An Exercise To Attain Objective Detachment

This is an excellent exercise to attain an objective detachment to events and retain a freedom from being negatively emotionally effected.

The exercise is;

Do not say anything that will not serve a useful purpose.

Most often, when someone says something that is wrong, we jump at the chance to correct them. If it is not important information that needs to be corrected, this serves no other purpose than to make you look and feel smarter than the other person by putting them down in front of others.

There are many things that people will say in a group that is not entirely accurate or correct. When it is something that really does not matter in any way, there is no need to correct them, as that will only cause embarrassment.

By controlling yourself from speaking up in these situations, you will come to see the objective reality of the irrelevance of most things and by that you gain mastery of your ego. It is your lower childish ego that needs to correct irrelevant information so it stands out as the smarter one.

This just feeds your ego in two ways. First; building it by feeding its need to be superior, and second; feeding it fear of being caught out when it is wrong. What I do to others will undoubtedly be done to me.

For example, if you are in a social group of people, just enjoying a coffee and chat, and one person is talking about their experiences hiking in the Nepal. Perhaps they get the names of the mountains they climbed wrong, or said they saw a llama instead of calling it a yak, this is really irrelevant in the discussion. But if you point out that they could not have seen a llama in Nepal because that animal is local to South America, it would embarrass them but not serve any purpose at all.

It may be true, but what difference does it make to anyones life if they got it wrong. This is the type of situation I am suggesting that it is best for all concerned that the incorrect statement go left without correction. I am sure you will find many examples of this sort.

Before speaking or commenting, ask yourself; ‘Will it serve a purpose? What purpose does it serve?’

From this day onwards, you will keep your mouth closed and let other people feel better about themselves and enjoy their time without making everyone feel bad.

You will find yourself struggle to keep silent, but as you do, you will soon find that you feel and are a much stronger person.

If anyone would like to share their experiences with this exercise, please do.