5 self-help books that won’t make you roll your eyes

Meditation for Fidgety Skeptics: A 10% Happier How-to Book by Dan Harris and Carlye Adler

This self-help book tells the story of how Harris and friend Jeff Warren, known as the “Meditation MacGyver,” traveled across the United States to dig into and debunk the myths and misconceptions that keep people from meditating.

The synopsis states that Harris “used to think that meditation was for people who collect crystals, play Ultimate Frisbee, and use the word “namaste” without irony. “After he had a panic attack on live television, he went on a strange and circuitous journey that ultimately led him to become one of meditation’s most vocal public proponents.”

Harris has also written another self-help book, How I Tamed the Voice in My Head, Reduced Stress Without Losing My Edge, and Found Self-Help 10% Happier, and an inspirational memoir called Hoist on My Own Petard: Or: How Writing 10% Happier Threw My Own Advice Right Back in My Face. If you’re a fan of Harris’s writing style, you can pick those up as well.

Since I have ADHD and am a daily newspaper reporter, meditation is a challenge. I honestly gave it a shot after reading Meditation for Fidgety Skeptics. If Dan can make meditation work for him while he anchors ABC News, surely his tactics are worth a try.

There’s also the 10% Happier app that offers guided meditation sessions, for those of us who need a little extra help.

If you’re interested in learning more about meditation from someone who never believed in it before, you can pick up a copy on Amazon. I think you’ll learn more than you think, even if meditation doesn’t wind up working for you.