Meditations for Mortals
Four Weeks to Embrace Your Limitations and Make Time for What Counts
Failed to add items
Add to Cart failed.
Add to Wish List failed.
Remove from wish list failed.
Follow podcast failed
Unfollow podcast failed
Buy Now for $25.98
No default payment method selected.
We are sorry. We are not allowed to sell this product with the selected payment method
-
Narrated by:
-
Oliver Burkeman
-
Written by:
-
Oliver Burkeman
About this listen
NATIONAL BESTSELLER
“Rehab for burned-out high achievers.”—The Guardian
How would life open up if we stopped treating it as a problem to be solved?
Addressing the fundamental questions about how to live, Meditations for Mortals offers a powerful new way to take action on what counts: a guiding philosophy of life Oliver Burkeman calls “imperfectionism.” It helps us tackle challenges as they crop up in our daily lives: our finite time, the lure of distraction, the impossibility of doing anything perfectly.
How can we embrace our nonnegotiable limitations? Or make good decisions when there’s always too much to do? How do we shed the illusion that life will really begin as soon as we can “get on top of everything”? Reflecting on quotations drawn from philosophy, religion, literature, psychology, and self-help, Burkeman explores a combination of practical tools and daily shifts in perspective. The result is a life-enhancing and surprising challenge to much familiar advice―and a profound yet entertaining crash course in living more fully.
A map for a liberating journey toward a more meaningful life―a journey that begins where we actually find ourselves, not with a fantasy of where we’d like to be―from the New York Times bestselling author of Four Thousand Weeks
©2024 Oliver Burkeman (P)2024 Allen LaneYou may also enjoy...
-
The Antidote
- Happiness for People Who Can't Stand Positive Thinking
- Written by: Oliver Burkeman
- Narrated by: Oliver Burkeman
- Length: 6 hrs and 13 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall
-
Performance
-
Story
The Antidote is a series of journeys among people who share a single, surprising way of thinking about life. What they have in common is a hunch about human psychology: that it’s our constant effort to eliminate the negative that causes us to feel so anxious, insecure, and unhappy. And that there is an alternative "negative path" to happiness and success that involves embracing the things we spend our lives trying to avoid.
-
-
A limited perspective on positivity
- By Ryan C. on 2020-09-24
Written by: Oliver Burkeman
-
Beyond Anxiety
- Curiosity, Creativity, and Finding Your Life's Purpose
- Written by: Martha Beck
- Narrated by: Martha Beck, Maria Shriver
- Length: 11 hrs and 45 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall
-
Performance
-
Story
We live in an epidemic of anxiety. Most of us assume that the key to overcoming it is to think our way out. And for a while it works. But there is always something that sends us back into the anxious spiral we’ve been trying to climb out of. In Beyond Anxiety, Dr. Martha Beck explains why anxiety is skyrocketing around you, and likely within you. She also tells you how to not only reduce your anxiety but use it to propel you into a life filled with peace, meaning, and joy.
-
-
Martha's presentation is concise, compassionate and humourous.
- By Amazon Customer on 2025-02-03
Written by: Martha Beck
-
The Beauty of What Remains
- How Our Greatest Fear Becomes Our Greatest Gift
- Written by: Steve Leder
- Narrated by: Steve Leder
- Length: 6 hrs and 20 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall
-
Performance
-
Story
As the senior rabbi of one of the largest synagogues in the world, Steve Leder has learned over and over again the many ways death teaches us how to live and love more deeply by showing us not only what is gone but also the beauty of what remains. This inspiring and comforting book takes us on a journey through the experience of loss that is fundamental to everyone.
-
-
Beautiful just Beautiful
- By David Russell on 2023-10-10
Written by: Steve Leder
-
Finding Meaning in the Second Half of Life
- How to Finally, Really Grow Up
- Written by: James Hollis PhD
- Narrated by: Gary Galone
- Length: 8 hrs and 41 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall
-
Performance
-
Story
What does it really mean to be a grown-up in today's world? We assume that once we "get it together" with the right job, marry the right person, have children, and buy a home, all is settled and well. But adulthood presents varying levels of growth and is rarely the respite of stability we expected. Turbulent emotional shifts can take place anywhere between the ages of 35 and 70 when we question the choices we've made, realize our limitations, and feel stuck - commonly known as the "midlife crisis".
-
-
Life changing read
- By Anonymous User on 2023-04-29
Written by: James Hollis PhD
-
The Stress Prescription
- Seven Days to More Joy and Ease
- Written by: Elissa Epel PhD
- Narrated by: Elissa Epel PhD
- Length: 7 hrs and 3 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall
-
Performance
-
Story
Whether we’re facing deadlines, difficulties with family or friends, personal crises, or just the uncertainty of the world—stress is the ocean we swim in. Even our negative thoughts can trigger our body’s stress response so we rarely experience periods of ease and deep restoration. In The Stress Prescription, Dr. Epel distills decades of research, infused with wisdom, into a practical yet transformative seven-day plan of science-based techniques that can help you harness stress through more positive challenge and purpose.
Written by: Elissa Epel PhD
-
Supercommunicators
- How to Unlock the Secret Language of Connection
- Written by: Charles Duhigg
- Narrated by: Charles Duhigg
- Length: 7 hrs and 28 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall
-
Performance
-
Story
Come inside a jury room as one juror leads a starkly divided room to consensus. Join a young CIA officer as he recruits a reluctant foreign agent. And sit with an accomplished surgeon as he tries, and fails, to convince yet another cancer patient to opt for the less risky course of treatment. In Supercommunicators, Charles Duhigg blends deep research and his trademark storytelling skills to show how we can all learn to identify and leverage the hidden layers that lurk beneath every conversation.
-
-
Good info, but the covid/vax section didn't age well.
- By Sam on 2024-06-12
Written by: Charles Duhigg
-
The Antidote
- Happiness for People Who Can't Stand Positive Thinking
- Written by: Oliver Burkeman
- Narrated by: Oliver Burkeman
- Length: 6 hrs and 13 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall
-
Performance
-
Story
The Antidote is a series of journeys among people who share a single, surprising way of thinking about life. What they have in common is a hunch about human psychology: that it’s our constant effort to eliminate the negative that causes us to feel so anxious, insecure, and unhappy. And that there is an alternative "negative path" to happiness and success that involves embracing the things we spend our lives trying to avoid.
-
-
A limited perspective on positivity
- By Ryan C. on 2020-09-24
Written by: Oliver Burkeman
-
Beyond Anxiety
- Curiosity, Creativity, and Finding Your Life's Purpose
- Written by: Martha Beck
- Narrated by: Martha Beck, Maria Shriver
- Length: 11 hrs and 45 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall
-
Performance
-
Story
We live in an epidemic of anxiety. Most of us assume that the key to overcoming it is to think our way out. And for a while it works. But there is always something that sends us back into the anxious spiral we’ve been trying to climb out of. In Beyond Anxiety, Dr. Martha Beck explains why anxiety is skyrocketing around you, and likely within you. She also tells you how to not only reduce your anxiety but use it to propel you into a life filled with peace, meaning, and joy.
-
-
Martha's presentation is concise, compassionate and humourous.
- By Amazon Customer on 2025-02-03
Written by: Martha Beck
-
The Beauty of What Remains
- How Our Greatest Fear Becomes Our Greatest Gift
- Written by: Steve Leder
- Narrated by: Steve Leder
- Length: 6 hrs and 20 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall
-
Performance
-
Story
As the senior rabbi of one of the largest synagogues in the world, Steve Leder has learned over and over again the many ways death teaches us how to live and love more deeply by showing us not only what is gone but also the beauty of what remains. This inspiring and comforting book takes us on a journey through the experience of loss that is fundamental to everyone.
-
-
Beautiful just Beautiful
- By David Russell on 2023-10-10
Written by: Steve Leder
-
Finding Meaning in the Second Half of Life
- How to Finally, Really Grow Up
- Written by: James Hollis PhD
- Narrated by: Gary Galone
- Length: 8 hrs and 41 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall
-
Performance
-
Story
What does it really mean to be a grown-up in today's world? We assume that once we "get it together" with the right job, marry the right person, have children, and buy a home, all is settled and well. But adulthood presents varying levels of growth and is rarely the respite of stability we expected. Turbulent emotional shifts can take place anywhere between the ages of 35 and 70 when we question the choices we've made, realize our limitations, and feel stuck - commonly known as the "midlife crisis".
-
-
Life changing read
- By Anonymous User on 2023-04-29
Written by: James Hollis PhD
-
The Stress Prescription
- Seven Days to More Joy and Ease
- Written by: Elissa Epel PhD
- Narrated by: Elissa Epel PhD
- Length: 7 hrs and 3 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall
-
Performance
-
Story
Whether we’re facing deadlines, difficulties with family or friends, personal crises, or just the uncertainty of the world—stress is the ocean we swim in. Even our negative thoughts can trigger our body’s stress response so we rarely experience periods of ease and deep restoration. In The Stress Prescription, Dr. Epel distills decades of research, infused with wisdom, into a practical yet transformative seven-day plan of science-based techniques that can help you harness stress through more positive challenge and purpose.
Written by: Elissa Epel PhD
-
Supercommunicators
- How to Unlock the Secret Language of Connection
- Written by: Charles Duhigg
- Narrated by: Charles Duhigg
- Length: 7 hrs and 28 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall
-
Performance
-
Story
Come inside a jury room as one juror leads a starkly divided room to consensus. Join a young CIA officer as he recruits a reluctant foreign agent. And sit with an accomplished surgeon as he tries, and fails, to convince yet another cancer patient to opt for the less risky course of treatment. In Supercommunicators, Charles Duhigg blends deep research and his trademark storytelling skills to show how we can all learn to identify and leverage the hidden layers that lurk beneath every conversation.
-
-
Good info, but the covid/vax section didn't age well.
- By Sam on 2024-06-12
Written by: Charles Duhigg
-
Oliver Burkeman: Epidemics of Modern Life
- A BBC Radio 4 Collection
- Written by: Oliver Burkeman
- Narrated by: Oliver Burkeman, Various
- Length: 5 hrs and 5 mins
- Original Recording
-
Overall
-
Performance
-
Story
Journalist and author Oliver Burkeman is well-known for his long-running Guardian column, 'How to Change Your Life', and has written three best-selling books on happiness, productivity and time management. In this radio collection, he looks at four central ills of modernity—busyness, anger, the insistence on positivity and the decline of nuance. Talking to a range of experts, he discovers how these problems became so widespread, and how we can go about tackling them.
Written by: Oliver Burkeman
-
It's Not You
- Identifying and Healing from Narcissistic People
- Written by: Ramani Durvasula PhD
- Narrated by: Ramani Durvasula PhD
- Length: 11 hrs and 31 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall
-
Performance
-
Story
It’s not always easy to tell when you’re dealing with a narcissist. One day they draw you in with their confidence and charisma, the next they gaslight you, wreck your self-confidence, and leave you wondering, What could I have done differently? As Dr. Ramani Durvasula reveals in It's Not You, the answer is: absolutely nothing. Just as a tiger can’t change its stripes, a narcissist won’t stop manipulating and invalidating you. To heal in the aftermath of their abuse and protect yourself from future harm, you first have to accept that you are not to blame.
-
-
Amazing information from Ramani as always
- By Taylor on 2024-03-22
Written by: Ramani Durvasula PhD
-
Through the Dark Wood
- Finding Meaning in the Second Half of Life
- Written by: James Hollis PhD
- Narrated by: James Hollis PhD
- Length: 7 hrs and 25 mins
- Original Recording
-
Overall
-
Performance
-
Story
Have you ever looked at your career, your relationships, or your role in life and wondered, "Is this why I’m really here?” If so, then you are ready for your “midlife crisis" - the pivotal time when you have the opportunity to become the person your soul seeks to be.
-
-
My first purchase and an absolute fave
- By kimberley tracie matthias on 2018-09-13
Written by: James Hollis PhD
-
A Life of Meaning
- Exploring Our Deepest Questions and Motivations
- Written by: James Hollis PhD
- Narrated by: James Hollis PhD
- Length: 8 hrs and 17 mins
- Original Recording
-
Overall
-
Performance
-
Story
Celebrated author and Jungian psychoanalyst James Hollis explores the deep archetypal themes of our human lives - and offers questions and insights to help us access the greater meaning of our journey. Includes insights on the nature of meaning, shadow work, resilience in times of change, a psychological approach to the Seven Deadly Sins, and more.
-
-
A wonderful journey with James Hollis
- By david jones on 2021-09-10
Written by: James Hollis PhD
-
Awe
- The New Science of Everyday Wonder and How It Can Transform Your Life
- Written by: Dacher Keltner
- Narrated by: Dacher Keltner
- Length: 7 hrs and 52 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall
-
Performance
-
Story
Awe is mysterious. How do we begin to quantify the goose bumps we feel when we see the Grand Canyon, or the utter amazement when we watch a child walk for the first time? How do you put into words the collective effervescence of standing in a crowd and singing in unison, or the wonder you feel while gazing at centuries-old works of art? In Awe, Dacher Keltner presents a radical investigation and deeply personal inquiry into this elusive emotion.
-
-
Gets the juices flowing on what is awe and its impact on our lives
- By Client d'Amazon on 2023-04-02
Written by: Dacher Keltner
-
Creative Calling
- Establish a Daily Practice, Infuse Your World with Meaning, and Succeed in Work + Life
- Written by: Chase Jarvis
- Narrated by: Chase Jarvis
- Length: 8 hrs and 32 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall
-
Performance
-
Story
Life isn’t about “finding” fulfillment and success - it’s about creating it. Why then has creativity been given a back seat in our culture? No longer. Creativity is a force inside every person that, when unleashed, transforms our lives and delivers vitality to everything we do. Establishing a creative practice is therefore our most valuable and urgent task - as important to our well-being as exercise or nutrition. The good news? Renowned artist, author, and CreativeLive founder, Chase Jarvis, reminds us that creativity isn't a skill - it's a habit available to everyone.
-
-
Highly Recommended
- By Anonymous User on 2019-10-27
Written by: Chase Jarvis
What the critics say
NATIONAL BESTSELLER
One of TIME’s “32 Most Anticipated Books of Fall 2024”
A Lit Hub Pick for “The Ultimate Fall 2024 Reading List”
“Oliver Burkeman has a way of giving you the most unexpected productivity advice exactly when you need it.”—Mark Manson, author of The Subtle Art of Not Giving a F*ck
“More than a book of ideas, Meditations for Mortals offers a practical path toward personal transformation—one that helps you sidestep the shallow allure of frenetic busyness and find a liberation joy in the limits and imperfections of life. A must-read.”—Cal Newport, author of Slow Productivity
“I follow Oliver Burkeman’s personal, literary, and journalistic adventures into wisdom with admiration and exhilaration. Now he bring us a ‘retreat of the mind’ in a very special book. We should all read this, preferable in the company of others—for the sake of our aching world as well as the state of our souls.”—Krista Tippett, author of Being Wise
What listeners say about Meditations for Mortals
Average Customer RatingsReviews - Please select the tabs below to change the source of reviews.
-
Overall
-
Performance
-
Story
- Paul
- 2025-01-19
On point, masterfully honest, generous and kind
Oliver is one of my favourite thinkers in the world. I think his uniqueness comes from addressing head on subtle and implicit facts and feels of life, instead of giving guides, recipes, models. After reading a Burkeman book, I always feel more capable, more understood, less serious about it all - like his prose reads like light and empathetic spiritual winks of the human experience. Many thanks Oliver for this work, and all your work. Very eager to read and listen to all your future books.
Something went wrong. Please try again in a few minutes.
You voted on this review!
You reported this review!
-
Overall
-
Performance
-
Story
- Nika
- 2025-01-30
Eminently sane & very needed for our times
I listened to this in the early days of the new year, at the suggested pace of a chapter a day, as an experiment. I have to say that I was pleasantly surprised time and time again at the author's wonderfully warm capacity for both acknowledging our human foibles and for pointing out true things--like the futility of trying to do *everything* and the self-defeating patterns that excessive perfectionism instills. Much of the lessons are things we already know, in theory, yet constantly ignore. Burkeman's writing articulates them in a way that seeps into the mind and has a tendency to percolate over days and weeks. He reminds us over and over that making a "fresh start" isn't the point, but rather it is doing something that matters today, in the present moment, however small. As a person who generally cringes at the very idea of self-help books, I found this both helpful and witty. A pleasure!
Something went wrong. Please try again in a few minutes.
You voted on this review!
You reported this review!
-
Overall
-
Performance
-
Story
- Ah yes....
- 2024-10-22
Simply brilliant
I thought Oliver Burkemans 4000 weeks was a wonderful booj and one that I was talking to friends and family about for weeks, if not months, after reading it. I was excited when I knew this one was coming out... I just finished listening to it today and I'm even more blown away than the first book! Maybe it's just that I'm listening to it at the perfect time in my life, combined perhaps with the fact that he is a very good writer and a lot of the messages throughout the book are life-changing. Please read it or even better listen to it.
Something went wrong. Please try again in a few minutes.
You voted on this review!
You reported this review!