Meditation for Fidgety Skeptics: A 10% Happier How-To Book

by Dan Harris

(In defense of Buddhism, by the way, it is often practiced not as a faith but as a set of tools to help people lead more fulfilled lives in a universe characterized by impermanence and entropy. One of my favorite quotes on the matter is “Buddhism is not something to believe in, but rather something to do.”)

While meditation can often be calming, it’s best not to go into it expecting to feel a certain way. And, importantly, even if an individual meditation session isn’t mellow, I’ve found that the net effect of having a daily practice is that, overall, my emotional weather is significantly balmier.

What mindfulness has allowed me to do is respond wisely to things, instead of reacting impulsively. Respond, not react: this is a game changer.

happens to you; it is a skill.

“Equanimity is the capacity to let your experience be what it is, without trying to fight it and negotiate with it. It’s like an inner smoothness or frictionlessness.”

Sustained sitting time has allowed me to see my inner patterns with finer resolution, helping me better understand my own mind, and giving me increased empathy for how crazy we all are.

We are learning the delicate art of experiencing pleasurable sensations without grasping, and painful sensations without pushing.

meditation extends your life—not necessarily by making you live longer, but by boosting your level of focus, so that you’re squeezing more juice out of every moment.

I think in the not-too-distant future, mental exercise will be considered to be as important and mainstream as physical exercise.

That term speaks to the revolutionary message at the heart of the meditative endeavor. To “go against the stream” is to refuse to be swept up in the dominant culture of unconsciousness, to carefully examine the conventional narratives and assumptions of the day. As Jeff explained, “The momentum of everyday life is to just continue tumbling along unheeding. To actually stop and pause and take stock of your life and decide to not go along with that is considered to be going against the momentum of the culture. So there’s a warrior quality to that, very much.”

service of insight. It shows that you are mindful of what’s happening. The idea is to just name the distraction—with a calm tone—then return to the breath.