10% Happier: How I Tamed the Voice in My Head, Reduced Stress Without… (original: 2014; edição: 2014)

I'm kind of a sucker for skeptics' books about meditation. But I much preferred Tim Parks' book [b:Teach Us to Sit Still: A Skeptic's Search for Health and Healing|8606618|Teach Us to Sit Still A Skeptic's Search for Health and Healing|Tim Parks|https://d.gr-assets.com/books/1311620338s/8606618.jpg|13476819]--Parks' skepticism strikes me as being somehow more considered. ( )

“I initially wanted to call this book The Voice in My Head Is an Asshole. However, that title was deemed inappropriate for a man whose day job requires him to abide by FCC decency standards.”

Dan Harris hooked me right from this first paragraph of this excellent book. As a journalist in TV news, Harris was no stranger to cutthroat competition. But he was also blessed or cursed with a neurotic inner voice, an internal critic that never let up. Harris figured it was a good thing to be hypervigilant; it kept him on his toes. But when it led to a panic attack on national television, a new approach was needed. Harris’s path then led to the religion beat, where he interviewed practitioners of a variety of faiths and eventually came to Buddhism and meditation. Much to his surprise, Harris found that meditation eventually clicked with him. His next challenge: to convince similarly skeptical others of the benefits of a practice that has been burdened with unfortunate cultural baggage (both the stereotypical hippie granola eaters and the McMindfulness corporate types).

I picked this up because someone I know mentioned they were using the app that sprang from this book, and they’ve been happy with it. I was really happy with this book. The first paragraph, as mentioned, hooked me right away, and I could strongly relate to Harris’s hypervigilance and not wanting to let up on worrying. He was also honest and vulnerable about his struggles to get into meditation, but most importantly willing to change his opinion about it when he could see how it worked.

I would recommend this if you’ve been interested in the idea of mindfulness or meditation but have a tendency to roll your eyes if it’s forced on you as part of a corporate wellness program. Harris does not attempt to oversell its benefits—that’s where the 10% happier comes from. If you can be even 10% happier than you were before, that’s a significant return on investment. I like this forthrightness and am encouraged to give meditation a try now. ( )

I thoroughly enjoyed this book. I didn't read it quite as fast as my friend but... I found the tips and pointers at the back especially helpful but hearing about Dan's struggles made it very powerful. The best books are those that make you want to know more and now I'm reading about Buddhism. I'm off to meditate... ( )

This is the account of five years in a reporters life and how meditation helped him. It really doesn't touch on how to meditate, but it is an interesting engaging story. ( )

Love his down to earth take on meditation. ( )