by Harris, Dan
What is the least amount of time I can sit and still get the benefits the scientists are always talking about?
No one’s figured out the dosage question yet. I don’t have any evidence for this, but I think if you can manage five minutes, you’ll start seeing changes in your own life, particularly as it pertains to your level of emotional reactivity.
In sum
Forget your preconceived notions. Forget the dopey packaging and the unfortunate cultural baggage. Meditation is worth the work—even if you’re too embarrassed to admit to your friends that you’re doing it.
Under the sway of the ego, life becomes a constant low-grade crisis. You are never sated, never satisfied, always reaching for the next thing, like a colicky baby. Meditation is the antidote. It won’t fix everything in your life, make you taller, or (most likely) land you in a state of bliss on a park bench. But it can make you 10% happier, or maybe much more.
There used to be a sign on the wall of Newbury Comics, my favorite record store in Boston. Above the list of upcoming releases, it read, ALL DATES CAN CHANGE, SO CAN YOU.
About the Author
DAN HARRIS is a co-anchor of Nightline and the weekend edition of Good Morning America on ABC News. Previously, he was the anchor of the Sunday edition of World News. He regularly contributes stories for such shows as 20/20, World News with Diane Sawyer, and weekday GMA. Harris has reported from all over the planet, covering wars in Afghanistan, Israel/Palestine, and Iraq, and producing investigative reports in Haiti, Cambodia, and the Congo. He has also spent many years covering America’s faith scene, with a focus on evangelicals—who have treated him kindly despite the fact that he is openly agnostic. He has been at ABC News for fourteen years. Before that, he was in local news in Boston and Maine. He grew up outside of Boston and currently lives with his wife, Bianca, in New York City. This is his first book.
Visit www.AuthorTracker.com for exclusive information on your favorite HarperCollins authors.
Credits
Cover design by Amanda Kain
Cover image © Getty Images and Shutterstock
Copyright
10% HAPPIER. Copyright © 2014 by Daniel Benjamin Harris. All rights reserved under International and Pan-American Copyright Conventions. By payment of the required fees, you have been granted the nonexclusive, nontransferable right to access and read the text of this e-book on-screen. No part of this text may be reproduced, transmitted, decompiled, reverse-engineered, or stored in or introduced into any information storage and retrieval system, in any form or by any means, whether electronic or mechanical, now known or hereinafter invented, without the express written permission of HarperCollins e-books.
FIRST EDITION
Library of Congress Cataloging-in-Publication Data
Harris, Dan, 1971-
10% happier : how I tamed the voice in my head, reduced stress without losing my edge, and found self-help that actually works--a true story / Dan Harris.
1 online resource.
Description based on print version record and CIP data provided by publisher; resource not viewed.
ISBN 978-0-06-226544-9 (ePub) -- ISBN 978-0-06-226542-5 (hardback) 1. Mind and body. 2. Stress management. 3. Meditation. 4. Buddhism. I. Title. II. Title: Ten percent happier.
BF161
158.1’2—dc23 2013050174
EPub Edition MARCH 2014
14 15 16 17 18 OV/RRD 10 9 8 7 6 5 4 3 2 1
About the Publisher
Australia
HarperCollins Publishers (Australia) Pty. Ltd.
Level 13, 201 Elizabeth Street
Sydney, NSW 2000, Australia
http://www.harpercollins.com.au
Canada
HarperCollins Canada
2 Bloor Street East - 20th Floor
Toronto, ON, M4W, 1A8, Canada
http://www.harpercollins.ca
New Zealand
HarperCollins Publishers (New Zealand) Limited
P.O. Box 1
Auckland, New Zealand
http://www.harpercollins.co.nz
United Kingdom
HarperCollins Publishers Ltd.
77-85 Fulham Palace Road
London, W6 8JB, UK
http://www.harpercollins.co.uk
United States
HarperCollins Publishers Inc.
10 East 53rd Street
New York, NY 10022
http://www.harpercollins.com