Tim Ferriss explains why everyone should try meditating

Tim Ferriss, the author of "The 4-Hour Workweek" and "Tribe of Mentors," used to be skeptical of and completely avoid meditation. Now he's a firm believer in it. The following is a transcript of the video.

Tim Ferris: My name is Time Ferriss, angel investor and author of books including "The 4-Hour Workweek" and the latest, "Tribe of Mentors." So, meditation has a branding problem. Yeah ... a lot of people would think of yoga instructors playing didgeridoos, swinging dream-catchers over their heads, and they wouldn't be entirely wrong in a lot of cases. So, I steered away from it for a very, very long time. It just seemed like something good for perhaps other people, but not for me. Not for a really driven, type A, competitive personality.

So meditation, or mindfulness practice, it's really about, to me, decreasing emotional reactivity so you can proactively create your day and create your life; versus, just being a walking reflex that sometimes screws up.

In other words you're sitting on your couch watching the sensations in your body, in such a way that you're observing your body and your mind's reaction. So, perhaps over time, rather than flying off the handle and getting angry at someone for a, b, and c infraction … there's that little moment between what they do and your response and you're able to "Oh … I see myself getting tight in the chest. I'm about to get angry. Let me pause. And then give a more rational reaction." Where you actually get the result you want, instead of the conflict that might be very gratifying for a second then creates a whole host of other issues for yourself.

And for those people who are wondering where to start … there are many ways to start. But I really think the simplest place is an app called "Headspace." Just do the "10 and 10," that's 10 minutes for 10 days straight. Give that a go. And it'll give you at least a taste of what it can do.