There are things we accept as true in general and quietly refuse to apply to ourselves. Everyone needs rest, except me this week. People learn from mistakes, except this one. The mind writes an exception clause, and because the exception is rarely said out loud, it is rarely examined. This practice brings the exception into the open and looks at what actually supports it, which is often a question of whether we trust ourselves, whether we believe we matter as much as anyone else, or whether we can accept how things are.

In this exercise you will state the general rule you already accept as true, and then state the feeling or belief that conflicts with it. You will complete the sentence, I know this is generally true, except in this case, naming the exception as specifically as you can. You will notice where the emotional response shows up in your body, without treating that response as proof. Then you will ask what evidence makes this situation, this time, or you genuinely different from the rule, setting aside the strength of the feeling itself. You will look just as carefully for the evidence that contradicts the exception, or that puts this case squarely under the rule you already accept. At the end you will compare the two and notice whether the exception is actually supported, and what it is like to include yourself under the same rule as everyone else.