Rick Hanson's Blog, page 49

Be the Body

Where do you live?

The Practice:

Be the body.

Why?

As a kid, I was really out of touch with my body. I hardly noticed it most of the time, and when I did, I prodded it like a mule to do a better job of hauling “me” – the head – around.

This approach helped me soldier through some tough times. But there were costs. Many pleasures were numbed, or they flew over – actually, under – my head. I didn’t feel deeply engaged with life, like I was peering at the world through a hole in a fence. I pushed...

Being Well Podcast: Psychological Safety with Amy Edmondson

[image error]






[image error]






[image error]






[image error]

From keeping our personal relationships happy and healthy to dealing with group projects at school to all kinds of interactions in the workplace, we’re all “managers” to varying degrees. And we all participate in teams, large and small, most days. Many of us have been fortunate enough to be on a really great team…and most all of us have probably been on a bad one. So, what makes for a great tea...

Meditation + Talk: 5 Ways to Steady the Mind

This Wednesday Night Meditation, included a 35-minute guided meditation and 44-minute talk and discussion.

I hope you find it helpful, and you are welcome to join my free Wednesday Meditations – open to everyone!

Meditation

Download the Audio of this Meditation

Talk: 5 Ways to Steady the Mind

Download the Audio of this Talk

Dāna offering:...

One Breath at a Time

Are you breathing?

The Practice:

One breath at a time.

Why?

[If for you the breath is associated with trauma and discomfort, you probably shouldn’t try this practice in its form below. But you might adapt it to something that is more nurturing for you, such as a saying or image.]

Breathing brings you home. Body and mind twine together in the breath. As soon as you become aware of breathing, you’re in your body. Speed up the breath and there’s new energy. Slow it down and you calm. Inhale and...

Being Well Podcast: Real Change with Sharon Salzberg

[image error]






[image error]






[image error]






[image error]

Sharon Salzberg, one of the most prominent teachers of mindfulness in the West, joins us to discuss how we can create real change in our hearts, minds, and lives. 

About our Guest: Sharon Salzberg is a central figure in the field of meditation, a world-renowned teacher and NY Times bestselling author. Her 11th book, Real Change: Mindfulness to Heal Ourselves and the World, comes out September 1...

Meditation + Talk: The Inner Peace That Releases Fear

This Wednesday Night Meditation, included a 33-minute guided meditation and 51-minute talk and discussion.

I hope you find it helpful, and you are welcome to join my free Wednesday Meditations – open to everyone!

Meditation

Download the Audio of this Meditation

Talk: The Inner Peace That Releases Fear

Download the Audio of this Talk

Dāna ...

Let It Go

When is it “time to fold ‘em?”

The Practice:

Let it go.

Why?

Most people, me included, are holding onto at least one thing way past its expiration date.

It could be a belief, perhaps that your hair is falling out and you are ugly and unlovable as a result, that you can’t say what you really feel in an intimate relationship, or that you must lose ten pounds to be attractive. It could be a desire, such as wishing someone would treat you better, pushing to make a project be successful, yearning for...

Being Well Podcast: Key Skills for Great Relationships



Learn some of the key psychological skills that lead to a truly great relationship – informed by 35 years of couples counseling experience.

The Relationships Workshop:

Join Rick for a live, online relationship workshop that will teach you how to have more fulfilling, effective, and joyful relationships than ever before. It’s seven hours of live teaching on August 15 and 16. Follow the link to...

Meditation + Talk: Letting Go While Aiming High

This Wednesday Night Meditation, included a 35-minute guided meditation and 47-minute talk and discussion.

My talk explored how we can practice non-attachment while also getting stuff done and dreaming big dreams. I’ve been inspired by this teaching from the great Zen master, Suzuki Roshi:

I don’t know if there are enlightened beings,

but I know there are enlightened moments.

I hope you find it helpful, and you are welcome to join my free Wednesday Meditations – open to ...

Vote

What difference do we make?

The Practice:

Vote

W hy?

Sometimes it’s hard not to feel hopeless. You might be dealing with a personal situation – perhaps illness or unemployment – that’s not getting better. Or you could be worried about the coronavirus pandemic. Or appalled, as I am here in America, by the recent murder of George Floyd by a policeman, and by our related long history of slavery, racism, and injustice.

What happens in society affects individuals. And we are understandably concerned a...