According to Yuval Harari, if you really want to master Vipassana, you need to invest in a professional teacher and spend at least two hours a day in meditation, as well as attend an annual two-month silent retreat to focus on your breath.
Since few of us have the time, patience, or money for that, we may welcome the advice of famous Zen master Thich Nhat Hanh, who suggests we simply spend each minute in touch with what goes on in our body by focusing on breath. This is not to say that each waking moment should be spent breathing in and out but, if you take a few minutes daily to touch base with yourself, you’ll be on the right path to congruence.
We can also take a page from Ray Dalio, one of the world’s most successful investors and entrepreneurs. He asked himself, “What is congruence?”, and through his principles of radical truth and radical transparency*, he was able to connect the dots of where we are to where we’re going.
*Essentially, Dalio advises that we break our personal goals into distinct parts and use algorithms to scrutinize each part, to see if the bare-knuckle punches of our picture-reality matches our dream-reality. When we have set up different algorithms for different types of situations, we can carry out decisions more quickly, objectively, and, therefore, more accurately.
If you attach yourself to the truth by being as honest as you can in your dealings with others, you’ll find your self less divided. In turn, the people you’re dealing with may take head and become more open and honest with you leading to mutual respect and understanding.
In practice, this can be achieved through methods that include: