Understanding the causes and solutions for bias
Love and compassion are habits—and my PRISM Toolkit and my book, Breaking Bias, are here to support you as you build new habits in the New Year
This is such an important message that I’m sharing it a second time. Where the mind goes, energy flows. Or, in the words of the American author and activist Grace Lee Boggs, “We must change ourselves in order to change the world.” With so many things competing for our attention, I hope that this week, you’ve been able to notice where your attention and energy are going. Are your attention and energy going where you want them to go? If not—you can change it!
This might seem intuitive, but it’s also easy to lose sight of this insight as our minds encounter distractions from all sides. As we work to notice where the mind is going and consciously shift it back to align with our values and intentions, we work to practice and build our new habits. Noticing and focusing our attention is the work of breaking bias—which is why it’s the foundation of my PRISM Toolkit. Bias is learned, and it can be unlearned.
My book, Breaking Bias, is your guide in this work. Breaking Bias is filled with lists—16 in total. All of them are rooted in Buddhist Mind-Science, which has been proven to measurably reduce bias when you put them into regular practice. You can learn more about what’s inside by taking a deeper dive into the contents here, and keep reading for a sneak preview of what’s waiting for you when you get your copy.
Love is an ability—not a feeling
Where our mind goes, energy flows. This is as true for love as it is for any other habit we intend to strengthen: love isn’t just an emotion, it’s a skill that can be developed through intentional practice. I talked about this in my conversation with Sharon Salzberg, “Love as an Ability: Cultivating Compassion and Connection,” as part of my Breaking Bias Masterclass. Drawing from ancient wisdom and modern psychology, we share practical tools you can use to cultivate compassion, strengthen relationships, and foster deeper connections with others—and yourself.
The holiday season might be behind us, but as we enter into the new year, I can’t wait to share tools to support you on your breaking bias journey. As you set your intentions this January, consider gifting Breaking Bias to yourself, family, coworkers, and friends.
If you’re ready to take the next step in your learning, I have classes that meet you wherever you are right now, from an intro to breaking bias foundations to a deep dive into a Masterclass. Learn more and register here!
Attend My Upcoming Book Events
Breaking Bias will be featured at SXSW 2025 in Austin, TX! Join me from March 3–6, 2025 as I share about “Building A World Where Belonging Replaces Bias” as part of next year’s SXSW EDU. The full schedule will be available soon, but you can get your tickets today and have conversations about Breaking Bias with me all week.
Join my talk on Dharma and Justice with the Union Theological Seminary on April 9 from 7–8:30 pm EST in New York. I’ll be joined in conversation by Kosen Gregory Snyder to discuss how we can use a Buddhist lens to examine, recognize, and uproot bias. Register today.
Watch recordings from some of my past events. Last year, I got to talk about Breaking Bias and share hands-on meditations and practices at the Busboys & Poets Bookstore in Washington, D.C. Watch the recording here!
Some Terms from the Breaking Bias Glossary
Conscious Bias: learned false beliefs about a secondary identity, accepted as true, that distort how humans perceive, reason, remember, and make decisions toward themselves and others.
Unconscious Bias: learned habits of thoughts about a secondary identity that distort how humans perceive, reason, remember, and make decisions toward themselves and others.
Interpersonal Bias: a form of conscious and unconscious bias where harmful mental formations influence a human’s thoughts, words, and actions toward others.
Institutional Bias: a form of conscious and unconscious bias where shared biases of humans who have decision-making authority or influence over an institution impacts many people via human relationships, service delivery, and product development.
Resources and Reflection
Breaking Bias is the perfect gift in the new year! Give my best-selling book to friends, family, colleagues, and anyone else in your life who you want to support in their breaking bias journeys this year. The book was highlighted in the 2024 Non-Obvious Book Awards and featured by Maria Schriver in her Sunday Paper. It’s not too late—support breaking bias in your communities by ordering the book today!
Ready to jumpstart your Breaking Bias journey? Check out my courses! Whether you hope to build foundational skills, dig deeper, or dive into a Breaking Bias Masterclass, my self-led courses are here for you. They also make a great New Year gift for a family member or loved one! Learn more here.
Come join me at the Power of Meditation Summit from January 21–30. I’ll be speaking as part of this beautiful exploration of dharma teachings and practices to help you heal anxiety and access enduring peace. It’s your opportunity to learn from a group of brilliant and renowned healers, psychotherapists, yogis, meditation teachers, and activists. Discover how meditation, dharma, and psychotherapy can help you source change from the wisdom of the true self.
Understanding bias’s causes and solutions
I wrote my best-selling book after decades of research revealed that breaking bias is the key to unlocking multiple crises in our world—from racism, sexism, classism, and other -isms to burnout, loneliness, and climate change. In Breaking Bias, I don’t just talk about what bias is, where it comes from, and how it unconsciously shapes our habits of thinking and acting in the world. I also share my PRISM Toolkit, a set of science-backed, somatically informed contemplative tools you can use to begin breaking bias right now.
That’s the promise of Breaking Bias, but how does my book deliver on this promise? If you haven’t already, I hope you’ll become a paid subscriber to learn more about the 5 causes of bias—and their 5 solutions.
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