Marcus Aurelius said, “Our actions may be impeded… but there can be no impeding our intentions or dispositions, because we can accommodate and adapt. The mind adapts and converts to its own purposes the obstacle to our acting. The impediment to action advances action. What stands in the way becomes the way.”
Q: What are our current blocks that we have a hard time imagining how could advance our cause?
The goal of perception is to get rid of the negative aspects that come with bad or unuseful perceptions. Strip the perception process of passions, bias, fear, and expectations to filter it all out. See things as they are, neither good nor bad.
Q: Which perceptions get in the way of your personal development and why?
Objectivity means removing you from the equation. Think about your situation as a stranger’s situation, pretend it’s not happening to you and that whatever ensues doesn’t affect you. Notice how it changes your perspective.
Q: What is an emotionally charged situation that you can practice seeing from a stranger’s perspective?
Challenge: Practice Objectivity
Write out 3-5 of the “worst” things that have happened to you. Reframe them, stripped of all judgment and associated story, and rewrite them as an objective statement.