The Fogging Technique

Purpose

How to accept criticism without letting it bring you down.

Technique

Act like a fog! Imagine you are fog. When someone throws a stone at you, you absorb that stone without throwing the stone back. This is a very easy and effective technique to use against people who keep criticising you repeatedly.

Examples. Suppose someone accuses you like this:

• “You just don’t understand”
• “You are lazy”
• “You are always late”
• “You don’t feel responsible”

You should simply accept the criticism, true or not, and then repeat it back to the person who criticised you.

• “Yes, I just don’t understand”
• “Yes, I am lazy sometimes”
• “Yes, I was late”
• “Yes, I just don’t take responsibility”

Keep doing this and the person who is throwing the stones at you will eventually run out of them. This is an elegant and simple method to avoid a back and forth argument and just let the other persons rage flow out of him.

Practice this with someone you know well, by telling them to criticise you rapidly and follow the fogging technique and see how it feels.

Use wisely and in appropriate circumstances.