Self-Improvement Archives

10% Happier: Review, Background, and Reception

Is Dan Harris’s book 10% Happier worth reading? What are the pros and cons of the book and how was it received upon publication? Former ABC News anchor Dan Harris believes anyone can benefit from meditation. In 10% Happier, he offers a skeptic’s journey through the world of self-help following his meltdown on live television. Harris explains how meditation allowed him to get control of his anxiety, manage his ego, and become a more compassionate person. Below is our 10% Happier review complete with an analysis of the context and approach.

Being Happy Is a Choice, According to Ichiro Kishimi

Is being happy really a choice? If so, then why do so many people choose to be unhappy? Is it possible to change your mindset? In the book The Courage to Be Disliked, Ichiro Kishimi and Fumitake Koga write that being happy is a choice—despite your circumstances in life. They base many of their beliefs on psychologist Alfred Adler’s “individual psychology” school of thought. They propose that even a difficult past cannot make you unhappy if you don’t let it. Read more about Kishimi and Koga’s views on happiness below.

Urge Surfing: Battling Urges With Mindfulness

What is urge surfing? How can practicing the urge surfing technique help you resist the impulse to perform unwanted behaviors? Urge surfing is a therapeutic technique for dealing with unwanted urges. It’s based on the idea that most urges won’t persist for longer than 30 minutes, provided that we don’t give in to the urge or “refresh” it by giving it attention or fighting it. Keep reading to learn about the concept of urge surfing and how it can help you resist unwanted behavior.

The Best Self-Help Authors, According to Dan Harris

Who does self-help author Dan Harris list as the best self-help authors? What made these authors stand apart from the rest? Despite finding a few pieces of helpful advice from Tolle, Chopra, and Brach, Harris still had many questions about mindfulness. He eventually found mentors who introduced him to meditation and Buddhism and who helped shape his appreciation of mindfulness. Three of these gurus were Mark Epstein, Joseph Goldstein, and Spring Washam.

The Courage to Be Disliked: Book Overview

What is the book The Courage to Be Disliked about? How does the book relate to the “individual psychology” school of thought? The book The Courage to Be Disliked argues one major point: happiness is a choice. The book is essentially a retelling of famous psychologist Alfred Adler’s ideas in a self-help format. Continue below to learn more about The Courage to Be Disliked book.

The Happiness Trap: Review, Background, & Reception

What is Russ Harris’s The Happiness Trap about? What’s the key message to take away from the book? In The Happiness Trap, Russ Harris explores Acceptance and Commitment Therapy, or ACT, a psychological discipline developed by Steven C. Hayes in 1982. While Harris didn’t develop ACT, his 2007 book helped popularize ACT, which uses a combination of behavioral and mindfulness principles and strategies. Here is our review of The Happiness Trap: Stop Struggling, Start Living by Russ Harris.

What Is the Point of Meditation? The Key to Mindfulness

What is the point of meditation? How can meditation be used as a tool? In his book 10% Happier, Dan Harris believes that the main goal of meditation is mindfulness. In addition, meditation can have added benefits such as recognizing your ego, Here is what self-help author Dan Harris had to say about meditation.

The 3 Worst Habits of Chronically Unhappy People

Does approval from others make you happy? Do you struggle to form healthy relationships? Do you think you may be chronically unhappy? Someone who is chronically unhappy likely wants to be happy but is in the wrong mindset. Chronically unhappy people seek validation from others, set impossible goals that can’t be met, and sabotage their own relationships with toxic behavior. Learn about the top three behaviors of chronically unhappy people so you can work to improve your mindset.

How Does Meditation Help? Lessons From Dan Harris

How does meditation help you in the long-term? What important life lessons can be learned from meditation? In his self-help book 10% Happier, previous self-help skeptic Dan Harris describes the many benefits of meditation. The top lessons he goes over are how to respond rather than act, how to worry productively, and how to be compassionate. Below, we will go over each of the lessons from meditation.

How to Develop Love That’s Genuine: 3 Methods

How do you cultivate love that is genuine rather than false? What does optimism have to do with love? Developing love isn’t usually all magic and fairytales—it takes work. If you want to develop genuine love, you need to do some work on yourself first. Here are three bits of advice on how to develop love that’s sincere and genuine.