Mindfulness

Oxford professor Mark Williams developed Mindfulness-Based Cognitive Therapy with colleagues at Cambridge and Toronto, and here he and co-author Danny Penman set out its methods for a general audience. The plan runs over eight weeks and rests on short daily meditations of 10 to 20 minutes, meant to interrupt the loop of stress, anxiety, exhaustion and unhappiness. According to the authors, MBCT has been clinically shown to work at least as well as drugs against depression, and Britain's National Institute for Health and Clinical Excellence recommends it. They argue the practices also help people who are not depressed but feel worn down by the constant demands of modern life. Links to guided audio meditations support the course.

Tools of Titans reports that Will MacAskill, founder of 80,000 Hours, completed its eight-week course and that it had a significant effect on his life.