Seeing is Already Change

If a person is not conscious of the fact that he or she speaks or acts in a certain way, can that person change it? No—it is quite clear that it is impossible. Now suppose you point out to the person that he or she speaks or behaves in this particular way— what will happen? Most likely you will be accused of unfairness. Why? Because the person concerned has no idea that it is true. The matter is not conscious to the person's mind. It is unconscious.

What is the only remedy? The only remedy is for the person after long self-observation to realize personally that he or she speaks or behaves in this or that way. In that case, an increase of consciousness has taken place and something has been added to consciousness. Is this person then the same? No—by seeing, by becoming more conscious, by accepting, by acknowledgement, the person is no longer the same. This is the way we follow in this Work. The one who becomes more conscious cannot remain the same. So it is said that self-observation is a method of self change.

Maurice Nicoll, "Commentary on Increase of Consciousness" in Psychological Commentaries on the Teaching of Gurdjieff and Ouspensky (Vol. 3, p. 1094)