Dan Bartlett: coach, writer, engineer & founder

There are practices—small, inward gestures—that help us return, not to some ideal self, but to the unadorned reality of our experience.

When I was 13 years old, I went on a school trip to the Forest of Dean.

Look again.

Last night, I was listening to Adyashanti’s Process of Self talk on the Waking Up app.

Everyone arrives naked and screaming.

I spend a lot of time thinking about better ways to explain coaching, ideally without using the word coaching at all.

Whilst on retreat, I read Pema Chödrön’s Living Beautifully.

I recently facilitated some spontaneous shaking with a client, using the TRE exercises.

I miss racing.

Many people come to coaching with a clear sense that their direction needs to change, but not knowing what the exact destination will be.

I recently came back from a 6-night solo retreat at the Hermitage, part of the Barn retreat centre, which itself is part of the Sharpham Estate.

Here is a collection of reflections written as I left my week-long silent, solo retreat at the Hermitage: It’s remarkable how much time I spend telling myself what I like and dislike and then having endless hypothetical discussions with other people about…

I often feel bad for not having more compassion for others.

There is a beautiful footpath from The Barn retreat centre to Totnes.

On retreat, I’ve been reading Living Beautifully by Pema Chödrön.

Oftentimes, people associate a meditation retreat with relaxation.

This morning, I watched sunrise on the can.

“Blessing, infinite in its modes and colours, often seems to me to be the very nature of all things, of all existence.”

Today, I’m headed off on a silent meditation retreat for a week.

I sat against the wall feeling overwhelmed. ”Is there a part of your body that feels ok right now?”

When you learn coaching, one thing that gets hammered home is the non-directive nature of the inquiry.

It’s 8am on Monday, and I’m in my office at my standing desk with the Sun streaming through the window.

It’s 21:41.

Another theme during my interview with HUM4NS Unplugged was the power of personal experiments.

A few days ago, I started a story log, as part of learning to tell better stories.

Our material bodies have a place in physics, subject to its laws.

On Thursday, I was interviewed by Olly and Darrell from HUM4NS.

Yesterday, I talked about widening the view.

A big part of coaching is helping people make their belief systems explicit.

I love to tweak and refine on my own.

You’re exhausted.

Easter is often a time of reflection.

I’m listening to another Adyashanti audiobook where he’s talking about the emergence of a true individual.

I walked into the library at Gaia House, 1 week into a 3-week meditation retreat.

Yesterday I wrote about tending to your state, over trying to force actions.

A few days ago, I was struggling after lunch.

It’s considered good and upstanding to stay on top of world affairs.

Last updated: 18 Apr, 2025 Vipassana: A Recovery Guide is a deep-dive into a practice that changed my life—and then sent it into a tailspin.

I scan my calendar to see what breathing room I have today.

My favourite part of working for myself is reclaiming my calendar.

Coaches are called upon to play many roles in their work.

I’ve always appreciated the spontaneous answers that pop out when people ask me questions.

People often come to coaching with a clear destination in mind—write the book, change careers, start the company.

I recently saw this popular note on Substack: 90% of writing is: Taking long walks Blocking the internet Doing interesting things Capturing ideas everywhere Listening to people’s questions When you do these every day, strong writing is simply a byproduct.

Acceptance is your most potent ally in meditation.

When designing a workout programme for someone time-constrained, you focus on compound exercises that work multiple muscle groups at once.

Software engineers can quickly become anxious about deploying new changes.

A popular approach to running is the 80/20 philosophy, popularised by Matt Fitzgerald.

I talked about the upsides of publishing on your personal website yesterday: ownership, SEO, algorithmic immunity & creative freedom.

I’m publishing something new every day, until June 30.