10% Happier with Dan Harris – Details, episodes & analysis

How not to forget what actually matters.

Soren Gordhamer is the host of Wisdom 2.0, a conference about mindfulness and compassion in the modern age. He's also a Co-Founder and General Partner of Wisdom Ventures, which invests in companies creating a more just and compassionate world. His new book is called THE ESSENTIAL: Discovering What Really Matters in an Age of Distraction.

In this episode we talk about:

• What Soren means by "the essential"
• The current and future impact of AI on the economy, our mental health, and society at large 
• What Soren thinks the world looks like in 5, 10, 15 years from now
• Useful strategies for managing technology with an iota of balance and wisdom
• How to get familiar with the unseen stories that run your life—so that they Don't have so much power over you
• The number one question for our time, per Soren 
•  Whether or not we humans are actually going to do this "essential" work before it's too late
• Whether the people designing these systems have the best interest of the species at heart

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Tickets are now on sale for a special live taping of the 10% Happier Podcast with guest Pete Holmes! Join us on November 18th in NYC for this benefit show, with all proceeds supporting the New York Insight Meditation Center. Grab your tickets here!

Tickets are now available for an intimate live event with Dan on November 23rd as part of the Troutbeck Luminary Series. Join the conversation, participate in a guided meditation, and ask your questions during the Q&A. Click here to buy your ticket!

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Thank you to our sponsors: 

AT&T: Staying connected matters. That's why AT&T has connectivity you can depend on, or they will proactively make it right. Visit att.com/guarantee for details.

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How to focus your "genius energy" on what matters most.

Diana Hill, Ph.D. is a clinical psychologist, international trainer, podcast host, and a leading expert on Acceptance and Commitment Therapy (ACT)—a revolutionary approach to psychology that is changing our understanding of mental health. She is the author of four books including I Know I Should Exercise, But…, The Self-Compassion Daily Journal, ACT Daily Journal, and her latest, Wise Effort.

In this episode we talk about:

• The concept of "Wise Effort" ( aligning your energy and actions with your core values)
• The practice of diffusing your thoughts
• Three things that get in the way of "Wise Effort" 
• The role of radical acceptance
• How to spot "energy depletors" 
• A practice she calls  "Yes, yes, thank you, thank you" 
• And much more

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Tickets are now on sale for a special live taping of the 10% Happier Podcast with guest Pete Holmes! Join us on November 18th in NYC for this benefit show, with all proceeds supporting the New York Insight Meditation Center. Grab your tickets here!

Tickets are now available for an intimate live event with Dan on November 23rd as part of the Troutbeck Luminary Series. Join the conversation, participate in a guided meditation, and ask your questions during the Q&A. Click here to buy your ticket!

To advertise on the show, contact sales@advertisecast.com or visit https://advertising.libsyn.com/10HappierwithDanHarris

Thanks to our sponsors: 

AT&T: Staying connected matters. That's why AT&T has connectivity you can depend on, or they will proactively make it right. Visit att.com/guarantee for details.
Function: Our first 1000 listeners get a $100 credit toward their membership. Visit www.functionhealth.com/Happier or use the gift code Happier100 at signup to own your health.

Sharing an episode featuring Dan from a podcast we love, Think Fast, Talk Smart.

In this episode of Think Fast, Talk Smart, Dan and host Matt Abrahams discuss how mindfulness can transform our communication, sharing strategies for deeper listening, responding versus reacting, and reflecting what others say back to them. "Relationships are the most important aspect of your happiness," Dan says. "The quality of those connections goes up when you're less stuck in your own head."

Episode References:

Dan Harris: https://www.fastersmarter.io/guests/dan-harris/

Dan's Books: http://fastersmarter.io/10-percent-happier

https://fastersmarter.io/meditation-for-fidgety-skeptics


https://www.fastersmarter.io/179-communication-happiness-wellbeing-finding-positive-in-negative-emotions/

https://www.fastersmarter.io/180-unlocking-your-future-self-communication-happiness-wellbeing/

https://www.fastersmarter.io/181-why-happiness-is-a-direction-not-a-destination-communication-happiness-wellbeing/

https://www.fastersmarter.io/182-stop-chasing-time-and-start-owning-it-communication-happiness-wellbeing/

Tickets are now on sale for a special live taping of the 10% Happier Podcast with guest Pete Holmes! Join us on November 18th in NYC for this benefit show, with all proceeds supporting the New York Insight Meditation Center. Grab your tickets here!

Tickets are now available for an intimate live event with Dan on November 23rd as part of the Troutbeck Luminary Series. Join the conversation, participate in a guided meditation, and ask your questions during the Q&A. Click here to buy your ticket!

Join Dan's online community here

Follow Dan on social: Instagram, TikTok

Subscribe to our YouTube Channel

To advertise on the show, contact sales@advertisecast.com or visit https://advertising.libsyn.com/10HappierwithDanHarris

On psychoanalysis, which we haven't talked about much on this show.

Dr. Orna Guralnik is a psychoanalyst and writer. Her writing centers on the intersection of psychoanalysis, dissociation, and cultural studies. She has completed the filming of several seasons of the docu-series Couples Therapy.

In this episode we talk about:

• The relationship between happiness and truth 
• How to cultivate love from within
• Practices to support us in being more open-minded (to avoid what she calls a "splitting" mindset)
• Trans-generational history, and how it impacts our personal lives and relationships (in other words, how the ghosts of your ancestors operate in you now)
• One single, powerful question to ask yourself when you get annoyed
• The overlap between Buddhism and psychoanalysis

Related Episodes:

• Why Your Brain Turns The Miraculous Into The Mundane—And How To Fix It | Maria Popova
• George Saunders on: "Holy Befuddlement" and How to Be Less of a "Turd"
• The Profound Upside of Self-Diminishment | George Saunders
  

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Our favorite playlists on: Anxiety, Sleep, Relationships, Most Popular Episodes

Why even self-help authors can still be messy.

Glennon Doyle is the CEO and Founder of Treat Media, an award-winning media company that makes art for humans who want to stay human. She is an author, podcaster, producer, and philanthropist. Her books include the #1 New York Times bestsellers Untamed and Love Warrior; the New York Times bestseller Carry On, Warrior; and Get Untamed: The Journal.

Abby Wambach is a two-time Olympic gold medalist, FIFA World Cup champion,  six-time winner of the U.S. Soccer Athlete of the Year award and one of Time's Most Influential People. She is a founder of Treat Media, and the author of the #1 New York Times Bestseller Wolfpack and the New York Times bestseller Forward.

In this episode we talk about:

• Significant personal struggles that happened simultaneously for Glennon, Abby, and Glennon's sister, Amanda
• How that led to them writing a book about the fundamental life questions they believe everyone grapples with
• Why people in the self-help world don't always have their shit together
• Why trauma leads to dissociation 
• How to "go on" after the experience of grief
• Why we are the way we are
• Family roles, attachment theory, and learned behaviors
• The possibility of personal change
• Our thoughts on the latest season of the White Lotus
• And much more

Related Episodes:

• Abby Wambach On: Grief, Addiction, And Moving From External To Internal Validation
• Glennon Doyle is Rethinking Her Relationship to Social Media, Hustle Culture, Intuition, Her Body, and Her Parents

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Additional Resources: 

• We Can Do Hard Things Book
• We Can Do Hard Things Podcast
• Treat Media
• Untamed
• Wolfpack
• Intimate Terrorism by Michael Vincent Miller

Upgrade your relationship to your wallet.

Lewis Howes is the host of the School of Greatness podcast. He has written several bestselling books. His newest is called Make Money Easy: Your Path to Peace, Freedom, and Financial Abundance. 

In this episode we talk about:

• Overcoming setbacks
• The evolution of podcasting
• Developing a personal mission to help you persist through challenges 
• Habits and mindset shifts to make money easier
• Figuring out your money story and money style…and how this can lead to a money strategy 
• How to continually evolve your relationship to money 
• How to handle money in romantic relationships 
• The art of clearing unnecessary things off your plate so you can grow
• The value of generosity

Related Episodes:

• Lewis Howes, Former Pro-Athlete on Removing 'Mask of Masculinity'
• What Is Holding You Back From Greatness? | Lewis Howes
  

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How journaling can transform negative emotions into meaning and agency.

Suleika Jaouad is the author of the instant New York Times bestselling memoir, Between Two Kingdoms, which has been translated into over twenty languages, and her highly anticipated new book, The Book of Alchemy, forthcoming in April 2025. She writes the popular weekly newsletter, the Isolation Journals.

In this episode we talk about:

• Suleika's new book, The Book of Alchemy
• On working with fear and vulnerability 
• Journaling prompts from The Book of Alchemy
• Why Journaling is a team sport
  

Related Episodes:

• The Science Of Journaling: How Writing Reduces Overthinking, Rumination, And Anxiety | Dr. James Pennebaker (Co-Interviewed By Dr. Bianca Harris)
• Life, Interrupted | Suleika Jaouad 

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Our favorite playlists on: Anxiety, Sleep, Relationships, Most Popular Episodes

Additional Resources: 

• Buy the Dump It Here journal

Dan's best attempts to answer some listener questions from our Substack community. These questions came from our live Renegade Sangha session on April 8, and all of these sessions are open to paid subscribers. Check out how to join the party at DanHarris.com. 

Anxiety has long been a massive societal issue that spiked during the pandemic, and many of us are still feeling it in 2025.

In this episode, renowned Buddhist monk Yongey Mingyur Rinpoche talks in detail about how he personally works with anxiety and panic and the practices he draws upon when dealing with these states. 

Mingyur began doing long retreats in his teens and now teaches all over the world.  He's written the books The Joy of Living: Unlocking the Secret and Science of Happiness and In Love with the World: A Monk's Journey Through the Bardos of Living and Dying. He also oversees the Tergar Meditation Community, a global network of Buddhist meditation centers.  

This episode was originally published in July 2022.

In this episode we talk about: 

• Working with strong emotions using sound and the breath

• Deconstructing your reality to make it workable

• Understanding what awareness is in a Buddhist sense 

• How to make meditation free-range and available to you all times 

• The simple but also tricky advice of, "stop doing and just be" 

• When to take a step back or even take a break from meditation

• What Mingyur Rinpoche says is the true purpose of the practice.
  

This interview was recorded in person at the TED conference in April of 2022, where both Yongey Mingyur Rinpoche and Dan Harris spoke.

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Dr. Robert Waldinger talks about his new book The Good Life: Lessons From the World's Longest Scientific Study of Happiness, which explores lessons from the longest scientific study of happiness.

Dr. Robert Waldinger is a professor of psychiatry at Harvard Medical School, the director of the Harvard Study of Adult Development at Massachusetts General Hospital, and co-founder of the Lifespan Research Foundation. He is also a Zen master and teaches meditation in New England and around the world. His TED Talk is one of the most viewed of all time, with over 43 million views. He's the co-author, along with Dr. Marc Schulz, of The Good Life.

In this episode we talk about: 

• What the Harvard Study of Adult Development is and how it got started

• How much of our happiness is really under our control

• Why you can't you be happy all the time

• The concept of "social fitness" 

• Why you should "never worry alone" 

• How having best friends at work can make you more productive

• And why, in his words, it's never too late to be happy

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