About Us

Welcome to the Mindsight Institute!

"Mindsight", a term coined by Dan Siegel (The Developing Mind, 1999), is the capacity for insight and empathy. Mindsight can be developed within our interpersonal relationships and our internal reflective practices. For a diverse audience from professionals to parents, policy-makers to the general public, Dan Siegel and the Mindsight Institute offer a scientifically-based way of understanding human development that can promote mindsight and compassion in our personal lives, our relationships, and our communities. This approach enables us to see how relationships and reflection create the resilience that supports a healthy, joyful and wisdom-filled life and world.

What is Mindsight?

Mindsight is the ability of the human mind to see itself:  to know one’s own mind and to be able to perceive the minds of others.  This insight and empathy, when combined with kindness and compassion, can promote well-being in our bodies, our relationships, and our minds.  Cultivating mindsight in our lives is possible throughout the lifespan. 

On a personal level there is a general benefit for each of us to develop insight and empathy in our lives as we cultivate a meaningful and healthy life.  Clinicians in the healing professions have found that promoting mindsight in themselves and others is an important component of their work.  Those involved in the education of children, adolescents, and adults have been able to utilize mindsight skills to enhance memory and make the learning experience more rewarding.  The “reflective” practices of being mindful, of a focused attention with care and compassion, directly promote well-being and clarify the lens of mindsight—our ability to see the mind clearly.  Through the powerful lens of mindsight, we come to not only understand our inner lives with more clarity, but we can actually transform the brain and enhance our relationships with others.  Parents and other caregivers can also benefit by learning these reflective skills that promote insight and empathy as these form the building blocks of healthy development. 

Relationships + Reflection => Resilience 

You will find that the organization of our educational programs is designed to meet the needs of general interest, clinicians, educators, mindfulness practitioners, and parents.  In whatever areas are relevant in your life at this moment, mindsight can enhance your relationships and well-being.  The Mindsight Institute’s essential mission is to serve as a center of partnership and collaboration in which we welcome all people trying to help promote healthy minds and a more compassionate world. 

On this website, you will find ways of learning more about mindsight that are geared for specific types of interest: 

clinicians
educators
mindfulness practitioners
parents
general interest

Our recommendations by category are simply recommendations.  It is very likely that most of our offerings will prove valuable to many outside the suggested designated groupings.  These educational programs involve various forms of learning that you can get involved with, such as DVDs, audio recordings, and books.  In addition, there are opportunities that you can find on the website for face-to-face learning and teleconferences for distance learning. 
© 2008 Mind Your Brain, Inc.
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