NPR's Rachel Martin On: Surviving The News, Making A Huge Career Pivot, And Hosting A Metaphysical Game Show

1. Prioritize Well-being Over Dream Job

If a ‘dream job’ leads to psychic exhaustion, depression, diminishing curiosity, and unsustainable personal life, prioritize your mental and physical health by considering a career pivot to achieve better sleep, presence for family, and overall well-being.

2. Create Personal Meaning

Recognize and embrace the power to create your own meaning in life by consciously deciding what is sacred and important to you, allowing you to manifest gratitude and appreciation in daily experiences.

3. Act For All Beings

Adopt the principle of acting ‘for the benefit of all beings’ as a core purpose, understanding that orienting your efforts towards being useful to others is a mind state that fosters personal well-being.

4. Practice Present Moment Equanimity

Cultivate equanimity by giving yourself permission to feel whatever is happening in the present moment, while also recognizing that ‘right now it’s like this’ and everything, for better or worse, is temporary and will change.

5. Embrace ‘Good-ishness’

Adopt the concept of ‘good-ishness’ for yourself and others, recognizing that everyone is ‘pretty good but makes mistakes,’ which helps reduce defensiveness when errors are pointed out and fosters self-forgiveness.

6. Cultivate Intellectual Humility

Be aware of your own certainty, as it’s not always an indicator of truth and can mask underlying doubt; cultivating intellectual humility can improve relationships and understanding.

7. Practice Empathy Amidst News

To survive difficult news cycles and political polarization, actively cultivate appreciation and empathy for others by understanding their backstories and the influences that shaped their worldviews, rather than resorting to vilification.

8. Accept Insomnia, Meditate

When facing insomnia, remind yourself that you’ve survived sleepless nights before and will be fine, then get out of bed to practice walking meditation, turning a struggle into a ’no lose scenario’ for either sleep or mental training.

9. Befriend Insomnia Anxiety

Treat anxiety related to insomnia as a misguided friend trying to protect you; approaching it with acceptance and ‘friendship’ will defang its power, whereas aggression will only make it stronger.

10. Embrace ‘Not Exempt’ Reminder

Regularly remind yourself of the Buddhist teaching ‘I’m not exempt’ from aging, illness, and death; this practice, while seemingly grim, actually serves to awaken you to the preciousness of the present moment.

11. Choose Positive Perspective

When contemplating vast concepts like the infinite universe or mortality, consciously choose to be enthralled and excited rather than afraid, as you have the power to imbue these ideas with your own chosen meaning and perspective.

12. Break Insomnia Bed Association

If you can’t sleep, get out of bed rather than staying and struggling, as this trains your brain to associate the bed with struggle, making it harder to fall asleep later.

13. Meditate for Insomnia

If you can’t fall asleep, get out of bed and try walking meditation to exhaust both your mind and body, helping you to eventually fall asleep.

14. Practice Walking Meditation Cues

During walking meditation, use the phrase ’there is a body’ to bring your mind to physical sensations, and if concentration wanes, add mental notes like ‘moving’ or ’thinking’ to skillfully direct your attention to your sensate experience.

15. Cultivate Gratitude as Meditation

Actively train your mind to focus on gratitude, meaning, and what matters, rather than FOMO, envy, or discontent, understanding that this mental cultivation is a powerful form of meditation.

16. Actively Seek Spiritual Meaning

After significant life events or loss, actively seek out and explore different religious or spiritual traditions, or lack thereof, to construct your own meaningful spiritual framework rather than relying solely on inherited beliefs.

17. Embrace Self Paradox

Embrace the paradox of being both ’everything and nothing’ – an expression of the universe interwoven into everything – as this understanding can be freeing and allow for acceptance of your multifaceted nature.

18. Manage Emotional Exhaustion

Understand that engaging in deep, vulnerable conversations, especially in professions like journalism, can be emotionally exhausting; be prepared to make changes or set boundaries to sustain your well-being.

19. Teach Nuanced Human Nature

Teach children that people are a combination of good and bad qualities, with one being more present at different times, to foster empathy, self-forgiveness, and the ability to forgive others.

20. Explore Passions Before Law

If you have any other career interests or passions, pursue them first before committing to law school, as it’s better to try those paths than to become an unhappy lawyer.

21. Use Guided Meditation App

Download the ‘10% with Dan Harris’ app to access guided meditations specifically designed to help with stress, anxiety, sleep, focus, self-compassion, and managing interactions with annoying people.

22. Join Live Meditation Sessions

Participate in weekly live Zoom community sessions offered through the 10% with Dan Harris app to meditate with others and ask questions, fostering connection and learning.