An international speaker and teacher on the topics of mindfulness and positive psychology, Cory Muscara is passionate about helping people find real peace. He believes that when people are deeply fulfilled, they are a better force in the world for other beings, the environment, and their communities.

For the past few years, he has taught mindfulness-based leadership at Columbia University and currently serves as an assistant instructor for the positive psychology graduate program at the University of Pennsylvania.

A graduate of the 2-year Spirit Rock Community Dharma Leader training, Cory also has several years of extensive professional training in Mindfulness-Based Stress Reduction (MBSR), completed certification with Mindful Schools & Search Inside Yourself, and has trained in Mindfulness-Based Inquiry, Breathworks Chronic Pain with Vidyamala Burch, the Trauma Institute led by Bessel Van der Kolk, and a 6-month relational meditation training in “circling” through Circling Europe. He is a 200-hour hatha yoga teacher, certified NLP & Eriksonian Hypnosis practitioner, and an Integrative Health Coach through Duke Integrative Medicine.

In 2012, Cory spent 6 months in silence living as a monk, meditating 14+ hours each day, and now aims to bring the teachings of mindfulness to people in a practical and usable way, presenting to schools, organizations and the general public. He has been featured multiple times on the Dr. Oz show, is a teacher on the Simple Habit and 10% Happier meditation apps, and his meditations have been heard more than 5 million times in over 50 countries.

Follow Cory Muscara on Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/corymuscara/
Check out Cory's YouTube channel: https://www.youtube.com/@cory.muscara/featured

00:01:18 – Sean introduces Cory Muscara
00:05:08 – Cory’s introduction to the session
00:06:57 – Why Cory leads retreats
00:10:16 – Guided meditation with Cory
00:25:00 – Reflections on the practice
00:26:05 – Responding to disruptions as a meditation teacher
00:31:32 – How to create the conditions for people to experience more of their humanness
00:34:20 – Misconceptions about what a mindfulness retreat is
00:47:54 – Crafting the structure of your retreat
00:56:50 – Advertising your retreat to manage participant expectations
00:58:23 – Cory’s weekend retreat schedule
01:05:26 – Addressing the less-than-glamorous things that need to be brought up
01:07:36 – Asking participants, “What brought you here?”
01:09:30 – On morning coffee and sugar
01:16:15 – The arc of Cory’s retreats
01:21:12 – Making space for uncomfortable feelings before cultivating the good
01:24:06 – Why many people struggle to open up to the good (i.e. joy and pleasure)
01:25:55 – Helping people to transition out of retreat
01:27:50 – Helping people to prepare prior to the retreat
01:35:43 – Starting with invite-only retreats
01:36:59 – Pricing for retreats and retreat centres
01:38:44 – Finding a place to host your retreat
01:42:06 – “Can I run a retreat?”
01:46:40 – Planning as you go
01:54:36 – Settling into the pulse of truth – of what is here
01:55:55 – Build a workshop around Q and A
01:56:56 – Question: Do you limit the number of participants online?
01:57:42 – Question: How do you structure online retreats?
01:59:00 – Question: Do you offer materials post-retreat?
02:00:27 – Question: What about insurance?
02:03:40 – Questions: How would you introduce a retreat to someone who is skeptical? What practices do you lead during retreats?