10% Happier with Dan Harris

If your inner narrator won't give it a rest — constantly judging, narrating, or second-guessing you — you're in good company. In this live conversation from our weekly Substack sessions, Dan sits down with meditation teacher Dawn Mauricio to explore how to work with the nonstop chatter in your mind. They dig into common pitfalls like self-judgment, overthinking, and the feeling that you're "failin...

An antidote to boredom and stuckness. S arah Ruhl is an award-winning American playwright, author, essayist, and professor. Her latest book is Lessons from My Teachers: From Preschool to the Present .   In this episode we talk about: How to orient towards the world with an eagerness to learn  How to approach our lives not only as students, but also as teachers Unpacking the moment when "the studen...

An often overlooked secret, from a U. Chicago happiness expert.   Shigehiro Oishi is the Marshall Field IV Professor of Psychology at the University of Chicago. He is one of the foremost authorities on happiness, meaning, and culture. His newest book is Life in Three Dimensions: How Curiosity, Exploration, and Experience Make a Fuller, Better Life .   In this episode we talk about: How our obsessi...

Sharing an episode featuring Dan from a podcast we love, Think Fast, Talk Smart . In this episode of Think Fast, Talk Smart, Dan and host Matt Abrahams discuss how mindfulness can transform our communication, sharing strategies for deeper listening, responding versus reacting, and reflecting what others say back to them. "Relationships are the most important aspect of your happiness," Dan says. "T...

If the idea of "sending love to all beings" makes you roll your eyes, this episode is for you. Dan leads a guided meditation, suitable for all levels of experience. Originally recorded during one of our live sangha gatherings on Substack, which are open to paid subscribers at DanHarris.com .  Tickets are now on sale for a special live taping of the 10% Happier Podcast with guest Pete Holmes! Join...

A performance coach and bestselling author shares practical tools for thriving in crisis, shaving down the ego, and designing the life you want.   #1 New York Times bestselling author Jim Murphy is a Performance Coach to some of the best athletes and leaders in the world. In addition to coaching professional athletes and executives, Murphy is the president of the Inner Excellence Freedom Project w...

An acclaimed science writer on how to upgrade your mind by using more than your head. Annie Murphy Paul is a science writer and TED speaker. Her latest book is The Extended Mind: The Power of Thinking Outside the Brain . In this episode we talk about: Why upgrading your mind involves more than just using your head. How our bodies, surroundings, and relationships all have the power to enhance our t...

A longtime cancer survivor — and our Teacher of the Month — has some suggestions for working with pain.   Join Dan's online community here Follow Dan on social: Instagram , TikTok Subscribe to our YouTube Channel Get ready for another Meditation Party at Omega Institute! This in-person workshop brings together Dan with his friends and meditation teachers, Sebene Selassie, Jeff Warren, and for the...

Nobody makes it out of childhood unscathed. Here's a guide to letting go of the past.   Allison Sweet Grant, graduate with dual master's degrees from the University of Michigan, is a psychiatric nurse practitioner, turned author. She has been published in The New York Times and The Atlantic. She is the author of two children's picture books, The Gift Inside the Box and Leif and the Fall, co-author...

A Buddhist recipe for speaking, working, and living in a way that will make you happy. JoAnna Hardy has practiced in multiple traditions since 1999. She is currently a meditation trainer at Apple Fitness+ , a visiting teacher at Black Being LA , a visiting retreat teacher at Insight Meditation Society , and about to embark on a new mystery journey!  In this episode we talk about: Sila, the Buddhis...

How to do "shadow work," interpret your dreams, and find your "self." Satya Doyle Byock is a psychotherapist and educator focused on the relationship with the unconscious. She is the director of The Salome Institute of Jungian Studies and the author of the book Quarterlife: The Search for Self in Early Adulthood . She writes weekly and hosts regular workshops on her Substack, Self & Society .  In...

Listening to your body… easier said than done? Sebene Selassie is here to help.  All this month, we're sharing custom guided meditations from our teacher of the month, Sebene Selassie exclusively available at DanHarris.com . Like any good drug dealer, the first taste is free – so today, we're giving you a sample of what you can expect for the rest of the month. Related Episodes:  Sebene Selassie O...

Every year, Joseph Goldstein does a three month silent meditation retreat by himself at his home in Massachusetts. In this conversation you're about to hear, Joseph had just emerged from one such retreat with a bunch of thoughts on what are called the three proliferating tendencies or three papañca to use the ancient Pali term.  These are three ways in which we perpetuate an unhealthy sense of sel...

The antidote to a noisy, chaotic world. Pico Iyer is the acclaimed and bestselling author of more than a dozen books translated into twenty-three languages, most recently the nationally bestselling Aflame: Learning from Silence .  In this episode we talk about: Why and how Pico found himself spending a lot of time at a silent monastery What he's learned about the power and potency of silence  Why...

The psychology and neuroscience of revenge.   James Kimmel, Jr. is a lecturer in psychiatry at the Yale School of Medicine, an expert on revenge, a lawyer, and the founder and co-director of the Yale Collaborative for Motive Control Studies. He is the creator of The Nonjustice System, the Miracle Court app, and SavingCain.org for recovering from grievances and revenge desires and preventing mass v...

We're in the midst of an exciting evolution of the overall 10% Happier project. In our quest to make this podcast more actionable – to help you operationalize all the game-changing ideas you encounter on this pod – we're now offering guided meditations to accompany each full episode of the show, available to paid subscribers at DanHarris.com . For the month of October, those meditations will come...

A playbook for finding financial success without compromising your values.   David Gelles is a bestselling author and a climate correspondent for The New York Times. His new book, " Dirtbag Billionaire ," reveals how Yvon Chouinard turned Patagonia into one of the world's most remarkable companies.    In this episode we talk about: What a 'dirtbag' means  The innovative ways in which Chouinard ran...

How to stay calm and steady in uncertain times. Trudy Goodman , Ph. D., is the founding teacher of InsightLA and cofounder of The Institute for Meditation and Psychotherapy. Trudy has trained in mindfulness and Zen since 1973, holds a graduate degree in developmental psychology from Harvard, and is widely known for her role as the voice of Trudy the Love Barbarian in the Netflix series The Midnigh...

Anyone with a passing familiarity with Buddhism will know that "delusion" is rarely, if ever, mentioned in a positive way. In fact, the Buddha included delusion (aka: confusion about the way things really are) on his list of "the three poisons." The whole point of meditation, per the Buddha, is to uproot delusion -- along with greed and hatred. Only then can you be enlightened. My guest today is h...

From The Way Out Is In, the official podcast of Thich Nhat Hanh's Plum Village tradition, co-hosted by frequent 10% guest Brother Chan Phap Huu and leadership coach Jo Confino. In this installment, Brother Phap Huu and Jo discuss the true meaning of Zen, finding beauty and meaning in simplicity, and how to practice so in everyday life. Also, what does it mean to be part of a Zen tradition? And how...

Because even doing the dishes can be an opportunity to wake up. We're bringing you some of our favorite gems from the archives, as chosen by our staff. This week, we're hearing from dharma teacher Kamala Masters as chosen by our executive producer DJ Cashmere. Kamala reflects on the practice of equanimity, and how to be mindful even in the "hell realm" of raising young children.  Full Episode:  Ho...

A toolkit for navigating your fears, finding your "core," and having sovereignty over your nervous system.   Brené Brown is a research professor at the University of Houston, where she holds the Huffington Foundation Endowed Chair at the Graduate College of Social Work. She is the author of six #1 New York Times bestsellers and the host of two award-winning podcasts.    In this episode we talk abo...

Practical ways to lead a good life.  Kieran Setiya is the Peter de Florez Professor of Philosophy at MIT, where he works on ethics and related questions about human agency and human knowledge. He is the author of Midlife: A Philosophical Guide and Life Is Hard: How Philosophy Can Help Us Find Our Way. He also maintains a Substack newsletter, Under the Net . In this episode we talk about: How Kiera...

Our Teacher of the Month answers a common question: how do I find the time to meditate? Vinny turns this question on its head, and his answer might surprise you.   Join Dan's online community here Follow Dan on social: Instagram , TikTok Subscribe to our YouTube Channel Get ready for another Meditation Party at Omega Institute! This in-person workshop brings together Dan with his friends and medit...

A guide to navigating "the rodeo of life".   Academy Award–winning actor and #1 New York Times bestselling author Matthew McConaughey is a husband and a father, an eternal optimist, a hopeful skeptic, and a man of faith who believes that we should all start sellin' Sunday morning like a Saturday night. His latest book is Poems and Prayers .   In this episode we talk about: What Matthew's prayer pr...