George Mumford
George Mumford, author of "The Mindful Athlete" and mindfulness teacher to elite athletes like Michael Jordan, shares his journey from heroin addiction and chronic pain to discovering meditation. He discusses how mindfulness helps manage pain, cultivate a friendly view of the universe, and achieve peak performance by fostering presence and wisdom.
Deep Dive Analysis
17 Topic Outline
Introduction to George Mumford's Work and Background
Guest's Personal Journey: Addiction and Recovery
Discovery of Meditation for Chronic Pain Management
Meditation's Role in Creating Space and Choice
Understanding the 'Unfriendly Universe' Paradigm
The 'Masterpiece Within' and Embracing the Unknown
Teaching Mindfulness to Elite Athletes: The Flow State
Conditions for Achieving Flow and Brain Growth
Guest's Meditation Training and Prison Project Work
Joining the Chicago Bulls and Phil Jackson
Mindfulness Practices for Athletes and Slowing Perception
Addressing Internal Criticism and Self-Talk
The Inner Game: Competing Against Oneself
Working with the New York Knicks: Building a Foundation
Expanding Mindfulness Beyond Traditional Settings
Guest's Daily Mindfulness Practice and Philosophy
The Concept of Enlightenment and Awakening
7 Key Concepts
Space Between Stimulus and Response
This refers to the ability to pause and observe an event or sensation (stimulus) before reacting automatically (response). This pause creates an opportunity to choose a skillful, intentional response rather than a knee-jerk, mindless reaction.
Eye of the Hurricane
A metaphor for an inner state of quiet and stillness that exists within an individual, even amidst external turmoil and chaos. Accessing this space allows one to observe experiences without being overwhelmed or identified with them.
Unfriendly Universe Paradigm
A belief system, often formed by early life experiences like trauma or a difficult upbringing, that leads an individual to perceive the world as hostile or threatening. This paradigm influences how one uses resources to deny or destroy experience.
Flow State (The Zone)
A state of optimal performance where an individual is fully immersed in an activity, experiencing effortless action and a sense of being in sync with what's happening. It's characterized by high challenges met with high skills, leading to a relaxed receptivity.
Flow Ready
The condition created through mindfulness practice that prepares an individual to enter a flow state. It's not about actively trying to enter flow, but rather cultivating the internal conditions (like presence and awareness) that make it more likely to occur spontaneously.
Bare Awareness (Bare Attention)
A perceptual process where one observes sensations or events without the immediate influx of associative thinking, self-reference, abstract thinking, or judgment. It involves seeing things as they are, without adding a story or interpretation.
Paradigm Blindness
The phenomenon where an individual operates within a certain belief system or framework (paradigm) without being consciously aware of it. This paradigm can shape perceptions and reactions, much like wearing glasses without realizing they are on.
12 Questions Answered
He got into meditation while in recovery from heroin and alcohol addiction, seeking a way to manage chronic physical pain, specifically migraine headaches and lower back pain, without narcotics.
Meditation helps by cultivating awareness to observe pain as sensations arising and passing away, rather than identifying with it or creating a story around it. This creates space to respond skillfully, often by resting or breathing, before the pain escalates.
If the universe is perceived as unfriendly, one uses resources to deny or destroy experience. If it's seen as friendly, one aligns with natural laws, leading to greater happiness and a fuller life.
The 'masterpiece within' is accessed by being in the moment, allowing things to speak to us, and cultivating curiosity about present experiences, which transforms one's relationship to them.
Athletes get into flow by becoming 'flow ready' through mindfulness, which involves being present and aware moment-to-moment. It's not about trying to get into flow, but creating conditions where it can happen by being comfortable with challenges slightly beyond one's comfort level.
Optimum brain growth requires a high enough oxygen level, incremental learning (easy does it), challenges that are doable but hard (out of comfort zone), and bringing interest to the activity to stimulate motivational circuits in the brain.
This is achieved by practicing 'bare awareness' or 'bare attention,' which involves observing things in the present moment without immediately overlaying them with associative thinking, self-reference, or past memories, thus creating more space in the perceptual process.
The goal is not to turn the mind off, but to create space for thoughts to be present without identification or judgment. It's about observing thoughts as they arise and pass, allowing the mind to be, rather than trying to control it.
One can change negative self-talk by consciously altering belief systems and focusing on positive intentions. By observing the inner voice as an external phenomenon rather than identifying with it, one can learn from it without judgment.
He defines meditation as 'whatever is on your mind.' If one's mind is filled with thoughts of compassion, wisdom, love, or curiosity, then that is their meditation, emphasizing the importance of intention.
Expanding mindfulness involves making it available to everyone, including inner-city and rural areas, by educating, spreading the word, and modeling what it means to be an 'awake' person. Sports can be a powerful vehicle for this due to its broad appeal.
For him, it means being fully awake, seeing and experiencing things without greed, hatred, or delusion, and possessing equanimity, compassion, and love. It's about being fully present and okay with things as they are, without needing them to change.
39 Actionable Insights
1. Transform Beliefs to Shape Destiny
Apply Gandhi’s formula (beliefs become thoughts, thoughts become words, etc., leading to destiny) to consciously transform your life. Identify and change limiting belief systems to alter your thoughts, words, actions, habits, and values, thereby shaping your destiny.
2. Cultivate a Friendly Universe Mindset
Adopt a belief that the universe is friendly, rather than unfriendly, to align yourself with natural laws and use your resources for positive creation. This shift helps you focus on what can work and play out positive scenarios in your mind.
3. Choose Your Response Mindfully
Use mindfulness to create a space between a stimulus and your immediate reaction, allowing you to pause and choose a skillful response. This practice helps you avoid knee-jerk, mindless reactions and enables learning from your choices.
4. Chipping Away to Your Masterpiece
See yourself as a masterpiece that already exists, and use practices like meditation to ‘chip away’ at what obscures it. Turn within and listen to your ‘still, small voice’ to access an inner consciousness that knows your inherent potential.
5. Access Inner Calm Amidst Chaos
Cultivate the ability to access your inner quiet place, the ’eye of the hurricane,’ even when surrounded by turmoil. Do this by being fully present in the moment, allowing experiences to speak to you, and approaching them with curiosity to transform your relationship with them.
6. Quiet Mind for Intuitive Action
To tap into your natural intuition and allow your body to perform skillfully, quiet the conscious, overthinking mind. Instead of trying to control or stop thoughts, create space for them to exist without identification, allowing your innate knowing to emerge.
7. Address Root Causes, Not Symptoms
When confronted with problems, focus on repairing the underlying foundation rather than merely addressing surface-level symptoms. Understand that foundational work requires patience and time but leads to more sustainable and transformative change.
8. Prepare for Flow with Mindfulness
Achieve a state of ‘flow’ or ’the zone’ not by trying to force it, but by consistently practicing mindfulness to be present from moment to moment. This continuous awareness creates the necessary conditions to become ‘flow ready’.
9. Grow by Embracing Discomfort
To foster growth and enter a state of flow, intentionally push yourself slightly beyond your comfort zone. When challenges are high and skills are high, embrace the resulting high state of arousal with relaxed receptivity instead of withdrawing.
10. Optimize Brain Growth (Neuroplasticity)
Promote optimum brain growth by ensuring high oxygen levels, practicing in small, manageable increments, engaging in tasks that are doable but challenging, and approaching activities with genuine interest to stimulate motivational circuits.
11. Integrate Mindfulness and Wisdom
Develop a deeper understanding by combining mindfulness (awareness of the present moment) with wisdom (intelligence that helps you understand what you’re looking for and what you’re getting). This integration leads to direct experience and intuitive knowing, the highest form of wisdom.
12. Avoid Limiting Self-Identifications
Be cautious about identifying too strongly with labels, as they can create limitations. Instead, focus on who you are as a person and your current choices, rather than defining yourself by past struggles or specific roles.
13. Prioritize Behavior Over Words
To truly understand others, observe their actions and behavior more closely than their spoken words, as behavior often reveals true intentions and motivations, especially when words may be used to please or mislead.
14. Transform Limiting Beliefs
Identify and change negative or self-critical beliefs that drive your inner voice and expectations. Actively replace these with beliefs that support your goals and positive outcomes, preventing negative scenarios from playing out in your mind.
15. Energize with Positive Emotions
Shift your source of motivation from internal anguish or fear to positive emotions such as love, joy, and compassion. This provides a more wholesome and sustainable energy for action and personal growth.
16. Compete for Self-Improvement
In any competitive endeavor, shift your focus from defeating opponents to continuously improving yourself, striving to be better today than you were yesterday. This internal focus empowers you and fosters a sense of accomplishment regardless of external results.
17. Align Inner Talk with Goals
Consciously modify your inner dialogue to support your objectives, replacing self-critical thoughts with constructive observations. If you make a mistake, treat it as a data point for learning and improvement, rather than a cause for self-judgment.
18. Practice Non-Judgmental Listening
Cultivate the ability to listen to both your own inner voice and others without judgment, simply noticing what is happening and learning from it. This requires vulnerability and a willingness to let things speak to you without immediate interpretation.
19. Willfully Hold Wholesome Thoughts
Exercise your free will by consciously choosing which thoughts to hold in your mind, and through an act of will, sustain wholesome thoughts longer. This practice allows you to intentionally shape your mental landscape and experience.
20. Cultivate Wholesome Mental Themes
Actively foster mental themes like loving-kindness, compassion, and sympathetic joy in your daily life. For instance, instead of jealousy, appreciate an opponent’s success by acknowledging their effort and achievement, extending goodwill.
21. Recognize Interconnectedness of Beings
Understand that your inner life influences your perception of the world and that all human beings are fundamentally connected in their desire for happiness. Challenge judgmental thoughts by recognizing shared humanity and working to alleviate suffering.
22. Interpret Experiences for Happiness
Enhance long-term happiness by consciously interpreting your experiences through a lens of goodness, wisdom, generosity, and goodwill. Since 90% of happiness is based on brain interpretation, cultivating these attitudes can profoundly shift your well-being.
23. Apply Continuous Poised Effort
Practice ‘right effort’ by continuously applying poised and balanced energy to your endeavors, even when immediate results are not apparent. This sustained, calm effort is crucial for long-term transformation and progress.
24. Practice Unconditional Acceptance
Cultivate unconditional acceptance in various aspects of life, such as being a fan who supports their team regardless of wins or losses. This means enjoying the process and offering support without imposing conditions or demanding specific outcomes.
25. Manage the Present Moment Effectively
Focus your energy on effectively managing the current moment and doing your best in it, rather than fixating on future outcomes or complex formulas. This present-moment focus naturally influences and improves subsequent moments and days.
26. Expand Mindfulness Beyond Formal Practice
Broaden your understanding of mindfulness beyond formal meditation to encompass being fully present and focused in all activities. Apply the same passion and concentration you have for a beloved activity (’love of the game’) to every aspect of your life.
27. Model Awakened, Mindful Behavior
Contribute to the spread of mindfulness by actively embodying and modeling what it means to be more awake and present in your daily life. Even small, consistent improvements in your awareness can inspire and make a significant difference.
28. Cultivate 24/7 Mindful Awareness
Adopt a continuous, 24/7 mindful awareness as your daily practice, constantly checking in with your body, breath, energy levels, and the perspective through which you’re experiencing each moment.
29. Integrate Formal and Informal Practice
Combine formal meditation sessions (e.g., 10-45 minutes of sitting) with informal practices like qigong, tai chi, stretching, walking, journaling, and reading. View all these activities as interconnected parts of your overall practice of presence.
30. Monitor and Inquire into Attitudes
Continuously monitor your attitudes and perspectives, and if your mind is distracted or upset, turn towards that feeling with curiosity. Inquire deeply into the reasons for your concern or distraction to gain clarity and understanding.
31. Control Attitude and Effort
In any situation, especially when facing self-doubt or external challenges, focus your energy on the two things you can always control: your attitude and your effort. This empowers you to act skillfully regardless of circumstances.
32. Focus on the Journey to Awakening
While aspiring to awakening or enlightenment, shift your focus to the journey itself and being ’enlightenment ready’ through consistent practice. Cultivate qualities like equanimity, compassion, and love, and strive to see things as they are without greed, hatred, or delusion.
33. Measure Practice with Spiritual Powers
Assess the progress of your meditation practice by evaluating the ‘five spiritual powers’: trust, wisdom, right effort (poised energy), mindfulness (continuity of awareness), and concentration.
34. Observe Pain as Changing Sensations
Instead of identifying with pain or creating a story around it, observe it as a changing set of sensations (e.g., pulling, twisting) that arise and pass away. This practice creates space between you and the sensation, preventing identification and allowing for better management.
35. Address Chronic Pain with Presence
Counter chronic pain by focusing on the present moment, rather than re-running memories or past associations of pain. Mindfulness helps you distinguish between past experiences and current sensations, reducing the impact of the brain’s tendency to conflate thought and experience.
36. Slow Down Perception for Clarity
Intentionally slow down your perceptual process to create more space between a stimulus and your reaction. Take an extra moment to observe what is truly present, delaying the influx of associative thinking, self-reference, and judgment to gain clearer insight.
37. Pre-empt Migraines with Stillness
When you feel a migraine coming on, especially if you’ve been trying too hard or doing too many things, go lay down, breathe, and visualize your whole body breathing. This awareness and stillness can help manage the migraine before it becomes full-blown.
38. Manage Chronic Pain with Mindfulness
Learn to manage chronic pain by understanding the mind-body process, which includes modalities like stress reduction, meditation, mindfulness, and yoga. By being still and focusing on your breath or one thing, you can indirectly control involuntary bodily processes like heart rate and respiratory rate.
39. Embrace the Unknown Moment-to-Moment
Practice being fully present and willing to experience the current moment as it unfolds, without needing to know what will happen next. This stillness in the unknown, even with unpleasant experiences, can transform your perception of them.
8 Key Quotes
I feel it's being connected to something greater than yourself, being able to know the truth and let the truth set you free.
George Mumford
Retrain stimulus and response. There is a space where we have the power to choose and to transform.
George Mumford
In the eye of the hurricane, there's this blue sky and it's quiet and still. And even though there's this turmoil and all of the whirlwinds and all the chaos around it, we have that inside of us.
George Mumford
The brain doesn't know the difference between what we think about and what we experience.
George Mumford
Michelangelo was asked back in the day, how does he create these masterpieces out of these blocks of marble? And he said, all I do is chip away to get to the masterpiece that's already there.
George Mumford
The strength of the wolf is in a pack and the strength of the pack is in a wolf.
George Mumford
If you're focused on how you're doing, you're not focused on what you're doing.
George Mumford
Before enlightenment, we chop wood and carry water. After enlightenment, we chop wood and carry water.
George Mumford
3 Protocols
Managing Migraine Headaches
George Mumford- Observe the migraine coming on.
- Recognize triggers (e.g., trying too hard, doing too many things).
- Go lay down and breathe.
- Visualize the whole body breathing to increase oxygen and relax muscles.
- Catch it before it becomes full-blown to manage it effectively.
Four Tips for Optimum Brain Growth / Neuroplasticity
George Mumford- Maintain a high enough oxygen level to generate new cells.
- Engage in learning in increments (easy does it).
- Undertake tasks that are doable but hard, pushing slightly out of the comfort zone.
- Bring interest to the activity to stimulate motivational circuits in the brain.
Gandhi's Formula: Beliefs to Destiny
George Mumford- Your beliefs become your thoughts.
- Your thoughts become your words.
- Your words become your actions.
- Your actions become your habits.
- Your habits become your values.
- Your values become your destiny.