Confidence

Holding Your Seat through Life's Eight Worldly Winds

By: Ethan Nichtern

Narrated by: Danny Hughes

A funny, wise, and relatable exploration of how to stand firm amid the ups and downs of existence, from a renowned teacher and writer hailed as "the future of Buddhism".

In today's culture of intense polarization and constant change, how do we find the confidence to navigate life's challenges? Is now really the time for meditation, for looking inward? What do we do with mindfulness? Ethan Nichtern, described by Vogue as "a supercool, deeply kind brainiac," and one of the leading meditation teachers of our time, tackles these questions head-on in Confidence. This provocative book takes contemporary considerations of power, identity, ethics, and confidence to new heights, offering listeners an essential guide to self-discovery.

Nichtern examines the Buddhist concept of the Eight Worldly Winds, the four paired opposites of praise and blame, pleasure and pain, fame and insignificance, and success and failure. By delving into these dichotomies, listeners gain invaluable insights into their relationships with others (including teachers, friends, leaders, the disgraced, and the adored) and themselves. With four transformative meditation exercises, this book empowers listeners to cultivate and access their innate confidence and wisdom.

©2024 Ethan Nichtern (P)2024 Tantor

A different book about confidence

Loved the book, it made me look at confidence in a different way. It also made me self reflect if I’m really showing up in the world or being apathetic in my life.

The only thing I would change is to have Ethan read this book. He did such a great job reading his other books I don’t know why he chose not to read this one, hopefully he will next time.

Real life references.

Valuable insight. The information is very relatable and translates into reality. Have returned to this book several times for reference. I highly recommend this book.

Soothing, brilliant, and so funny read aloud

I love the way Ethan Nichtern thinks and writes. My hardcopy of Confidence is already underlined and dog-eared, but I loooooved hearing it read aloud. I need to be reminded of these practices and concepts many times a day, and having an audio version makes that easy!

Wisdom for the humble person

Ethan has been my teacher over the course of years. I deeply appreciate the way he brings the ordinary to the practice

This is a gift

while many may not agree with the politics expressed, I found those examples from real life relatable. I wish there was a pdf or supplement to download to use when I am ready to practice some of the meditations suggested. Overall, I really enjoyed and valued the time spent listening to the author share this work.