Recently, I read a book called Radical Honesty by Brad Blanton. I was aware of this book for many years, but I never picked it up because I always had something better to do.
Even as I write it, I am aware of 1000 other things I can be doing, so it is natural that something gets left behind. And while I’m trying to act in the best way possible it is not always possible to succeed, but that’s beside the point.
So finally I read the book and it blew my mind. After all, the author, Brad Blanton is a psychotherapist who spent his whole career helping people with their issues. In the end, Blanton summarized that most if not all problems we have in life are there because we lie to ourselves and others about virtually everything.
We lie because we want to spare others the pain because we think it is for the better, or just because we are selfish. And so the lies accumulate into something bigger, such as a need for therapy, with the best and immediate cure being telling the total and complete truth in every aspect of our lives—hence, Radical Honesty.
Yes, it can be rather uncomfortable to say something we held from others for years and years, and even if it might not seem relevant today, it is still the right thing to do, for yourself and others.
Blanton is actually funny, as he kicked plenty of people out of his office because they would not fully commit to the Radical Honesty principles. Furthermore, Honesty is known to curse openly and tell very inappropriate and plainly offensive things, just because they are true for him.
Finally, Blanton states that if everyone would commit to this Radical Honesty practice, the world would be a way better place for everyone to live in.
I tend to agree with Blanton since I myself say things like “if everyone was happier, the world would be a better place,” and so I incorporated principles of Radical Honesty into my practice.
In reality, I am always looking for this thing I call “the next level,” with some of the previous levels being veganism and total rejection of “sleeping around culture“, as it isn’t good for you (I might post the full list of my “next level” thinking so stay tuned!) . So, for the time being, I’m implementing Radical Honesty in my life, looking for the next level. I hope you can learn it, too, become your happiness may depend on it.
Source: Radical Honesty by Brad Blanton
