Author / Psychologist
Rick Hanson, Ph.D. is a psychologist, Senior Fellow at UC Berkeley’s Greater Good Science Center, and New York Times best-selling author. His seven books have been published in 33 languages, and include Making Great Relationships, Neurodharma, Resilient, Hardwiring Happiness, Just One Thing, Buddha’s Brain, and Mother Nurture – with over a million copies in English alone. He's the founder of the Global Compassion Coalition and the Wellspring Institute for Neuroscience and Contemplative Wisdom, as well as the co-host of the Being Well Podcast – which has been downloaded over 25 million times. His free newsletters have over 260,000 subscribers and his online programs have scholarships available for those in need. He’s lectured at NASA, Google, Oxford, and Harvard. An expert on positive neuroplasticity, his work has been featured on CBS, NPR, the BBC, and other major media. He began meditating in 1974 and has taught in meditation centers worldwide. He and his wife live in Northern California and have two adult children. He loves the wilderness and taking a break from emails.
Session Highlights:
• An in-depth conversation with Dr. Kristin Neff, professor of human development and culture at the University of Texas, Austin and author of Self-Compassion: Stop Beating Yourself Up and Leave Insecurity Behind
• How to cultivate self-compassion
• Compassion for those with special needs
Session Highlights:
• An in-depth conversation with Dr. Kelly McGonigal, senior teacher and consultant for the Stanford Center for Compassion and Altruism Research and Education and author of The Willpower Instinct: How Self-Control Works, Why It Matters, and What You Can Do to Get More of It
• Compassion for oneself and others in pain
• Bringing willpower to compassion
• Balancing compassion and assertiveness
Latest talk by Rick Hanson at his Wednesday night sitting group in San Rafael, CA. More information on the San Rafael Mediation group is available at https://rickhanson.net/teaching/meditation-group.
Session Highlights:
• An in-depth conversation with Dr. Dacher Keltner, professor of psychology at the University of California, Berkeley and author of Born to Be Good: The Science of a Meaningful Life
• The ways we are sociable primates
• The universals of compassion across cultures
Session Highlights:
• An in-depth conversation with Dr. Tara Brach, founder of the Insight Meditation Community of Washington and author of Radical Acceptance: Embracing Your Life with the Heart of a Buddha
• Practices for strengthening and expressing compassion and kindness
• Dealing with hard issues in relationships
Session Highlights:
• An in-depth conversation with Dr. Daniel Siegel, executive director of the Mindsight Institute and author of Mindsight: The New Science of Personal Transformation
• The link between empathy for yourself and empathy for others
• Compassion in family life
• Compassion in clinical practice
Session Highlights:
• An in-depth conversation with Dr. Richie Davidson, professor of psychology at the University of Wisconsin and co-editor of The Asymmetrical Brain
• How your thoughts and feelings change your brain’s structure
• Studies on compassion in contemplatives
Each year, Spirit Rock Meditation Center holds a moving and heartfelt event to express deep appreciation for the generous donors and volunteers that support SRMC. Rick Hanson, PhD presented for the 2010 event, giving an inspiring talk exploring the dimensions and benefits of both gratitude and generosity.
Rick Hanson presents on the Science of Mindfulness at Awakening Joy in February, 2008. Awakening Joy is an engaging and highly regarded Internet course, with an add-on option to attend onsite recording sessions in Berkeley, California. The fun and nourishing material gradually, but deeply, impacts one’s life, resulting in increased well-being and joy. Joy is not for just the lucky few–it’s a choice anyone can make.
Part II of a talk and guided mediation given at Spirit Rock Meditation Center in March, 2011.
Your brain evolved a negativity bias that makes it like Velcro for negative experiences but Teflon for positive ones. Therefore, a foundation for happiness is to deliberately weave positive experiences into the fabric of your brain and your self.
Your brain evolved a negativity bias that makes it like Velcro for negative experiences but Teflon for positive ones. Therefore, a foundation for happiness is to deliberately weave positive experiences into the fabric of your brain and your self.
This recent series of posts has used the example of Stephen Colbert's satirical "March to Keep Fear Alive" as a timely illustration of a larger point: humans evolved to be fearful – a major feature of the brain's negativity bias that helped our ancestors pass on their...