Rick Hanson's Blog, page 89
February 14, 2016
Marci Shimoff Interview on Gratitude
“We give our life energy by these practices, so they become more of our natural state.” – Marci Shimoff
NY Times bestselling author Marci Shimoff shares practical ways of developing good habits and fitting in regular practice to increase your happiness, self-worth, and inner peace, in this interview I did for my Foundations of Well-Being program.
The post Marci Shimoff Interview on Gratitude appeared first on Dr. Rick Hanson.
February 13, 2016
Kindness to You is Kindness to Me; Kindness to Me is Kindness to You
What do you need?
The Practice:
Kindness to you is kindness to me; kindness to me is kindness to you.
Why?
I usually describe a practice as something to do: get on your own side, see the being behind the eyes, take in the good, etc. This practice is different: it’s something to recognize. From this recognition, appropriate action will follow. Let me explain.
Some years ago I was invited to give a keynote at a conference with the largest audience I’d ever faced. It was a big step up for me. Le...
February 7, 2016
QUIZ: How Filled with Compassion are You?
In essence, compassion is the wish that beings not suffer, and kindness is the wish that beings are happy – usually along with feelings of warmhearted caring.
Did you know that studies show that people can increase these qualities in themselves, even changing their brains in the process?
Find out how much compassion and kindness you area already filled with, with this short quiz from my Foundations of Well-Being program:
https://fwb.rickhanson.net/quizzes/how-filled-with-compassion-are-you
T...
February 6, 2016
Grow a Key Inner Strength
What do you need?
The Practice:
Grow a key inner strength.
Why?
We all have issues – including demands upon us, stresses, illnesses, losses, vulnerabilities, and pain. (As Alan Watts put it: “Life is wiggly.”) Of course, many of our issues – in the broad sense I’m using the word here – are related to important sources of fulfillment, such as starting a business or raising a family; still, there’s some kind of challenge.
This JOT offers a basic road map for how to deal with issues – for heali...
February 3, 2016
When You Just Can’t Make a Good Thing Happen
Here is a talk from the San Rafael Meditation group with Rick Hanson. It is titled When You Just Can’t Make a Good Thing Happen.
More information on the San Rafael Mediation group can be found here.
The post When You Just Can’t Make a Good Thing Happen appeared first on Dr. Rick Hanson.
January 31, 2016
Aspiration: An Interview with Dan Siegel
“Life is always unfolding, you’re always in an emerging process… only junk can really make you feel stagnat or chaotic, and the beautiful thing about being a human being is you have a choice. With awareness, you can use liberate yourself and free yourself to your original aspirations. You can have a set of values, and dreams, and qualities of living that are your guideposts.”
-Daniel J. Siegel
In this interview clip from my Foundations of Well-Being program, learn from author Dan Siegel how y...
January 30, 2016
Do Freely
What are you doing?
The Practice:
Do freely.
Why?
Most people spend most minutes of most days doing one thing after another. I sure do. Typing these words is a kind of doing, as is driving to work, making dinner, brushing one’s teeth, or putting the kids to bed. For all the “labor-saving” devices of the past 50 years – dishwashers, phone machines, word processors, etc. – most of us are laboring more, not less. For example, in terms of employment, the average work week in America has gotten l...
January 27, 2016
Take in the Good
Take in the good.
Why?Scientists believe that your brain has a built-in “negativity bias.” In other words, as we evolved over millions of years, dodging sticks and chasing carrots, it was a lot more important to notice, react to, and remember sticks than it was for carrots.
That’s because – in the tough environments in which our ancestors lived – if they missed out on a carrot, they usually had a shot at another one later on. But if...
January 24, 2016
QUIZ: Do You Know When to Stop?
Whether driving a car or going through life altogether, we need to be able to speed up skillfully . . . as well as slow down and even stop.
How is it going with whatever you want to decrease or stop in your own life? Perhaps related to food, drugs and alcohol, media. And can you stop in ways that are firm but kind, rather than mean and shaming to yourself?
Find out how skillfully you’re able to put on the brakes, or nudging yourself in a kind way, rather than a self-critical one, with this sh...
January 23, 2016
Relax Needless Fear Around Others
Does it feel safe with other people?
The Practice:
Relax needless fear around others.
Why?
We all know this fear. You’re walking down a street, someone you don’t know comes toward you, and there’s a second or more of wariness, scanning, apprehension, and tension or bracing in the body: a barely conscious assessment of possible threat. Or you step into a meeting with people you know and still there could be a watchfulness, a restraint, a certain carefulness in how you speak that comes more f...
