Executive Bookshelf : 10% Happier - Dan Harris
Synopsis
Nightline anchor Dan Harris embarks on an unexpected, hilarious, and deeply skeptical odyssey through the strange worlds of spirituality and self-help, and discovers a way to get happier that is truly achievable.
After having a nationally televised panic attack, Dan Harris knew he had to make some changes. A lifelong nonbeliever, he found himself on a bizarre adventure involving a disgraced pastor, a mysterious self-help guru, and a gaggle of brain scientists. Eventually, Harris realized that the source of his problems was the very thing he always thought was his greatest asset: the incessant, insatiable voice in his head, which had propelled him through the ranks of a hypercompetitive business, but had also led him to make the profoundly stupid decisions that provoked his on-air freak-out.
Finally, Harris stumbled upon an effective way to rein in that voice, something he always assumed to be either impossible or useless: meditation, a tool that research suggests can do everything from lower your blood pressure to essentially rewire your brain. 10% Happier takes readers on a ride from the outer reaches of neuroscience to the inner sanctum of network news to the bizarre fringes of America’s spiritual scene, and leaves them with a takeaway that could actually change their lives.
Tom’s Take:
I've always been a deep believer in controlling one's own destiny. Hard work, sprinkled in with a little luck and the right network- I can control these things. Recently, a seismic shift in my perspective has changed my outlook. We don't control the road that lies before us. Rather, we should be aware of the incredibleness in every moment of the journey.
Looking at my career, I could not have mapped out the winding and strange path that I've loved. It's been an incredible journey that has unfolded before me.
Unfold Yoga + Wellness at work - namaste!
I remember the first time I actually considered doing yoga. We were out to dinner with our friends (who also happen to be Allison's cousins) Nicole and Brion. Nicole runs a successful work-based yoga practice and has always suggested yoga as a great exercise for mind and body. I would half-listen to what I thought was new-aged silliness. Then Brion said he’s tried it helped his back problems. Hang on now...that's something I can get behind. No back problems and better sleeping? Sure thing. A little eternal happiness sprinkled in there wouldn't hurt either.
My immediate fixation and love of yoga has since opened my mind to other realms of "spirituality" that I previous scoffed at. I had tried meditation on and off....but never "got" it. Sure, it seemed like a 10 minute mind break was good, but what the hell was it doing?
I was reading a newspaper and there was an article or an ad for a new book, "Meditation for the Fidgety Skeptic." Oh yeah, that's EXACTLY what I had experienced. I picked up the book without delay and started in on it. My thoughtful wife knew I was going down that path of discovery and found the author had also written a book called 10% Happier and picked up a copy.
My guru, Dan Harris.
I knew this book was something special, by the design of the book cover! Add in the incredible sub-title: "How I Tamed The Voice In My Head, Reduced Stress Without Losing My Edge, and Found Self-Help That Actually Works - A True Story." To top it off, it was written by some guy that looked familiar and was an ABC News Reporter?
Tickle me interested.
Right out of the gate, this book grabbed me. Here was a hard-charging, a-type, meat-and potatoes guy, with full skepticism (and mockery) of most things spiritual. If he could get into meditation, there must be something there.
The book is well written- it's clear, concise, funny, honest, and isn't made to impress - it's made to help. I read the entire book in one afternoon, and I’ve since re-read it many times. Harris does a superb job of not only leading readers on the journey of his self-discovery, but also includes the continued (very honest) questioning of the tenants of meditation and Buddhism. The humor of his running commentary on people and situations that anyone new to meditation and mindfulness would appreciate. He he's answer the questions about what the heck is happening when we close our eyes and try to find inner peace.
For you executives that have come to a place in your lives and careers where you understand that things in your head can be a little clearer and your life can be a little better ... this book is for you. It's not about being a zen pushover, but about exercising the most important muscle in your body - your mind. This book can also reach out to those skeptics that don't think meditation, yoga and other new forms of spirituality and self-help work…but I warn you.
Stay open to this stuff. If you aren't ready to take a chance and give it a shot, stay away until you are. Get a hold of me and I can help, or there are many groups, clinics, studios and fellow travelers on the road of life that can lend a hand.