Marc Lesser's Blog, page 12

Open Heart, Focused Mind with Dr. Dan Siegel

Today Marc and Dr. Dan Siegel discuss the deep inner work of awareness, the power of belonging, and the illusion of the self and shifting from me to “we.” Dan shares a meditation practice that he calls the “Wheel of Awareness.”

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Surprise Yourself: Talk, Guided meditation, Puzzler

What surprises you about your life right now? For me, the answer is “everything!” Enjoy this short talk and meditation on the power of surprise, a guided meditation, followed by a puzzler.

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Zen, Acting, and the Power of Ritual

With Peter Coyote, Actor, Zen Teacher and Writer.

Marc and Peter explore Peter’s story of how he came to his acting path, as well as his path to Zen practice. They talk about meditation, the power of ritual, the liberating effect of mask work, as well as bringing Zen practice into everyday life.

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Zen, Acting, and the Power of Ritual, with Peter Coyote, Actor, Zen Teacher and Writer

Today Marc and Peter Coyote explore Peter’s story of how he came to his acting path, as well as his path to Zen practice. They talk about meditation, the power of ritual, the liberating effect of mask work, as well as bringing Zen practice into everyday life.

Thanks for listening to Zen Bones!

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Enjoy Your Life: Guided Meditation, Talk, Puzzler

Marc begins with leading a guided meditation, followed by a short talk on impermanence as a path toward joy. “The evanescence of things is the reason why you enjoy your life” according the Zen teacher Shunryu Suzuki. Marc closes with a bi-weekly Zen Puzzler.

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Enjoy Your Life, Guided Meditation, Talk, Puzzler

Marc begins with leading a guided meditation, followed by a short talk on impermanence as a path toward joy. “The evanescence of things is the reason why you enjoy your life” according the Zen teacher Shunryu Suzuki. Marc closes with a bi-weekly Zen Puzzler.

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Finding Your Way

Today Marc is speaking with Dr. Elizabeth Lindsey, a cultural anthropologist, and the first female fellow and Polynesian explorer of the National Geographic Society.

Marc and Elizabeth discuss the importance of being your authentic self, and the path and power of wayfinding. They also talk about a favorite saying of one of Elizabeth’s indigenous mentors: “we have lots of clocks but little time.” Elizabeth offers a song/prayer of healing.

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Finding Your Way, with Elizabeth Lindsey

Today Marc is peaking with Elizabeth Landry. Elizabeth is a cultural anthropologist, the first female fellow and Polynesian explorer of the National Geographic Society.

Marc and Elizabeth discuss the importance of being your authentic self and the path and power of wayfinding. They also talk about time and when one of Elizabeth’s indigenous mentors said that we have lots of clocks but little time. Elizabeth offers a song/prayer of healing.

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Stop Giving Away Your Power

Developing your own sense of agency or personal power may be one of the most important practices you can engage in order to lead more skillfully, maintain a healthier work/life balance, foster more effective communication, and nurture your most key relationships.

To clarify, I’m referring to power in a positive sense; I’m talking about your ability to make effective decisions, and to influence for the greater good.

Recognizing the importance of agency in this context is easy but have you ever thought about some of the ways you might be whittling away at this innate power? Considering the ways in which we give our power away can actually be strangely empowering (an interesting paradox!) and it can expose some useful insights.

I’ve asked this question of many individuals, and in a variety of contexts and settings, and some of the more common answers I’ve heard are:
– I say “yes” when I mean “no.”
– I rush from one thing to another, totally caught up in “busyness.”
– I overthink decisions, then overthink my overthinking.
– I underestimate my abilities.
– I don’t make clear requests or ask for help.

Asking ourselves this question and naming our own tendencies to give away our personal power heightens self-awareness. Shining the light on and noticing our actions, how we step into or out of our own personal agency, is a powerful mindfulness practice, and the starting point of mindful leadership.

As leaders, we can practice having more agency by:

Not avoiding conflict. Be real. Be vulnerable. Be courageous. Be willing to take a stance, especially when it feels difficult.

Being aware of busyness as a way of avoiding stress and anxiety. If we notice a pattern here, we need to make more space to do less.

Noticing our process of decision-making. Sometimes it’s better to ask for forgiveness rather than for permission. Try deciding more easily and see what happens.

Being more realistic about our competence. Explore turning doubts in possibilities by bringing an attitude of curiosity to everything you do and engage.

Depending more on others by making clear requests.

We are all searching for ways to find our true power – in our families, our relationships, our work, our identities, and in all parts of our lives. Our true power lies in stepping into our full authentic selves and having a positive influence on those we touch. In The Hero’s Journey, my online course with Insight Timer, I teach simple and highly practical ways to approach challenges and difficulties with greater clarity and ease, and ultimately, integrate your true power in all parts of your ordinary and extraordinary life. Check it out here.

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The Power of Shaping Your Days

Adapted from Less: Accomplishing More by Doing Less.

When my two children were in elementary school, a weekly day of doing less was an important part of our family ritual. We borrowed some ideas from the Jewish Sabbath as well as Buddhist Day of Mindfulness practices. At the heart of our day, we had three simple rules that we applied from sundown on Friday until sundown on Saturday evening:

Rule #1: There was no spending money.
Rule #2: There was no watching television.
Rule #3: We did something together as a family.

These three guidelines produced significant results in the quality of those twenty-four hours. What a relief to not buy anything, not have the television on, and spend time simply enjoying each other’s presence. My wife and I talked more with our two children; we read books, told stories, played games, went for walks, and shared meals. The biggest benefit of this structured break was that, for a day, the pace of our lives slowed down and our family connections increased.

One of my favorite parts of this ritual was the formal ending. We observed the Jewish tradition of looking for the first three stars to become visible on Saturday evening, signaling that Sabbath was over. It was fun and exciting for the four of us to stand on our deck together, seeing who could find the three stars as the sun faded and nighttime slowly emerged. Of course, since we live in Marin County, dense fog sometimes forced us to use our imaginations.

Instituting rest and simplicity is not a magic wand for perfection. There were occasional disagreements, grumpiness, and boredom. But our imperfections often emerge as the most endearing parts of ourselves, and those “Sabbath” days stand out as important building blocks, and are great memories, for our still-growing family.

In the midst of covid and the intensity of our lives, these guidelines and rituals might feel quaint, as though from another age. I feel a bit of that myself. And I feel pulled to return to some simple rituals that revolve around doing less, and focusing more on the quality of time with others, as well as connecting with the rhythms of the natural world.

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