Research suggests that people are usually harder on themselves than they are on others. Rather than motivating them to succeed, this often makes a mistake or stressful situation even more stressful—to the point that they’ll simply avoid new or challenging experiences for fearing of failing and eliciting a new wave of self-criticism.
This exercise asks you to notice the differences between the way you typically treat the people you care about and the way you typically treat yourself. It also asks you to consider why there may be differences between the two, and to contemplate what would happen if you treated yourself as compassionately as you treat others. Research suggests that treating yourself more compassionately can benefit your physical and mental health.
15 minutes. While it may be hard to find time to do this practice every time you are struggling with a difficult situation, an initial goal could be to try it once a month.
Take out a sheet of paper or open a blank document on your computer and go through the following steps.
Neff, K. D. & Germer, C. K. (2013). A pilot study and randomized controlled trial of the mindful self-compassion program. Journal of Clinical Psychology, 69(1), 28-44.
Mostly white and female adults from Boston participated in an eight-week Mindful Self-Compassion (MSC) program, which included learning exercises like How Would You Treat a Friend? They reported feeling greater self-compassion at the end of the program than they had at the beginning, and compared to a group who didn’t participate in the program. The MSC participants also reported greater mindfulness and life satisfaction, and lower depression, anxiety, and stress, than the comparison group.
Breines, J., & Chen, S. (2013). Activating the inner caregiver: The role of support-giving schemas in increasing state self-compassion. Journal of Experimental Social Psychology, 49, 58-64.
American undergraduates (mostly female and Asian American, European American, or Latino) recalled a time when they gave emotional support to a friend or gave actual support (in writing) to another person. Afterward, they reported greater self-compassion for themselves around a problem with which they were struggling, compared with participants who didn’t think about supporting a friend.
Who Has Tried the Practice?
How Would You Treat a Friend? is included in Mindful Self-Compassion (MSC), an eight-week program by Kristin Neff and Chris Germer that trains people to be more mindful and self-compassionate. Research suggests that this exercise and program can benefit people outside the U.S.:
More research is needed to explore whether, and how, the impact of this practice extends to other groups and cultures.
Research suggests that the way people treat themselves is shaped in part by how others have treated them, but it can also be influenced by how they treat others. Because people often find it more natural to be compassionate toward others than to be compassionate toward themselves in a challenging situation, one way to increase self-compassion is to imagine what one would say to a friend in a similar position, then direct those same sentiments toward oneself.
Reflecting on how kind you are capable of being toward others can remind you that you are also capable of being kind toward yourself—and that you deserve compassion, too. By treating yourself with this kind of sympathy and understanding—rather than beating yourself up—you help yourself bounce back from challenging situations with greater resilience.
Kristin Neff, Ph.D., University of Texas, Austin
Center for Mindful Self-Compassion