Professor Diane Dreher – Tao philosophy, mindful presence, and finding peace in uncertain times
What if the kind of strength you most need right now is not toughness, but flexibility, patience, and the willingness to be still?
About Professor Diane Dreher
Diane Dreher is an author, positive psychology researcher, and Professor Emeritus at Santa Clara University, where she also served as Associate Director of the Applied Spirituality Institute. She holds a PhD in Renaissance English literature from UCLA and a Master's in Counseling. Her books have been translated into ten languages.
Diane's work sits at the intersection of Eastern philosophy and contemporary psychology. Her best-selling book The Tao of Inner Peace applies the wisdom of the Tao Te Ching to modern life, and her newest book, Pathways to Inner Peace (MSI Press, 2025), offers nine research-supported practices for reconnecting with presence, community, nature, and joy.
About this episode
In this conversation, Diane and Jess explore what the Tao Te Ching, written over 25 centuries ago during a period of political upheaval in ancient China, can offer us now. Diane explains the Tao's definitions of strength, including the flexibility of bamboo and the persistence of water, and why these ideas challenge Western assumptions about what it means to be strong.
The conversation moves into practical territory: how mindful breathing can interrupt stress responses, why community and micro-moments of connection matter for emotional and physical health, and what happens when we learn to trust our intuition rather than override it with logic. Diane shares her own story of following an intuitive impulse as a teenager that changed the course of her life, and references research from psychologists including Barbara Fredrickson, Kristin Neff, and Jon Kabat-Zinn.
Jess and Diane also discuss the role of religion, philosophy, and ritual in modern life, the damage of social media comparison, and what it might look like to rebuild the kinds of communities that once formed naturally around front porches and local shops.
In this episode
The Tao Te Ching's definitions of strength: water, bamboo, and the balance of yin and yang
Mindful breathing as a daily practice, inspired by neurosurgeon Jim Doty's technique
Jon Kabat-Zinn's analogy of meditation as tuning an instrument
Barbara Fredrickson's research on micro-moments of connection and their ripple effect
Kristin Neff's self-compassion practice: acknowledge, normalise, be kind
Why rushing shuts down empathy, referencing the Princeton Good Samaritan study
Trusting intuition and the Dutch research on unconscious decision-making
Prompt for reflection
"What brings you joy, and how can you make more room for it in your daily life?"
Listen now
Lean more about Professor Diane Dreher
Website | www.dianedreher.com
Read Diane's books | https://www.psychologytoday.com/au/contributors/diane-e-dreher-phd?page=7
Listen to Diane's mediations | https://www.dianedreher.com/disc.htm
LinkedIn | www.linkedin.com/in/dianedreher/
See her work | scholar.google.com/citations?user=fjj5fvEAAAAJ
This episode was hosted by Jess Leondiou, brought to you by Archley's tools for introspection and reflection. www.archleys.com
Chapters
00:00 - Introduction — Why the Tao Te Ching matters in uncertain times
00:35 - Rethinking strength: lessons from water, bamboo, and yin–yang
04:45 - Bringing Tao philosophy into everyday life
05:28 - Mindfulness, meditation, and returning to the present moment
10:37 - Movement, nature, and reconnecting with the body
14:21 - Community, gratitude, and micro-moments of connection
21:23 - Loneliness, intuition, and finding guidance within
29:48 - The habits that block presence: rushing, control, and distraction
43:11 - Diane’s story, her books, and rediscovering joy and ancient wisdom
Transcript: Tao philosophy, mindful presence, and finding peace in uncertain times –Professor Diane Dreher
