I created this simple, 7 step heuristic for our community about 7 years ago - and while it seems to be popular with others which is deeply rewarding - for me personally - it remains the absolute easiest way to get back in my body, when I'm feeling stuck in my skull.

Our own bodies offer unlimited opportunities to explore the magic of #mindfuless -  & discover deep feelings of beauty and bliss, cultivating concentration, calm, compassion, courage, presence and peace.

Unlike other variations of #Vipassnaa practice, this step wise practice moves the spotlight of attention and awareness to and through a single spot on/within the body - then, to the cloud of sensations that arise thereafter. (either on the surface of the skin

or through turning the microscope of attention interoceptively - and navigating sensations deeper within the "center" of self) Ultimately, as our attention grows stronger & more concentrated, we can transcend the sense of having a body, & even being a separate self at all.....

by dissolving into the space of sensation - and simply allowing everything to arise, in the same space of undifferentiated awareness - if even, only for a moment.

This is an incredibly simple practice - and yet, at least for me - has been incredibly helpful for navigating all sorts of the endless emergencies - the avalanche unpleasant emotions we often feel day to day - and in general, the fire hose of slings & arrows life throws our way.

May this benefit someone who could use it today.

And this practice (amongst 9 others) is included in a new free mindfulness workshop I'm leading with a few other strange souls on April 18th - if you'd like to join us (it's free) send an email (mindfulmarketplace@gmail.com) or reach out to say hi, and learn more.

Teach what you know.  Do what you love.  Wake up the world with your work.

A Simple 7-Step Heuristic for Mindfulness

Avalokiteshvara, the 1000 armed #Bodhisattva has a different tool in every hand - each arm is a unique instrument of hope - help - #healing and transformation.

It's easy to forget how many simple, subtle, opportunities we have to inspire, uplift and impact the people who land in our lives - in ways we miss far too often to count.

I recently participated in a silent meditation retreat. For days, my mind refused to stay still.

It leaped, and lurched and stumbled and fumbled my way through days of not wanting to look closely at my own life - my own mistakes, mis-steps - messes, stresses, sorrows and shame - and the many different flavors of suffering I visited on myself, and others I love.

One day, I looked around the other bright & shiny souls in the room - all of us different ages, incomes, sizes, sexes, beliefs and backgrounds - and yet - with our eyes closed - fiercely focused - facing invisible dramas -

disappointments, failures, foibles and frailties that were each of ours to face alone.

And yet - all of us - warriors tethered together by a common enemy - and a similar goal.

To wake up - to lighten up - and to show up for those who needed us most.

Life - the simple act of living with intention - and attention - is the ultimate expression of the pedestrian power that lies inside of the #Bodhisattva.

The great pure spirit of #love and service - of #awakening and uplifting ourselves and others.

Our role is to simply embrace the arm we've been assigned.

To take our unique gifts out into the world with passion, #purpose and perseverance.

If you're interested in writing about, or teaching #mindfulness to kids and teens in 2023, reach out and say hi.

Teach what you know.  Do what you love. Wake up the world with your work.

The Bodhisattva in Us All

We are all open systems - porous to the world.

Every experience makes us, molds us, shapes us - the contours of our lives constantly changing by dint of what we see, touch, taste and hear.

To me, this feels like both the good news that #mindfulness and mental training offers us - and the bad news as well.

Without some degree of attention and care, it's easy to get swept away, invisibly, by influences you didn't author - but that take root in your body and brain, nonetheless.

We watched a great presentation as a community yesterday - by Dr. David Vago, on activity dependent plasticity.

At bottom, it's about being intentional, with your attention.

You always get to choose.

It's the one freedom, we never lose.

And what you pay attention to - and how you pay attention - ultimately, determines how you live your life.

Choose well.

“The experiences and goals and dreams of a person are always reflected in the brain’s structure.” - Dr. David Eagleman

#mindset, #meditation

On Molding our Minds

If your goal is to start a #mindfulness practice, the secret is to "practice" everywhere.  Make your practice portable.

There is no divide - or distinction -  between practice, and real life.




Life offers unlimited opportunity to pay attention to the quality of your mind, in every experience - and in every moment.

The more opportunities an experience offers to be distracted, to be lost in thought, to lose the plot...

The more I find my own ability to feel the fruits of real progress, in my own practice.

Don’t wait for “the perfect place.”

It's always, just this moment.  And just this life.

So I tell myself - don't wait.

Just begin.  Again.


Just Begin.

> “You see this goblet?” asks Achaan Chaa, the Thai meditation master. 

“For me this glass is already broken. I enjoy it; I drink out of it. It holds my water admirably, sometimes even reflecting the sun in beautiful patterns. 

If I should tap it, it has a lovely ring to it. 

But when I put this glass on the shelf and the wind knocks it over or my elbow brushes it off the table and it falls to the ground and shatters, I say, ‘Of course.’ 

When I understand that the glass is already broken, every moment with it is precious.” 

— Dr Mark Epstein

The glass is already broken. Our lives, a beautiful dance on broken glass.

When I remind myself of this, that the glass is borrowed, not bought — it sometimes saddens me.

I think often of what I’ve lost.

Or what could have been.

Then the glass feels frail, and fractured — foisted on a feeble frame.....always waiting to weep.

But true mindfulness is the great enemy of this sort of sadness.

Because life is always right here.

And only in this moment.

Through that lens, I begin to feel great gratitude for what is.

Right now

I remember seeing the late, great author, Christopher Hitchens once debate. He was already sick. And it was clear by his appearance, as he said so well - 

“more and more was being taken from less and less”

The host asked him — "How are you feeling?"

And he said — "well, I’m dying."

"But so too, are you."

The audience laughed. Nervously at first. But then louder, and more comfortably, with the silly, simple truth of it all.



The mindfulness of Impermanence is the great motivator for me.

It’s all borrowed time.

And what we do with it matters.

Don't wait.

Just begin again.

And start now.

It’s all a beautiful dance, on broken glass.



A Beautiful Dance on Broken Glass



A tiny #MANIFESTO  This we Believe.

We believe in Kindness without cause.  In Compassion. Connection. And Community.

We believe that together, our minds are magical.

But that our hearts are where our true power lies. 

We believe in making mistakes.

And that getting your face muddy and messy is part of the fun. 

We believe in asking empowering questions.

And letting unexpected answers appear. 

We believe you should share your Flare. That making people better is the greatest good you can do. (& the most ethical way to parlay your PURPOSE into into a proftaible business, too) 

We believe that you should try to HUG a stranger, & be the best part of someone's day...

even if they’re a world away.

We believe in cultivating confidence through creativity, community, connection and curiosity.

We believe in inspired ideas.

But that execution is everything.

We believe that kindness is contagious. Inspiration over desperation.

In contribution over cash....& pursuing passion + purpose over pure profit.  

We believe in giving back. And paying it forward. We believe that it’s never too late to begin again.We believe in eliminating excuses. 

That you’re ready right now.

And that the best is yet to come. We believe in making new rules.   I
n freedom,focus, fulfillment & FUN. We believe in making gratitude our guru. We believe that curiosity is sexy. 

And that imagination, inspiration & innovation are within us all. 

We believe that sometimes you need to stop seeking, & just sit still.

That true wisdom often lies within.  We believe that you need a good strategy to succeed. But a better story that inspires you to start.  We believe that alone we can change a neighborhood.

But together....we can change the world.We believe that every author, artist, maker, marketer, creator and enlightened entrepreneur needs a MANIFESTO……And if you’re still reading this far…we BELIEVE in you. 

 Our mission is to empower a new generation of entrepreneurs to write TINY books, publish TINY products, create tiny communities and tell TINY stories that make a BIG impact in the world.   Teach what you know.  Do what you love.  Wake up the world with your work.  Join us!

A Tiny Manifesto.  This We Believe.

Day 1

I walk down the street.

There is a deep hole in the sidewalk.

I fall in.

I am lost…

I am hopeless.

It isn’t my fault.

It takes forever to find a way out.

Day 2

I walk down the same street.

There is a deep hole in the sidewalk.

I pretend I don’t see it.

I fall in again. 

I can’t believe I’m in the same place.

But it isn’t my fault.

It still takes a long time to get out.

Day 3

I walk down the same street.

There is a deep hole in the sidewalk.

I see it is there.

I still fall in… it’s a habit.

My eyes are open; 

I get out immediately.

Day 4

I walk down the same street.

There is a deep hole in the sidewalk.

I walk around it.

Day 5

I walk down another street.

— Portia Nelson

So much of our lives feels akin to playing a giant, cosmic "Groundhog Day" video game.

Where do you get slayed, flayed or played into making the same fatal mistake - each and every time you put your quarter in, and spin?

I know that much of my own life is ruled by this strange habit of automaticity & self sabotage. 

This odd attraction of finding the gaping holes - the weird, wobbly, wonky soft spots on the road -feeling their magnetic pull, & with both feet 

betraying my better directional intuitions- tripping, slipping and falling in.

(only to have to dig another quarter out and spin again :)

Setting a mindfulness alarm, for me, is like the ultimate superpower.

It requires that I ask myself - "what are my feet doing?" - and it reminds me, in every moment, I am in control of my character - I know where i'm heading - and I can always choose anew.

I can think of no better advice - for avoiding the "doom loop" - the dubious distractions - the bright and shiny objects that never are quite as bright or shiny up close - than asking yourself something similar - to stay ever vigilant - and always on course.

To me? This is the META rule that rules all other rules.

But ultimately - it's really about paying full attention to the character of our lives.

What are my feet doing?

What is my heart doing?

Am I awake and in control?

Or am I just sleep walking through busy, hazy days that will invariably conspire to lead me, and bury me back in the bottom of the same ditch I tripped, slipped and fell in last week?

The bane of the doom loop - the thing that makes it so depressing and frustrating and aggravating, paradoxically, is also it's liberating virtue.

You always get to choose anew.

No matter how many times you've found yourself on the wrong end of a deep ditch looking up and wondering how you got there, today, you're feet are back on a firm foundation.

The path ahead is dimly lit - but NOW, you know where the potholes and road blocks are.

So pay attention on the path. Walk confidently, but carefully.

And keep a pocket full of quarters. Just in case you want to spin again.

:)

What Are My Feet Doing?

 “Nature loves courage. You make the commitment and nature will respond to that commitment by removing impossible obstacles. Dream the impossible dream and the world will not grind you under, it will lift you up. This is the trick. 

This is what all these teachers and philosophers who really counted, who really touched the alchemical gold, this is what they understood. This is the shamanic dance in the waterfall. This is how magic is done. 

By hurling yourself into the abyss and discovering it's a feather bed.”

 ― Terence McKenna

 Courage is one of those qualities that is often confused, and conflated with it's closest cousins.

But courage need not be something reserved for those special souls who do something unusually heroic or newsworthy.

When I read the late great Terrance McKenna's wise words, it reminds me that courage is really another word for trust.

The trust that if you do decide to hurl yourself into the abyss, it's not jagged edges and hard landings that await; Instead, it's the support of something invisible and unseen, waiting & willing to cushion your fall.

I've had a lot of crazy, hazy and unusual experiences in my life. Many starts and stops, ups and deep downs, failings, flailings and far too many skinned knees to count.

But as I look back at the dubious decisions, the odd adventures into the the unknown, and the many wild, weird & often wonderful encounters with strange souls along the way, I've never felt particularly courageous. But I've always felt the trust. 

That if I simply showed up for myself, and believed there was a mission, a message, a commitment or a cause that was calling me to jump - that somewhere on the way down, that feather bed would appear.

Life is hard.  But have faith. Trust in yourself.  Close your eyes.  And jump. 



You can read the unrolled version of this thread here: https://typefully.com/ianhollander/0tVX7h1

1/7 Well, HELLO, 2021!  New year.  Same Mission. Bigger plan.  (PS - stay out of my DM's, 2020, it's been nice knowing you.  We had some good moments, but in general, our time together was a cartoon clown show car crash clusterfuck of continuous chaos, with a little bit of..

2/7 of dumpster fire thrown in for good measure.  Rumor has it, you had that effect on most everyone, so it's not me, it's you) I'm generally not one of those "new year's resolutions" sorts of people.  In general, I tend to blame my neurotic impulses  & habits on other people,

3/7 which makes me feel better. (most recently my sisters, who have peer pressured me into "Dinner Zooming" with my parents & extended family 3 days a week since March. If I never see my Dad & Uncle Art eat another lasagna while reviewing & debating Netflix movies

4/7 it will be two lifetimes too soon) 

That said, 2021 is going to be a super exciting time for our community. We're launching a new micro learning #mindfulness based marketplace app this week, & new idea incubator & brand accelerator for #entrepreneurs with a need for speed.

5/7 I'm also super proud to announce we are committing to giving away 20% of our products & services in #2021, 100% for free.

If you have inspired ideas + need a helping hand getting your words & wisdom out into the world, we're happy to offer our services at no cost.

6/7 (and of course, If you can't afford a digital download or online workshop, we're happy to give it to you for free)  DM's & email open to all.

7/7 Our Mission:  To empower a new generation of mindful leaders to build brands & launch movements that make a meaningful impact in mental health, community wellness, personal growth, spiritual development and “enlightened” entrepreneurialism.