Note: We re-aired this insightful interview with Dr. Langer in December 2022. See “Redux: Mindfulness and Learning with Ellen Langer” for the most recent of this conversation, complete with more detailed show notes and a transcript. Also, Dr. Langer returned to the Leading Learning Podcast in September 2023, so be sure to check out that episode, “The Imprint of Mindfulness with Dr. Ellen Langer.”
The topic of mindfulness is likely one you’ve heard a lot about in recent years. In fact, it’s become quite a buzzword in today’s culture—but what does it actually mean to be mindful? And what is the connection between mindfulness and learning?
With over 35 years of research and expertise, Dr. Ellen Langer, a Harvard psychologist and Guggenheim Fellow, is widely known as the “mother of mindfulness”. She is the author of eleven books including Mindfulness, The Power of Mindful Learning, and Counterclockwise: Mindful Health and the Power of Possibility, and has written more than two hundred research articles on the topic of mindfulness.
In this episode of the Leading Learning Podcast, Jeff talks with Ellen about what it really means to be mindful, the benefits that come along with it, and ways you can encourage achieving it in your own life as well as in the design of learning experiences.
To tune in, just click below. To make sure you catch all of the future episodes, be sure to subscribe by RSS or on iTunes. And, if you like the podcast, be sure to give it a tweet!
Listen to the Show
Read the Show Notes
Note: We re-aired this insightful interview in December 2022. For the most recent version, with more detailed show notes and a transcript, see “Redux: Mindfulness and Learning with Ellen Langer.”
[00:18] – Thank you to YourMembership, the podcast sponsor for the third quarter of 2017. YourMembership’s learning management system is specifically designed for professional education with a highly flexible and intuitive system that customizes the learning experience. YourMembership’s LMS seamlessly integrates with key systems to manage all of your educational content formats in one central location while providing powerful tools to create and deliver assessments, evaluations, and learning communities.
[01:13] – Highlighted Resource of the Week – Video of Dr. Ellen Langer’s talk, Mindfulness Over Matter. In it she highlights many of the key points from her book, Mindfulness.
[1:43] – A preview of what will be covered in this podcast where Jeff interviews mindfulness expert, Dr. Ellen Langer.
[03:22] – Introduction to Dr. Ellen Langer.
[04:08] – How Ellen became focused on mindfulness as an area of study.
[07:59] – Why to be mindful is “to be confident and uncertain.”
[14:47] – The mindset needed to become a more mindful learner.
[17:20] – Exercises people can do to be more mindful.
[18:44] – How to architect more mindful learning experiences.
[20:58] – How mindfulness jibes with certification and the approach to competency/bodies of knowledge.
[24:07] – How mindfulness helps older people live longer, happier lives.
[26:36] – Ellen’s lifelong learning habits and practices.
[28:36] – How to connect with Ellen and/or learn more about her work:
Web site: ellenlanger.com
[29:15] – Wrap-up
Thanks again to YourMembership for sponsoring this episode of the Leading Learning Podcast.
If you are getting value from the Leading Learning podcast, be sure to subscribe by RSS or on iTunes. We’d also appreciate if you give us a rating on iTunes by going to https://www.leadinglearning.com/itunes.
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[30:48] – Sign-off
See Also:
- Redux: Mindfulness and Learning with Ellen Langer (Note: This is the most recent version of this episode.)
- The Imprint of Mindfulness with Dr. Ellen Langer
- Maximizing Learning with Mindset
- Make It Stick with Peter C. Brown
- Learning How to Learn with Dr. Barbara Oakley
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