To seek and find truth requires that we communicate within rather than without. When we communicate outside, with other people, truth is always watered down by differing perceptions, consensus, and compromise. People have different understandings.
However, to reach a very effective level using this methodology there is much work that we must do to remove the impediments and obstacles that we have built to block our path.
There is always a very easy check on the quality of thoughts that we are processing. That check is asking ourselves 'What is the feeling in my gut?'. If we are processing thoughts that are aiding our true honest desires we have a good feeling in the gut. If we process thoughts that are abetting our true honest desires we have a bad feeling in the gut. When you feel that bad feeling it is a clear signal to examine your current thoughts and change them to positive thoughts.
Self-examination is seeking the truth within us rather than from outward searching. Outward searching is marred by the feelings, perceptions, and compromises that others have made because people have different understandings.
If we look within ourselves, we question, and the answers are the universal truths that we seek. Every question has an answer; every problem has a solution. Answers and solutions may not come immediately; some take time to find-an hour, a day, a year, or even many years. If we search for it or allow it to come to us, we will find it.
For a writer, this is especially important because it involves thoughts, beliefs, and feelings that are to be expressed so they make sense to the reader. This is difficult because our interpretations are filtered through our emotions, our upbringing, our culture, and the world around us. Only through introspection can we arrive at the truth that, of course, is another word for self-examination.
How do we achieve this self-examination? Many philosophies have been developed to realize this introspection, but a simple act is all that is necessary: take a moment to concentrate on your inner mind and to ask a single question; let your subconscious seek the answer throughout the day and the answer will come without effort. Make it a daily ritual and be surprised by the outcome. Be careful not to let negative thought about the question hinder the search for the answer.
One important truth is the discovery that 'our thoughts create our life experiences.' This is probably the first universal truth that is discovered, and once this is realized and accepted one has found and important phase of self-examination.
One of the universal truth is that there is no past or future only the present-the here and now of the moment.
Every action has an alternate reaction.
Charles O. Goulet has a BA in history and a BEd in English literature. He has written several novels based on Canadian history. These are available at Amazon.ca, Barnes and Noble, and many other bookstores.