2019

In the spirit of personal growth and learning, this year I am excited to share a book that has made a profound positive impact on my life. 10% Happier by Dan Harris is a highly entertaining memoir which makes a compelling case that a simple, daily, 10-minute meditation habit has life altering benefits.

Like many people, Dan Harris is an intense, focused, leader in his highly competitive profession. After driving himself to an on-air breakdown anchoring the ABC news, he is introduced to meditation. 10% Happier is the story of his journey from skeptic to someone who ultimately embraces what many elite athletes, successful CEOs, and a ton of scientific research studies have discovered: meditation can make you calmer, more focused, and less emotionally reactive. His conclusion is that meditation isn't a panacea, but will make you ten percent happier.

Personally, after getting beyond my pre-conceived notions about meditation and mysticism, I am now six months into my own meditation journey. Rather than framing this as a spiritual thing, I see meditation as mind-training, a mini-workout for my brain. Like Dan Harris reported, I too notice improved focus and am even starting to gain better perspective on my own thoughts and emotions—10% happier for certain. If the benefits continue to compound from here, I'm in for the long game.