The Study of Negative States

Study your negative states, for this is one of the most important sides of self-study. Observe them, note them down, and above all remember them so that when they come back again, as they always do, you may gradually recognize them before they can exert their full power—namely, before you can identify with them.

Especially in the morning clear your mind of negative, unpleasant and criticizing states before you pass into external life, and at night go through your negative states and try to see them in retrospect; and if you do this genuinely, then you may rest assured that you will receive help from 'I's in yourself that wish to work.

Maurice Nicoll, "On Work on Negative Emotions” in Psychological Commentaries on the Teaching of Gurdjieff and Ouspensky (Vol. 2, p. 712)