How To Feel Less Enraged And Hopeless When You Consume The News | Sharon McMahon

10% Happier with Dan Harris

“America's Government Teacher” has smart tips for staying calm in turbulent times.

After years of serving as a high school government and law teacher, Sharon McMahon took her passion for education to Instagram, where more than a million people (who affectionately call themselves “Governerds”) rely on her for non-partisan, fact-based information.

Sharon is also the host of the award-winning podcast, Here’s Where It Gets Interesting, where, each week, she provides entertaining yet factual accounts of America’s most fascinating moments and people. In addition, she is the author of The Preamble, a Substack newsletter about politics and history.

In this episode we talk about:

• How to avoid being ‘confidently wrong’
• How we often get confused between our opinions and our identity—which makes it very hard to change our opinions
• The importance of having a diverse media diet
• Tips for consuming the news without driving yourself nuts
• How to have compassion for people who we completely disagree with
• How history can be a balm for hopelessness—an antidote for when we’re tempted to conclude that things have never been worse
• How everyday people have way more power than we think
• And why hope is a choice.

Related Episodes:

Eight Things I’m Doing To Stay Sane During Election Season | Dan Harris

#405. How You Help End Polarization and Inequality – and Get Happier, Too | Robert Putnam & Shaylyn Romney Garrett

3 Buddhist Strategies for When the News is Overwhelming | Kaira Jewel Lingo

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