A helpful tool I use, both with clients and with myself, is “The 5 Why’s.”
By asking 5 iterative questions, you can usually get to the bottom, the root cause, of whatever is actually happening.
If you try it, you’re likely to find that what occurs on the surface is almost always the result of something much deeper.
I usually use this tactic to help bring awareness to an issue or problem, but, it can also be used to uncover motivations behind more positive behaviors.
Why would you want to try this on yourself?
Well, if you can honestly ask yourself ‘why’ five times in a row about something that frustrates you, for example, then you may just completely dissolve the frustration.
Or at least, bring a deep enough level of awareness to the real issue so that next time, you pause before reacting.
As Joseph Campbell says, “the cave you fear to enter holds the treasure you seek the most.”
The Healthy Path 