Schmindfulness

Welcome to How I Meditate from the Meditate This! Podcast.  This series is intended reveal personal experiences with meditation and mindfulness as a way to help others refine, rejuvenate, or even just begin a practice.  Meditation can seem weird, creepy, and meaningless.  But maybe it helps to hear how it's different for someone else...or how it's not. Each episode answers 4 basic questions: 1.  How do you meditate? 2.  What was is like the very first time you meditated? 3.  An example of when you noticed meditation made a difference in your life. 4.  What other activities help you stay mindful on a regular basis? Please visit the How I Meditate page at www.MeditateThisPodcast.com to learn more and submit your own How I Meditate story. Thanks! Pete and Jay

In 1996 Micheline Nader hit a wall.  Stress had weakened her immune system and resulted in a bleeding ulcer.  Facing the bankruptcy of her business, she says, "I was so terrified that I could not get out of bed.  My fear was more crippling than my pain."  A serial entrepreneur, Micheline couldn't muster one more appearance of "Superwoman" to save the day.  She needed a better plan and that led to her finding what she calls her True Self. Once she found it, everything turned around and her business became a huge success.  Micheline was no stranger to adversity. Having grown up in Lebanon, she endured the pain of losing her father at age 16 to esophageal cancer.  He was the love of her life,  but little did she know that she was on a crash course with a similar fate.  In the depths of her suffering, she made space in her life and connected with her "higher consciousness", which led to the strategy she lays out in her new book, The Dolphin's Dance - a 5 Step Journey into Conscious Awareness.   Listen at: www.Med

NASA engineer, Stanford University lecturer, TED talker, consciousness hacker—is there anything Mikey Siegel can't do? The answer: We'll soon find out. See, Mikey is on one serious mission—to change the word from the inside out by starting with the alleviation of that nasty little bug that bites us all: human suffering. As Mikey explains: "My focus is on supporting the development of totally new transformative tools and technologies that can revolutionize the way we relate to ourselves, each other, and the world. I believe that every single human endeavor can be a catalyst for collective awakening, and that is the evolutionary direction for our species." We can't wait to see what Mikey comes up with next. But first, hear all the hows and whys in this undeniably* mind-expanding conversation. *If you do deny it, you must ask yourself why!

Some couples argue about who should take out the garbage or pick up the kids.  Maureen Pelton and Charlie Hartwell only show hints of frustration when insisting that the other should realize how well-rounded they are. It's a nice problem to have, especially since most of their moments together is spent engaged in their favorite pastime: laughing. The rest is occupied with changing the world by helping raise our collective consciousness. As co-founders of the Shift Institute, Maureen and Charlie aim to help individuals realize their best, truest self. That effort is complemented by the venture capital efforts of Bridge Builders, which invests in mindfulness companies that are utilizing the most innovative technology and communications. In all, Maureen and Charlie are making a difference every day--sometimes one person at a time, sometimes by the millions. Who wouldn't smile at that? Note:  Today's episode features special guest star Cookie in her first live interview.

Achieving the status of being a regular, average guy might not sound like much. But for Kaiser Clark, it’s the biggest accomplishment of his life so far.  Growing up with severe ADHD and struggling with substance abuse from a very young age, Kaiser used to think obtaining mythic powers, changing who he was, and becoming "special" was the answer to his problems. On his quest, he utilized various forms of meditation and even had an experience he called "piercing the veil of consciousness." But Kaiser now feels that none of that really matters much. It’s about surrendering, becoming more of who you are, and living as best you can. Thanks for listening! Remember to rate and review on iTunes!!!! Pete and Jay

Five sure-fire steps to the perfect life. One burrito half-eaten by Ozzie. And Pete making contact. A Schmindfulness for the ages—both here and beyooooond. ..and Happy Birthday Diane!!!!   Be sure to tell a friend about this podcast, rate and review on iTunes, and join our mailing list at www.MeditateThisPodcast.com  

The very fact that you're reading this sentence has something to do with R. Adam Engle. No, he didn't invent the internet or anything. He just happened to co-found the Mind and Life Institute and develop, back in the 1980s, the very first Mind and Life Dialogues between the 14th Dalai Lama and a panel of some of the world's most prominent scientists.  The result? A wave of new research, understanding, and acceptance of mindful practice and effectiveness in the West—culminating (well, sorta) with Time magazine declaring the beginning of a "Mindful Revolution" in 2014. Hear this pioneer describe how a kid from Yonkers helped a 2,500 year old Eastern tradition take root in a country that tends to be more concerned with the latest thing. Listen on: Website:  Meditate This! Podcast    iTunes   Stitcher Radio   Google Play

The very fact that you're reading this sentence has something to do with R. Adam Engle. No, he didn't invent the internet or anything. He just happened to co-found the Mind and Life Institute and develop, back in the 1980s, the very first Mind and Life Dialogues between the 14th Dalai Lama and a panel of some of the world's most prominent scientists.  The result? A wave of new research, understanding, and acceptance of mindful practice and effectiveness in the West—culminating (well, sorta) with Time magazine declaring the beginning of a "Mindful Revolution" in 2014. Hear this pioneer describe how a kid from Yonkers helped a 2,500 year old Eastern tradition take root in a country that tends to be more concerned with the latest thing. Listen on: Website:  Meditate This! Podcast    iTunes   Stitcher Radio   Google Play

Welcome to How I Meditate from the Meditate This! Podcast.  This series is intended reveal personal experiences with meditation and mindfulness as a way to help others refine, rejuvenate, or even just begin a practice.  Meditation can seem weird, creepy, and meaningless.  But maybe it helps to hear how it's different for someone else...or how it's not. Each episode answers 4 basic questions: 1.  How do you meditate? 2.  What was is like the very first time you meditated? 3.  An example of when you noticed meditation made a difference in your life. 4.  What other activities help you stay mindful on a regular basis? Please visit the How I Meditate page at www.MeditateThisPodcast.com to learn more and submit your own How I Meditate story. Thanks! Pete and Jay

Welcome to How I Meditate from the Meditate This! Podcast.  This series is intended reveal personal experiences with meditation and mindfulness as a way to help others refine, rejuvenate, or even just begin a practice.  Meditation can seem weird, creepy, and meaningless.  But maybe it helps to hear how it's different for someone else...or how it's not. Each episode answers 4 basic questions: 1.  How do you meditate? 2.  What was is like the very first time you meditated? 3.  An example of when you noticed meditation made a difference in your life. 4.  What other activities help you stay mindful on a regular basis? Please visit the How I Meditate page at www.MeditateThisPodcast.com to learn more and submit your own How I Meditate story. Thanks! Pete and Jay

Whether it be on a retreat into literal darkness that helped her contemplate her life so far or the bright and bustling business she has built over the past three decades, Tami Simon pursues truth in every corner it may hide. As the founder of Sounds True, a multimedia publishing company that offers spiritual wisdom from the likes of Eckhart Tolle, Jon Kabat-Zinn, and Pema Chodron—among so many others—Simon has built a profound resource for those seeking to understand. And now Simon is adding to the conversation herself with the audio program Being True. Take a listen—right after listening to her tell us the story of how she came to be one of the consciousness movement's most influential promoters. 

Welcome to How I Meditate from the Meditate This! Podcast.  This series is intended reveal personal experiences with meditation and mindfulness as a way to help others refine, rejuvenate, or even just begin a practice.  Meditation can seem weird, creepy, and meaningless.  But maybe it helps to hear how it's different for someone else...or how it's not. Each episode answers 4 basic questions: 1.  How do you meditate? 2.  What was is like the very first time you meditated? 3.  An example of when you noticed meditation made a difference in your life. 4.  What other activities help you stay mindful on a regular basis? Please visit the How I Meditate page at www.MeditateThisPodcast.com to learn more and submit your own How I Meditate story. Thanks! Pete and Jay

Growing up in Chicago during the 1950s and 1960s, Radhanath Swami (then Richard Slavin) had plenty to be restless about—civil rights injustices, Vietnam, and a general aversion to the trappings of suburban comfort. By 19, he'd had enough. It was time to go in search of something greater. That quest took him—as a penniless hitchhiker—though Greece, Turkey, Iran, Afghanistan, Pakistan, and finally, to India. It was there that he embarked on a more than 45-year study of Bhakti yoga that has included living in Himalayan caves and forests. His early travels were documented in the book The Journey Home and more recent explorations are brought to light in his new book, The Journey Within. But before you read both, be sure to hear Radhanath Swami tell Pete and Jay how he searches for the underlying love and simplicity in everything he does and uses it to guide his every moment.  Please visit us.... www.MeditateThisPodcast.com Twitter: @MeditateThis Facebook: Meditate This

Welcome to How I Meditate from the Meditate This! Podcast.  This series is intended reveal personal experiences with meditation and mindfulness as a way to help others refine, rejuvenate, or even just begin a practice.  Meditation can seem weird, creepy, and meaningless.  But maybe it helps to hear how it's different for someone else...or how it's not. Each episode answers 4 basic questions: 1.  How do you meditate? 2.  What was is like the very first time you meditated? 3.  An example of when you noticed meditation made a difference in your life. 4.  What other activities help you stay mindful on a regular basis? Please visit the How I Meditate page at www.MeditateThisPodcast.com to learn more and submit your own How I Meditate story. Thanks! Pete and Jay

Charlie Hartwell has always pursued balance.  He complemented his degrees from Brown and Harvard with the education that comes from world travels that included hitchhiking alone by night on desolate roads.  While working on Wall Street by day, he spent nights helping start a charity in Africa.  He excelled at marketing for the likes of Heinz and Pillsbury while always searching for the intangible - the words that couldn't be spoken. It makes perfect sense that he's now using his business acumen to help expand consciousness across the globe.  As the operating partner in Bridge Builders Collaborative and co-founder, with his wife Maureen, of ShiftIt Institute, Hartwell is driving the evolution of an ancient tradition to provide comfort and insight to those who need it most.  Hear how he came to this latest pursuit and why he believes this effort will be the defining achievement of his life. Please visit us.... www.MeditateThisPodcast.com Twitter: @MeditateThis Facebook: Meditate This    

Welcome to How I Meditate from the Meditate This! Podcast.  This series is intended reveal personal experiences with meditation and mindfulness as a way to help others refine, rejuvenate, or even just begin a practice.  Meditation can seem weird, creepy, and meaningless.  But maybe it helps to hear how it's different for someone else...or how it's not. Each episode answers 4 basic questions: 1.  How do you meditate? 2.  What was is like the very first time you meditated? 3.  An example of when you noticed meditation made a difference in your life. 4.  What other activities help you stay mindful on a regular basis? Please visit the How I Meditate page at www.MeditateThisPodcast.com to learn more and submit your own How I Meditate story. Thanks! Pete and Jay

All of us talk about it. There's something else we feel like we should be doing—if only we knew what. Or how. Or where. Karan Bajaj was born and raised in the Indian Himalayas, but it was only when he became a successful marketer—earning the title of "top 40 under 40" by Advertising Age in 2007—that he started to feel the call toward a more spiritual path. But that didn't mean abandoning his life and accomplishments completely. Instead, Bajaj embarked on a rather inventive system of working 4 years on and 1 year off. In the "unscripted" periods, he travels the world, writes, and deepens his exploration of Eastern mysticism. Bajaj's books include Johnny Gone Down (a #1 bestseller in India) and his latest novel,The Yoga of Max's Discontent. A beloved blogger who offers regular tips on writing andmeditation, Bajaj has been published in the New York Times, Washington Post, and more. Hear his highly accessible perspectives on living mindfully in a fairly mindless world, the many questions raised when discussing

S&M. Meatball subs. Interviewing Swamis. What don't Pete and Jay cover in this episode of "Mailbag"? Hear them answer questions from listeners across the country on the great central issues of our time. This episode tackles quick fixes for anxiety, the roots of their interest in mindfulness, and how they use their natural curiosity to talk to some of the wisest people in the world. Pour yourself a milkshake and get ready for some good old-fashioned fun.  Please submit your questions for our next mailbag to MeditateThisPodcast@Gmail.com.   Or send it via Twitter to @MeditateThis.   OR...post it on our Facebook page.   Thank You! (you're welcome)

Welcome to How I Meditate from the Meditate This! Podcast.  This series is intended reveal personal experiences with meditation and mindfulness as a way to help others refine, rejuvenate, or even just begin a practice.  Meditation can seem weird, creepy, and meaningless.  But maybe it helps to hear how it's different for someone else...or how it's not. Each episode answers 4 basic questions: 1.  How do you meditate? 2.  What was is like the very first time you meditated? 3.  An example of when you noticed meditation made a difference in your life. 4.  What other activities help you stay mindful on a regular basis? Please visit the How I Meditate page at www.MeditateThisPodcast.com to learn more and submit your own How I Meditate story. Thanks! Pete and Jay

When one steps into MNDFL, it's easy to think you've made a wrong turn. Meditation studios are supposed to be a little dusty, a little impersonal. They certainly do not look like that Hamptons beach house you saw in that design magazine. But MNDFL's founders, Ellie Burrows (chief executive officer) and Lodro Rinzler (chief spiritual officer), had a different idea when they conceived of their new venture: create a drop-in meditation space where one can feel at home (literally), and where the "tradition" is simply soft music, plush couches, and hot tea. The studio on 8th Street in Greenwich Village has attracted lots of attention from the likes of The New York Times, Vogue, and beyond. In Episode 86, hear Ellie describe her own personal journey as well as the unique ideas that brought this pioneering space to life. Visit us at www.MeditateThisPodcast.com. Please rate and review on iTunes!!! Ozzie says thank you!!