What’s It Like To Be You Right Now? | Bonus Meditation with Dan

Summary

Podcast Summary: “What’s It Like To Be You Right Now? | Bonus Meditation with Dan”
10% Happier with Dan Harris
Release Date: March 14, 2025

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Introduction: A New Chapter for the Podcast

In this episode of 10% Happier with Dan Harris, titled “What’s It Like To Be You Right Now? | Bonus Meditation with Dan,” host Dan Harris announces a significant transition in his career and the evolution of the podcast. After a challenging three-year period marked by personal changes, including a divorce and departing from the app formerly known as 10% Happier, Dan is embarking on a new journey to explore diverse content formats and engage more deeply with his audience.

Key Points:

• Career Transition: Dan shares his experience navigating a 'wrenching three-year transition' and stepping away from the original 10% Happier app.
• New Platforms: Introduction of his new Substack community at danharris.com, where he will continue to provide content alongside the podcast.
• Podcast Evolution: Moving away from the previous format of weekly guided meditations, the podcast will now feature a variety of content, including celebrity interviews, resurrected episodes from the extensive archives, and concise episodes derived from live Q&A sessions.

Notable Quote:

“Sometimes we'll be an interview with a celebrity. Sometimes it'll be an older episode from the archives that I want to resurface.”—Dan Harris [00:30]

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Expanding Content: Introducing Renegade Sangha

Dan introduces the concept of the Renegade Sangha, a dedicated community for paid subscribers who gain exclusive access to live AMA (Ask Me Anything) sessions. These interactive sessions typically involve a brief meditation followed by answering audience questions, fostering a closer connection between Dan and his listeners.

Key Features:

• Live AMA Sessions: Conducted a couple of times a month, these sessions involve a guided meditation and interactive Q&A.
• Exclusive Access: Primarily available to paid subscribers, offering a more intimate and engaged experience.
• Podcast Integration: The podcast will feature excerpts from these AMAs, providing listeners with "tastes" of the content available through subscription.

Notable Quote:

“What we're going to be doing on Fridays are super short episodes targeted on a specific issue and taken from the live Q and A sessions that I do over on Substack.”—Dan Harris [02:15]

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Guided Meditation: "What’s It Like To Be You Right Now?"

The core of this episode is a 10-minute guided meditation led by Dan, titled "What’s It Like To Be You Right Now?" This session is designed to help listeners cultivate mindfulness and present-moment awareness, regardless of their experience level with meditation.

1. Straw Breathing Technique

Dan begins the meditation by introducing the straw breathing method, a simple yet effective technique to reset the nervous system.

• Instructions:
  • Inhale deeply through the nose.
  • Exhale through pursed lips, as if blowing through a straw.
  • The exhale should be two to three times longer than the inhale.
  • Repeat for three cycles.

Notable Quote:

“This really can reset the nervous system, which is useful in so many ways.”—Dan Harris [02:05]

2. Finding Comfort and Focus

Listeners are guided to find a comfortable position, whether seated, lying down, or even standing. Dan emphasizes the importance of settling into a position that suits each individual’s current state.

• Focus Points:
  • Body Sensations: Feel the body’s presence in the chair or space.
  • Breath: Choose a focal point like the belly, chest, or nose.
  • Sounds: Acknowledge ambient sounds in the environment.

Notable Quote:

“Pick a position. Pick something to focus on. Could be your body sitting in the chair.”—Dan Harris [03:15]

3. Managing Distractions

Recognizing that distraction is a natural part of meditation, Dan offers strategies to gently bring the mind back when it wanders.

• Techniques:
  • Mental Notes: Softly label distractions (e.g., thinking, planning, anger) to acknowledge without judgment.
  • Returning Focus: Gently guide attention back to the chosen focal point after noting the distraction.

Notable Quote:

“Just put a little note on. One question I like to ask when I'm sitting is, what's it like to be me right now?”—Dan Harris [07:45]

4. Cultivating Present-Moment Awareness

Dan encourages listeners to observe their current state without resistance, fostering an effortless awareness of their experiences.

• Key Concepts:
  • Effortless Awareness: Acknowledge that breathing and body sensations are happening naturally.
  • Non-Judgmental Observation: Notice thoughts and emotions without getting entangled in them.

Notable Quote:

“Feeling the breath, feeling the body sitting, hearing sounds in your environment. There's nothing to do, it's already happening.”—Dan Harris [09:00]

5. Closing the Meditation

As the session concludes, Dan invites listeners to gently return to their surroundings, integrating the state of mindfulness into their day.

Notable Quote:

“When you're ready, just open your eyes or not and come back into this little virtual room with the rest of us”—Dan Harris [10:50]

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Conclusion: Joining the Renegade Sangha and Acknowledgments

In the closing segment, Dan extends an invitation to listeners to become part of the Renegade Sangha for enhanced access to exclusive content and community benefits. He also expresses gratitude to his production team, acknowledging their contributions to the show's quality.

Call to Action:

• Join Renegade Sangha: Access ad-free listening, cheat sheets with key takeaways, and full transcripts by subscribing at danharris.com.
• Feedback Invitation: Encourages listeners to share their thoughts and questions via email for support during the transition.

Acknowledgments:

• Production Team:
  • Producers: Tara Anderson, Caroline Keenan, Eleanor Vasily
  • Recording and Engineering: Pod People
  • Production Manager: Lauren Smith
  • Senior Producer: Marissa Schneiderman
  • Executive Producer: DJ Cashmere
  • Theme Music: Nick Thorburn of the band Islands

Notable Quote:

“We will try to help you out with all of the changes afoot.”—Dan Harris [11:00]

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Final Notes

This episode serves as both a transition announcement and a practical meditation guide, encapsulating Dan Harris's commitment to evolving his platform while continuing to provide valuable mindfulness resources. Listeners are encouraged to engage with the new content offerings and consider joining the Renegade Sangha for a deeper, more interactive experience.

Transcript

[Dan Harris]

Foreign.

This is the 10% Happier podcast. I'm Dan Harris. Happy Friday, everybody. As you may have heard, I am in a new phase of my career after a wrenching three year transition slash divorce after I am no longer part of the app formerly known as 10% happier. And I'm now trying a bunch of new stuff both here on the podcast and also on my new substack community, which is called danharris.com specifically here on the pod. As you may remember, we used to bring you guided meditations from my erstwhile app every Friday. But now we're going to try out a bunch of new stuff. Sometimes it's going to be an interview with a celebrity. Sometimes it'll be an older episode from the archives that I want to resurface. I think I've done nearly 800 episodes and some of those deserve to be reposted. And very often what we'll be doing on Fridays are super short episodes targeted on a specific issue and taken from the live Q and A sessions that I do over on Substack. Just to provide some context here, as some of you may know, a couple times a month I do a live AMA or Ask me Anything session over on Substack. It's on video. I lead a short meditation and then I take your questions. Sometimes we call this group the Renegade Sangha. These sessions are mostly just for paid subscribers, so that's your reminder to become a paid subscriber if you're not already. In the meantime, right here on the pod, we're going to be regularly giving you some tastes of the AMAs on Fridays. And that's what we're going to be doing today. In today's session, I'm going to lead a guided meditation, a very simple 10 minute session that anybody can do. So get comfortable. Let's do this together. Here we go.

All right, assume the position, everybody. Let's start with a couple of deep breaths. I like to do straw breathing, so deep, deep breath in through the nose. And then you want to exhale with your lips pursed as if you're breathing through a straw. And the exhale should be two or three times the length of the inhale. So really take your time with it. And this, let's do three of these. And it really can reset the nervous system, which is useful in so many ways. Okay, as you finish your three breaths, take your time with them. But as you start to settle, find the right position for your body in the chair or if you're lying down. That's cool. If you're feeling super sleepy. One thing that can be helpful is just to stand up and do this. Although I have fallen asleep standing up just for a second or two, but I've woken up in mid topple anyway. Dealer's choice Pick your position. Pick something to focus on. Could be your body sitting in the chair. As Joseph likes to say, there is a body. That's a phrase from Buddhist texts, and the Joseph in question here is my meditation teacher, Joseph Goldstein. You can feel the body sitting in the chair or lying down or standing up. You can focus on the breath at one spot, like your belly or your chest or your nose. Pick some sounds in your environment and let's just commit to it and every time you get distracted, you know the deal. Just start again. If you're struggling with distraction, it's first of all, not a big problem, totally normal. Second, one little thing that might help is a mental note. Just softly whispering in your mind in and out with every in and out breath. Or if you're not focusing on the breath, just notice hot or cold tingling pressure. Just a little note once in a while can kind of keep you in the game. Pleasant or unpleasant Thinking Sleepy Whatever's happening, just put a little note on. One question I like to ask when I'm sitting is what's it like to be me right now? Remember, no matter how many times you get carried away, it's totally fine. Just notice you've gotten distracted and bring your attention back to whatever's happening right now.

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[Dan Harris]

Feeling the breath, feeling the body sitting, hearing sounds in your environment. There's nothing to do, it's already happening. The breathing's happening anyway. Body sensations are happening anyway. Your awareness of them is effortless. Can you just notice when the thinking mind or the ego interferes and carries you away? Blow it a kiss, put a label on it. Thinking, planning, anger, sadness. And then just come right back it. Okay, when you're ready, just open your eyes or not and come back into Come back into this little virtual room with the rest of us from the Renegade Sangha here.

Okay? Like I said, that's a taste of what you'll get if you join the Renegade sangha [e-mail] Lots of other benefits, including ad free listening to this podcast and a cheat sheet that comes with every episode, including key takeaways and a full transcript. We'd love your feedback on all the changes that are happening around here. I know some of it can be a little confusing, so if you have any questions, just hit me [e-mail] and we will try to help you out with all of the changes afoot. Before I go, let me just quickly thank everybody who worked so hard to make this show. Our producers are Tara Anderson, Caroline Keenan and Eleanor Vasily. Our recording and engineering is handled by the great folks over at Pod People. Lauren Smith is our Production manager, Marissa Schneiderman is our senior producer, DJ Cashmere is our Executive producer and Nick Thorburn of the band Islands wrote our theme.

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