It is vital to have nothing to do with any art form which has dragons on it
Clive James
I enjoy making arbitrary rules. For years, one of mine was “Nothing yellow.” I have nothing against yellow, but eliminating it as an option helped me commit to Chinese Red and Williamsburg Blue.
Arbitrary rules can help you see through your unexamined expectations. Do you really think you can please someone sulky? Should you pay more in taxes than billionaires do? What about fretting over your meditation practice?
Practice: Since there isn’t a Right Way (yikes!) to do most things, consider entertaining yourself by coming up with an arbitrary rule. Decide to Always or Never do such-and-such.
Advanced practice: Identify one of the arbitrary rules you grew up with and how you feel about it.
Related practices: Walking Companions, Done