TED Community » Dale Elliott

More About Me

I'm passionate about

Helping people have better lives. Teaching mindfulness. Studying. Laughing.

An idea worth spreading

Teach children from 4yrs of age to identify their self talk. Teach them to meditate. You will never need to teach them anything so important.

Talk to me about

Psychology, MBCT and ACT.

Comments

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• A reply on Talk: Matt Killingsworth: Want to be happier? Stay in the moment

  Feb 7 2013: Totally agree Paul. Each breath you take gives you the opportunity to focus on it. Try it with your next breath. Then, ask yourself, what problem do I need to solve? What do i need to do? If nothing, focus on the breath, if something, focus on that. Always focus on what you are doing. When the philosopher Blaise Pascal stated “All of humanity's problems stem from man's inability to sit quietly in a room alone” he was pointing to a quiet mind. Not a quiet environment as such. That might help sometimes but is not vital. I find Pascal's statement to be so totally true for me. Every major cock up i've had in my life stemmed from unconscious thought, in a loud mind. Sit and be, and if needed, act.

• A reply on Talk: Matt Killingsworth: Want to be happier? Stay in the moment

  Feb 7 2013: ......yes, BUT, a better way is to ACCEPT the feeling of boredom, watch it, roll it around in your awareness and see that beyond it is a wonderful peaceful space of consciousness. It is in this space that boredom is experienced. Don't react to it and allow your mind to go off in thoughts of being someplace else, this is not sustainable. Be aware in the moment. From there, nothing is ever boring, it is really rather amazing. We are here after all. That is enough of an amazing situation to have us all just sit in awe and never move a muscle!

• A reply on Talk: Matt Killingsworth: Want to be happier? Stay in the moment

  Feb 7 2013: Yes Paul, if I can become aware of those feelings (+ any and all feelings), give them my full attention, see them for what they are and accept them without bias, labelling or judgement, they will not take hold and consume me. They just wash over me for a moment in time. Fleeting and impermanent. I find practicing this is the hardest work I have ever attempted. It has also been the most amazingly wonderful experience. I now know what the true 'being' of human being is.

• A reply on Talk: Matt Killingsworth: Want to be happier? Stay in the moment

  Feb 7 2013: Good point Jenna. If meditation was so useless it would not have been around for thousands of years. I think this data gets more people thinking about it and at least causes some healthy discussions here on TED which I think is a good thing. The work I do with busy minded people running large businesses or managing many staff in high stress situations has shown me that people who feel fulfilled in life are more present more often. I know this is the case for me. I too don't need research to justify it to myself, i can see that I am no where near as angry or frustrated each day since living with more awareness of thoughts, stories I tell myself, illusions of what seem real and being lost and consumed in un-commanded thought. Problem solving, creativity and reasoning come from aware conscious thought. Lost in worry and anxiety going round and round with no awareness is aligned with mind wandering in my experience. I agree with you, but I also see that in order to have these types of debates we need some data. It may help a few more people in the world wake up and 'truly' smell the roses.

• A reply on Talk: Matt Killingsworth: Want to be happier? Stay in the moment

  Feb 7 2013: Hey Pedro, thanks for your interaction here on TED. You could do an experiment using yourself and see if meditation has any effect. Jon Kabat Zinn has a good method of doing it. This is the wonderful thing about this debate, we can all give it a go for free and see what happens.

• A reply on Talk: Matt Killingsworth: Want to be happier? Stay in the moment

  Feb 7 2013: Hey Sara, learning and practicing mindfulness would be of great benefit for you. You have the awareness to see your busy mind which is the most important thing to begin with. From here, showing compassion and kindness to yourself when you are off in thought and you realise it, is very important. Learning how to mindfully meditate, which allows you to focus on thoughts and also outside experiences and transition between the two is really useful. It has allowed me to enjoy life much more while actually getting more done. It's not what you do, it's how you be while your doing what you do. Matt's research proves what, for thousands of years, has been taught in eastern cultures.
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  A reply on Conversation: What are 5 things you have learned that has completely changed your life?

  Jun 9 2012: In less then a second my life change forever. My left hand touched my left leg and I realised I couldn't feel my leg.(s). I had fallen off a motorbike and broke my spine, totally damaging my spinal cord. I have not walked or felt any sensations at all from my stomach down from that moment. Now, 9 years on, do I consider it life changing? TOTALLY! And it has COMPLETLEY changed my life. (For the better!) YAY!
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  A comment on Conversation: What are 5 things you have learned that has completely changed your life?

  Jun 9 2012: 1. Nobody else needs you unless you are present.
  2. A life full of great memories leaves no room for regret.
  3. Nothing of substance is easy.
  4. If you can lose it, throw it away, break it, have it stolen, grow old of it, or regret it,
  it was never worth having anyway.
  5. Having a good memory is useless if all it does is remind you.