffering and find ways to relieve them. This motivation led her to pursue a career in psychology and cultivate a meditation practice. In this episode Kelly talks about the types of meditation that have the biggest impact for her and how she integrates them into her daily life. She also discusses her new book, "The Joy of Movement," which she hopes will help change the negative perceptions some have about exercise. Calling her book a love letter to movement and human nature, she believes movement can help us access the positive states of bliss, joy, hope, and connection. She also offers practical tips for building healthy habits. Check out the new Ten Percent Happier course on healthy habits with Kelly McGonigal: http://www.tenpercent.com/habits (App: https://10percenthappier.app.link/gAd07mXoo2) Plugzone: - Website: http://kellymcgonigal.com/ - "The Joy of Movement": https://www.amazon.com/Joy-Movement-ex

Nikki Mirghafori has been an Artificial Intelligence scientist for nearly three decades. She never intended to become a Buddhist teacher, but after establishing herself in her AI career, she devoted her time to extensive meditation training. She now teaches Dharma internationally. In this fascinating discussion, Nikki details her extraordinary life experiences. From growing up in Iran during the Iran-Iraq War, to writing a thank you letter to a tick that gave her Lyme disease. She talks about her meditation practice today and how it has evolved from when she first started. And she dives into the process and benefits of one of her more challenging teachings, the Mindfulness of Death. Plugzone: Nikki's Website: https://www.nikkimirghafori.com/ The Most Venerable Pa-Auk Tawya Sayadaw Bhaddanta Acinna: https://www.paaukforestmonastery.org/about-us Podcast Episode #10 Leigh Brasington: https://podcasts.apple.com/my/podcast/10-leigh-brasington/id1087147821?i=1000367352158 Ten Percent Happier Gift: https://www.tenpe

Norman Fischer is a poet, writer, and Zen priest who has dedicated his life to studying, practicing and teaching Zen Buddhism. After graduating from the Iowa Writers' Workshop, he moved to San Francisco to learn how to practice meditation in the Soto Zen tradition. He spent decades studying the practice and serving the temple at the San Francisco Zen Center, where he went on to serve as the co-abbot from 1995-2000. After retiring as co-abbot, he founded the Everyday Zen Foundation where he continues to offer teachings and lead retreats. In this episode, Norman discusses with Dan the importance of expanding the way we think about ourselves and the world we live in because, he says, we are drowning in the limitations we've collectively set for ourselves and the ways we live in the world. The theme of the reflections in this episode come from Norman's new book titled "The World Could Be Otherwise." Plugzone: Website: https://www.normanfischer.org/ Everyday Zen Foundation: http://www.everydayzen.org/ The World Co

Elizabeth Stanley has a long history of stress and trauma. In this episode she talks about the adversities she has suffered, which include a near death experience and losing her eyesight for extended periods of time from contracting Lyme disease while serving in the military. After decades of "powering through" and not dealing with her difficult emotions, she reached a breaking point. That's when her healing journey began and she found meditation, sitting multiple long retreats. Stanley has since created a resilience training program, called Mindfulness-based Mind Fitness Training, that she has taught to military troops and to people working in high-stress situations. Her book, "Widen the Window," offers tools on thriving during stress and recovering from trauma. Plugzone: Website: https://elizabeth-stanley.com/ "Widen the Window": https://www.amazon.com/Widen-Window-Training-Thrive-Recover/dp/0735216592 Insiders Feedback Group: https://10percenthappier.typeform.com/to/vHz4q4 Have a question for Dan? Leave us

Thubten Chodron was born in Chicago and grew up near Los Angeles. She felt her life's calling was to help others, so she became a teacher, landing her first job in the inner-city schools of Los Angeles. Looking for something to do during summer break, she saw a flyer for a meditation course being taught by two Tibetan Lamas. Little did she know, taking this course would change the trajectory of her life. The teaching that resonated with her most was about setting motivations. She realized that though she was doing good things in her life, the motivations she had for doing them were self-centered. Chodron wanted to dedicate her life to living selflessly and with altruistic intentions. She felt the only way she could do that was to let go of her worldly attachments, including her marriage, and become a Buddhist nun. She believes we all have the potential to be happy and live altruistically, but we get in our own way. In this episode, Chodron offers her thoughts on how to set selfless motivations as we live our

Kittisaro graduated from Princeton as a Rhodes Scholar and went on to Oxford before going to Thailand to ordain with Ajahn Chah in 1976. He was a monk for 15 years. Thanissara started Buddhist practice in 1975, decided to ordain after meeting Ajahn Chah and spent 12 years as a Buddhist nun. They had known each other for years when they fell in love in 1991. They decided to leave the order so they could be together and were married the following year. They have gone on to become co-founders of Dharmagiri Sacred Mountain Retreat in South Africa and co-authors of Listening to the Heart: A Contemplative Guide to Engaged Buddhism. They are Guiding Teachers of Sacred Mountain Sangha, on the Spirit Rock Teacher Council, and are Core Teachers at Insight Meditation Society. In a wide ranging interview, they discuss their practice and how their monastic lives have prepared them for their life in a relationship. Plug Zone Website: http://sacredmountainsangha.org/ Books Listening to the Heart: A Contemplative Journey t

Psychotherapist and New York Times bestselling author Esther Perel is recognized as one of today’s most insightful and original voices on modern relationships. Perel provides her insight on such topics as: how to make a relationship work in today’s society, the real reasons why we cheat, and how political or economic shifts can affect our relationships. Her celebrated TED talks on relationships have garnered more than 28 million views and her international bestseller Mating in Captivity: Unlocking Erotic Intelligence became a global phenomenon translated into 25 languages. Plug Zone Website, Newsletter and Blog: https://www.estherperel.com/ Podcast: Where Should We Begin? with Esther Perel: https://podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast/where-should-we-begin-with-esther-perel/id1237931798 Podcast: How’s Work? With Esther Perel: https://open.spotify.com/show/0P13JasQfVZ1RiDCMZMYNU Book: Mating in Captivity: Unlocking Erotic Intelligence: https://www.amazon.com/Mating-Captivity-Unlocking-Erotic-Intelligence/dp/006075364

Our guest this week is Alicia Menendez, an award-winning journalist, who finds herself in a common position for many women: caring way too much about what others think of her. Be nice, but not too nice. Be successful, but not too successful. Just be likeable, whatever that means. In the workplace strong women are often criticized for being cold, while warm women may be seen as pushovers. In her just released book, The Likeability Trap, and in our conversation, she discusses this issue and explains how and why both men and women should combat it. Plug Zone The Likeability Trap: https://www.amazon.com/Likeability-Trap-Break-Free-Worth/dp/0062838768 Website: http://aliciamenendez.com/ Twitter: @AliciaMenendez Instagram: @aliciamenendezxo Facebook: @AliciaMenendezTV An Evening with Joseph Goldstein and Dan Harris: Staying Sane in a Crazy World https://www.nyimc.org/event/an-evening-with-joseph-goldstein-and-dan-harris-staying-sane-in-a-crazy-world/ Episode References Psychological Safety / What Google Learned Fr