© 2026 ABC News

Her specialty has become a sort of meditation known as “loving-kindness.” It may sound syrupy and sentimental, but Salzberg begs to differ.

\"It’s not just sort of 'woo woo' and phony and make believe,\" she added. \"It’s a very different way of looking at ourselves and a very different way of looking at the world.\"

Whatever kind of meditation you choose, Salzberg says the best way to start is to make a reasonable commitment, such as deciding to practice meditation for 10 minutes a day for two weeks.

\"The first five minutes are the hardest five minutes because you’re so agitated, often thinking about what you have to get done that day; 10 minutes is kinder to yourself than five minutes,\" she said.

\"The goal is not to wipe out thinking or alienate the ability to think,\" Salzberg said. \"The goal is to have a different relationship to your thoughts so even if you have a torrent of thoughts, even if they go on and on, even if they’re not very positive, doesn’t matter, because first of all you’re settling a little more on the breath, then a little bit more, and a little bit more, and you’re also developing more space toward the thoughts, which is the goal.\"

","canonicalUrl":"https://abcnews.com/Health/loving-kindness-meditation-bring-happiness/story?id=38393870","legacySlug":"/wellness/story/loving-kindness-meditation-bring-happiness-38393870","noIndexNoFollow":false},"publishTime":"17:50","publishDate":"04-14-2016","updatedTime":"17:58","updatedDate":"08-16-2016","socialImage":{"alt":"VIDEO: '10% Happier with Dan Harris' and Sharon Salzberg","credit":"ABCNews.com","ratio":"16x9","url":"https://s.abcnews.com/images/Health/160414_social_dan10_sharon_16x9_1600.jpg","width":992,"height":558},"datePublished":"4/14/2016 17:50:00 GMT","video":{"live":false,"id":38393870,"headline":"How 'Loving-Kindness' Meditation Can Bring You More Happiness","mediaAssetTitle":"10HAPPIER_SharonSalzberg_160414","description":"Renowned meditation teacher Sharon Salzberg offers her tips for beginners.","duration":"57:50","posterImg":{"url":"https://s.abcnews.com/images/GMA/default-img-undefined.png","width":608,"height":342},"video":{"feed":"https://service-pkgabcnews.akamaized.net/opp/hls/abcnews/2016/04/160414_dan10_sharon_,500,800,1200,1800,2500,3200,4500,.mp4.csmil/playlist.m3u8"},"playlist":["38193491","37945461","38394467"]},"relatedItems":[{"contentType":"video","date":"April 6, 2016","headline":"'10% Happier': George Mumford","section":"news","slug":"/video/38193491","id":38193491,"image":{"alt":"'10% Happier': George Mumford","url":"https://s.abcnews.com/images/Health/160406_dvo_harris_mumford1_4x3t_240.jpg","credit":"ABCNews.com","ratio":"1x1"}},{"contentType":"video","date":"March 27, 2016","headline":"'10% Happier': Amy Cuddy","section":"news","slug":"/video/37945461","id":37945461,"image":{"alt":"'10% Happier': Amy Cuddy","url":"https://s.abcnews.com/images/Health/160325_10_PERCENT_CUDDY.Copy.01_4x3t_240.jpg","credit":"ABCNews.com","ratio":"1x1"}},{"contentType":"video","date":"April 14, 2016","headline":"'10% Happier': Sharon Salzberg","section":"news","slug":"/video/38394467","id":38394467,"image":{"alt":"'10% Happier': Sharon Salzberg","url":"https://s.abcnews.com/images/Health/160414_social_dan10_sharon_4x3t_240.jpg","credit":"ABCNews.com","ratio":"1x1"}}],"relatedContentSection":"news","schemaContent":{"name":"How 'Loving-Kindness' Meditation Can Bring You More Happiness","description":"Renowned meditation teacher Sharon Salzberg offers her tips for beginners.","duration":"57:50","uploadDate":"04-14-2016","publication":"04-14-2016","images":"https://s.abcnews.com/images/GMA/default-img-undefined.png","url":"https://service-pkgabcnews.akamaized.net/opp/hls/abcnews/2016/04/160414_dan10_sharon_,500,800,1200,1800,2500,3200,4500,.mp4.csmil/playlist.m3u8","contentUrl":"https://service-pkgabcnews.akamaized.net/opp/hls/abcnews/2016/04/160414_dan10_sharon_,500,800,1200,1800,2500,3200,4500,.mp4.csmil/playlist.m3u8","link":"https://www.goodmorningamerica.com/news/story/loving-kindness-meditation-bring-happiness-38393870"}},"playlist":[{"id":"133810954","contentType":"story","section":"news"},{"id":"133779647","contentType":"story","section":"news"},{"id":"133810835","contentType":"story","section":"news"},{"id":"133749799","contentType":"story","section":"news"},{"id":"133777519","contentType":"story","section":"news"},{"id":"133748258","contentType":"story","section":"news"},{"id":"133730535","contentType":"story","section":"news"},{"id":"133712423","contentType":"story","section":"news"},{"id":"133694181","contentType":"story","section":"news"},{"id":"133688738","contentType":"story","section":"news"},{"id":"133616358","contentType":"story","section":"news"},{"id":"133616342","contentType":"story","section":"news"},{"id":"133522899","contentType":"story","section":"news"},{"id":"133584123","contentType":"story","section":"news"},{"id":"133579397","contentType":"story","section":"news"},{"id":"133482839","contentType":"story","section":"news"},{"id":"133390157","contentType":"story","section":"news"},{"id":"133415361","contentType":"story","section":"news"},{"id":"133414032","contentType":"story","section":"news"},{"id":"133380485","contentType":"story","section":"news"}],"kvps":{"pgtyp":"article","lang":"en","sp":"goodmorningamerica","programmatic":"true","bundleId":"com.abcnews"}},"analytics":{"accountID":"wdgnewwdgnewgmaweb","ns":"gma","pageName":"gma:news:video","pageType":"video","globalSpecVersion":"v1.08","siteDifferentiator":"gma:site","tagID":"g_page01","userABCookie":"0","section":"news","title":"How 'Loving-Kindness' Meditation Can Bring You More Happiness","pubTime":"13:50","pubDate":"04-14-2016","modTime":"13:58","modDate":"08-16-2016","taxonomyTags":"none","id":38393870,"editorialOtherSubjects":"","wordCount":"none","columns":"none","authors":"","authorsUnit":"none","authorsBureau":"none","subBrand":"Good Morning America","provider":"Good Morning America","videoName":"How 'Loving-Kindness' Meditation Can Bring You More Happiness","mediaAssetTitle":"10HAPPIER_SharonSalzberg_160414","videoId":38393870,"mediaOnPage":"video","legacySlug":"/wellness/story/loving-kindness-meditation-bring-happiness-38393870"},"taboola":{}},"request":{"headers":{},"httpVersion":"1.1","method":"GET","url":"/video/38393870","vary":{"host":"www.goodmorningamerica.com","cached":true,"path":"/video/38393870","forwarded-proto":"https","device":"desktop","userab":"0"}},"viewport":{"width":1260,"height":0},"user":{}};