#233: Dan Harris: Making Meditation a Habit & Techniques for Beginners

After experiencing a panic attack on national TV from self-medicating with recreational drugs, Dan turned to meditation as a means to control anxiety and post-traumatic stress. In this show, he teaches you how to meditate, even if you’re a fidgety skeptic.   This show is brought to you by: https://courses.highintensityhealth.com Take 50% off all the High Intensity Health eCourses now through next Sunday, 7/15/2018, using promo code: SUMMERHEALTH ---------------------------Key Takeaways--------------------------------- 05:08 Meditators are more sensitive to the impacts of food, sleep and environment upon mental acuity. 07:26 The main thing that meditation does for beginners is boost self-awareness. 09:28 Dan created an app called 10% Happier to teach people how to meditate. 10:21 Meditation allows us to respond wisely rather than respond blindly. 14:09 Our ancestors had a hypervigilant pleasure seeking and pain avoiding ego as a survival tool to avoid danger, find adequate food and sexual partners. 15:48 Mindfulness is the ability to step out of the traffic, the cacophony of your own mind. Meditation helps you boost that skill. 17:00 Dan wrote a book and later started a company, both called 10% Happier, to teach people how to meditation with an app. 18:56 Dan’s book Meditation for Fidgety Skeptics to tell a fun story, find out what is stopping people, who want to meditate, from meditating and helping them do it, and teach basic meditation. 20:19 The two biggest obstacles to meditating are “I can’t clear my mind.” and “I don’t have time for this.” 21:10 ___________ is my meditation. 23:14 Meditation is sitting quietly, eyes closed and paying attention to the feeling of your breath coming in and going out. 24:43 The point is not feel calm. The point is to learn how to see clearly what is happening in your head so you can navigate it in a more supple way. 28:38 Anger is a passing state of mind. 30:42 Mindfulness and Transcendental Meditation are most common today. 35:25 Mindfulness meditation helps you to become aware. 36:43 Walking meditation can be done informally. Feel your legs moving. Notice what you are seeing. Tune into the physical sensations of the activity. 39:17 Meditation is counterintuitive to type-A people. Approach with an attitude of interest and exploration. 40:07 Psychedelic mushrooms may be a mindfulness accelerant. 43:40 Dan doesn’t do woo woo at this point, but he does not rule it out. 46:13 Dan’s Morning Routine: Upon waking he stretches, showers and meditates for 15 minutes. He tries to meditate, combined, 2 hours each day. 50:10 Dan’s Elevator Speech: Meditation is a great way to transcend political tribalism.   This show is brought to you by: https://courses.highintensityhealth.com Take 50% off all the High Intensity Health eCourses now through next Sunday, 7/15/2018, using promo code: SUMMERHEALTH