For episode 242, Emma Seppälä, Ph.D. returns to the Metta Hour to speak about her new book, “Sovereign: Reclaim Your Freedom, Energy, and Power in a Time of Distraction, Uncertainty, and Chaos.”
Emma is a best-selling author, Yale lecturer, and international keynote speaker. She teaches executives at the Yale School of Management and is faculty director of the Yale School of Management’s Women’s Leadership Program. She is also the Science Director of Stanford University’s Center for Compassion and Altruism Research and Education. A psychologist and research scientist by training, Emma’s expertise is the science of happiness, emotional intelligence, and social connection.
In this episode, Sharon and Emma discuss:
Emma’s definition of the word “Sovereign”
Self-loathing hiding out as self-criticism
The toxic relationship with ourselves
The myths of high-achievers
Sharon’s story of facing self-imposed beliefs
How Emma has worked with self-loathing
Emma’s first meditation experience
You have to name it to tame it
Internalizing the stories told about us
Awareness + courage
Emma’s definition of the term “self-compassion”
The disempowerment of shame
The research around lovingkindness
How intuition supports sovereignty
What research reveals about meditation
The science of happiness
Emma’s study of breath-work for veterans
Emma closes the conversation with a guided meditation.
