The Revolutionary Process Called “The Work”

The Work of
Byron Katie
An Introduction
The Revolutionary Process Called “The Work”

The Work of
Byron Katie
An Introduction
 “No one can give you freedom but you.
This little book will show you how.”
—Byron Katie

This booklet presents the essence of The Work

of Byron Katie. Each year, thousands of these Introduction
booklets are sent by request, at no charge, to
non-profit organizations around the world, helping The Work of Byron Katie is a way to identify and
people discover the life-changing power of inquiry. question the thoughts that cause all the suffering in the
world. It is a way to find peace with yourself and with the
If you would like to explore this process further, we world. Anyone with an open mind can do this Work.
suggest you read the book Loving What Is. It will
take you deeper into The Work and includes many
Byron Kathleen Reid became severely depressed while
examples of Katie facilitating people on issues
such as fear, health, relationships, money, the in her thirties. Over a ten-year period her depression
body, and more. Loving What Is is also available deepened, and for the last two years Katie (as she
as an audiobook, which offers you the invaluable is called) was seldom able to leave her bedroom.
experience of hearing Katie do The Work in live Then one morning, from the depths of despair, she
workshop recordings. The book and audiobook are experienced a life-changing realization.
available in bookstores, on thework.com, and by
calling 805.444.5799.
Katie saw that when she believed her thoughts
she suffered, and that when she didn’t believe her
© 2017 Byron Katie International, Inc. All rights reserved. thoughts she didn’t suffer. What had been causing her

An Introduction 5
depression was not the world around her, but what or answers was of little value—instead, she offers a
she believed about the world around her. In a flash of process that can give people their own answers. The
insight, she saw that our attempt to find happiness was first people exposed to her Work reported that the
backward—instead of hopelessly trying to change the experience was transformational, and she soon began
world to match our thoughts about how it “should” be, receiving invitations to teach the process publicly.
we can question these thoughts and, by meeting reality
as it is, experience unimaginable freedom and joy. As a Since 1986 Katie has introduced The Work to millions
result, a bedridden, suicidal woman became filled with of people around the world. In addition to public events,
love for everything life brings. she has done The Work in corporations, universities,
schools, churches, prisons, and hospitals. Katie’s joy
Katie developed a simple yet powerful method of and humor immediately put people at ease, and the
inquiry, called The Work, that showed people how deep insights and breakthroughs that participants
to free themselves. Her insight into the mind is quickly experience make the events captivating. Since
consistent with leading-edge research in cognitive 1998 Katie has directed the School for The Work, a
neuroscience, and The Work has been compared to nine-day curriculum offered several times a year. The
the Socratic dialogue, Buddhist teachings, and twelve- School is an approved provider of continuing education
step programs. But Katie developed her method units in the U.S., and many psychologists, counselors,
without any knowledge of religion or psychology. and therapists report that The Work is becoming
The Work is based purely on one woman’s direct the most important part of their practice. Katie also
experience of how suffering is created and ended. It is presents a five-day No-Body Intensive and an annual
astonishingly simple, accessible to people of all ages New Year’s Mental Cleanse—a four-day program of
and backgrounds, and requires nothing more than a continuous inquiry that takes place in Los Angeles at
pen and paper and a willingness to open the mind. the end of December. She sometimes offers weekend
Katie saw right away that giving people her insights workshops as well. Audio and video recordings of

2 The Work of Byron Katie An Introduction 3

Katie facilitating The Work on a wide range of topics What Is Is
(sex, money, the body, parenting, etc.) are available at
her events and on her website, thework.com. The only time we suffer is when we believe a thought
that argues with what is. When the mind is perfectly
Katie’s most important books are Loving What clear, what is is what we want. If you want reality to
Is, which was written with her husband, the be different than it is, you might as well try to teach a
distinguished writer Stephen Mitchell, and has been cat to bark. You can try and try, and in the end the cat
translated into thirty-three languages; I Need Your will look up at you and say, “Meow.” Wanting reality
Love—Is That True? (with Michael Katz); A Thousand to be different than it is is hopeless.
Names for Joy (with Stephen Mitchell); and A Mind
at Home with Itself (with Stephen Mitchell). Her other And yet, if you pay attention, you’ll notice that you
books are Question Your Thinking, Change the World; believe thoughts like this dozens of times a day.
Who Would You Be Without Your Story?; Peace in the “People should be kinder.” “Children should be
Present Moment (selections from Byron Katie and well-behaved.” “My husband (or wife) should agree
Eckhart Tolle, with photographs by Michele Penn); with me.” “I should be thinner (or prettier or more
and A Friendly Universe, illustrated by Hans Wilhelm. successful).” These thoughts are ways of wanting
Her books for children are Tiger-Tiger, Is It True? and reality to be different than it is. If you think that this
The Four Questions, both illustrated by Hans Wilhelm. sounds depressing, you’re right. All the stress that we
feel is caused by arguing with what is.
Welcome to The Work.
People new to The Work often say to me, “But it would
be disempowering to stop my argument with reality. If
I simply accept reality, I’ll become passive. I may even
lose the desire to act.” I answer them with a question:

4 The Work of Byron Katie An Introduction 5

“Can you really know that that’s true?” Which is more Staying in Your Own Business
empowering?—“I wish I hadn’t lost my job” or “I lost
my job; what intelligent solutions can I find right now?” I can find only three kinds of business in the universe:
mine, yours, and God’s. (For me, the word God
The Work reveals that what you think shouldn’t have means “reality.” Reality is God, because it rules.
happened should have happened. It should have Anything that’s out of my control, your control, and
happened because it did happen, and no thinking everyone else’s control—I call that God’s business.)
in the world can change it. This doesn’t mean that
you condone it or approve of it. It just means that Much of our stress comes from mentally living out of
you can see things without resistance and without our own business. When I think, “You need to get a
the confusion of your inner struggle. No one wants job, I want you to be happy, you should be on time,
their children to get sick, no one wants to be in a car you need to take better care of yourself,” I am in your
accident; but when these things happen, how can it be business. When I’m worried about earthquakes, floods,
helpful to mentally argue with them? We know better war, or when I will die, I am in God’s business. If I am
than to do that, yet we do it, because we don’t know mentally in your business or in God’s business, the
how to stop. effect is separation. I noticed this early in 1986. When I
mentally went into my mother’s business, for example,
I am a lover of what is, not because I’m a spiritual with a thought like “My mother should understand me,”
person, but because it hurts when I argue with reality. I immediately experienced a feeling of loneliness. And
We can know that reality is good just as it is, because I realized that every time in my life that I had felt hurt or
when we argue with it, we experience tension and lonely, I had been in someone else’s business.
frustration. We don’t feel natural or balanced. When
we stop opposing reality, action becomes simple, fluid, If you are living your life and I am mentally living your
kind, and fearless. life, who is here living mine? We’re both over there.

6 The Work of Byron Katie An Introduction 7

Being mentally in your business keeps me from Meeting Your Thoughts with
being present in my own. I am separate from myself,
wondering why my life doesn’t work. Understanding
To think that I know what’s best for anyone else is to be A thought is harmless unless we believe it. It is not
out of my business. Even in the name of love, it is pure our thoughts, but the attachment to our thoughts,
arrogance, and the result is tension, anxiety, and fear. Do I that causes suffering. Attaching to a thought means
know what’s right for me? That is my only business. Let me believing that it’s true, without inquiring. A belief is a
work with that before I try to solve your problems for you. thought that we’ve been attaching to, often for years.

If you understand the three kinds of business enough Most people think that they are what their thoughts
to stay in your own business, it could free your life in a tell them they are. One day I noticed that I wasn’t
way that you can’t even imagine. The next time you’re breathing—I was being breathed. Then I also noticed,
feeling stress or discomfort, ask yourself whose business to my amazement, that I wasn’t thinking—that I was
you’re in mentally, and you may burst out laughing! That actually being thought and that thinking isn’t personal.
question can bring you back to yourself. And you may Do you wake up in the morning and say to yourself, “I
come to see that you’ve never really been present, that think I won’t think today”? It’s too late: You’re already
you’ve been mentally living in other people’s business thinking! Thoughts just appear. They come out of nothing
all your life. Just to notice that you’re in someone else’s and go back to nothing, like clouds moving across the
business can bring you back to your own wonderful self. empty sky. They come to pass, not to stay. There is no
harm in them until we attach to them as if they were true.
And if you practice it for a while, you may come to see
that you don’t have any business either and that your No one has ever been able to control his thinking,
life runs perfectly well on its own. although people may tell the story of how they have.

8 The Work of Byron Katie An Introduction 9

I don’t let go of my thoughts—I meet them with Putting the Mind on Paper
understanding. Then they let go of me.
The first step in The Work is to identify the thoughts that are
causing your stress and to write them down. These thoughts
Thoughts are like the breeze or the leaves on the trees can be about any situation in your life, past, present, or
or the raindrops falling. They appear like that, and future—about a person you dislike or worry about, someone
through inquiry we can make friends with them. Would who angers or frightens or saddens you, or someone you’re
you argue with a raindrop? Raindrops aren’t personal, ambivalent or confused about. Write your judgments down,
and neither are thoughts. Once a painful concept is met just the way you think them. Use short, simple sentences. (Go
with understanding, the next time it appears you may to thework.com, to the section called “Tools to Do The Work,”
find it interesting. What used to be the nightmare is under “Resources,” where you’ll find a Judge-Your-Neighbor
now just interesting. The next time it appears, you may Worksheet to download and print.)
find it funny. The next time, you may not even notice it.
For thousands of years, we have been taught not to judge—
This is the power of loving what is.
but let’s face it, we still do it all the time. The truth is that we
all have judgments running in our heads. Through The Work
we finally have permission to let those judgments speak out,
or even scream out, on paper. We may find that even the most
unpleasant thoughts can be met with unconditional love.

I encourage you to write about someone whom you haven’t

yet totally forgiven, someone you still resent. This is the most
powerful place to begin. Even if you’ve forgiven that person 99
percent, you aren’t free until your forgiveness is complete. The
1 percent you haven’t forgiven that person is the very place
where you’re stuck in all your other relationships (including your
relationship with yourself).

10 The Work of Byron Katie An Introduction 11

If you begin by pointing the finger of blame outward,
then the focus isn’t on you. You can just let loose and
How to Fill In a Worksheet
be uncensored. We’re often quite sure about what other I invite you to contemplate for a moment a situation
people need to do, how they should live, whom they where you were angry, hurt, sad, or disappointed
should be with. We have twenty-twenty vision about other with someone. Be as judgmental, childish, and petty
people, but not about ourselves. as you were in that situation. Don’t try to be wiser
or kinder than you were. This is a time to be totally
When you do The Work, you see who you are by seeing who
you think other people are. Eventually you come to see that honest and uncensored about why you were hurt and
everything outside you is a reflection of your own thinking. how you felt in that situation. Allow your feelings to
You are the storyteller, the projector of all stories, and the express themselves as they arise, without any fear of
world is the projected image of your thoughts. consequences or any threat of punishment.

Since the beginning of time, people have been trying Here is an example of a completed Judge-Your-
to change the world so that they can be happy. This Neighbor Worksheet. I have written about my second
hasn’t ever worked, because it approaches the problem husband, Paul, in this example (included here with
backward. What The Work gives us is a way to change the his permission); these are the kinds of thoughts that
projector—mind—rather than the projected. It’s like when I used to believe about him before inquiry found me.
there’s a piece of lint on a projector’s lens. We think there’s As you read, you’re invited to replace Paul’s name
a flaw on people on the screen, and we try to change this with the name of the appropriate person in your life.
person and that person, whomever the flaw appears to be
on next. But it’s futile to try to change the projected images.
Once we realize where the lint is, we can clear the lens itself.
This is the end of suffering, and the beginning of a little joy
in paradise.

12 The Work of Byron Katie An Introduction 13

1. In this situation, who angers, confuses, saddens, or 5. What do you think of them in this situation? Make a list.
disappoints you, and why? (Remember, be petty and judgmental.)

I am angry with Paul because he doesn’t listen to me. Paul is unfair, arrogant, loud, dishonest, way out of line,
and unconscious.
2. In this situation, how do you want them to change?
What do you want them to do? 6. What is it about this situation that you don’t ever want
to experience again?
I want Paul to see that he is wrong. I want him to stop
lying to me. I want him to see that he is killing himself. I don’t ever want Paul to lie to me again. I don’t ever want
to see him ruining his health again.
3. In this situation, what advice would you offer them?

Paul should take a deep breath. He should calm down.

He should see that his behavior frightens me. He should
know that being right is not worth another heart attack.

4. In order for you to be happy in this situation, what do

you need them to think, say, feel, or do?

I need Paul to hear me when I talk to him. I need him to

take care of himself. I need him to admit that I am right.

14 The Work of Byron Katie An Introduction 15

Worksheet Tips Inquiry: The Four Questions
Statement 1: Be sure to identify what most upsets you
and the Turnarounds
in that situation about the person you are writing about.
As you fill in statements 2– 6, imagine yourself in the 1. Is it true? (Yes or no. If no, move to question 3.)
situation that you have described in statement 1.
2. Can you absolutely know that it’s true? (Yes or no.)
Statement 2: List what you wanted him or her to do
in this situation, no matter how ridiculous or childish 3. How do you react, what happens, when you
your wants were. believe that thought?

Statement 3: Be sure that your advice is specific,

4. Who would you be without the thought?
practical, and detailed. Clearly articulate, step by
step, how he or she should carry out your advice; tell
Turn the thought around. Then find at least three
him or her exactly what you think he or she should
specific, genuine examples of how the turnaround
do. If the person followed your advice, would it really
is true for you in this situation.
Now, using the four
solve your problem in statement 1? Be sure that your
questions, let’s investigate the portion of statement 1
advice is relevant and doable for this person (as you
on the Worksheet that is the cause of your reaction:
describe him or her in statement 5).
Paul doesn’t listen to me. As you read along, think of
Statement 4: Did you stay in the situation described someone you haven’t totally forgiven yet, someone who
in statement 1? If your needs were met, would that just wouldn’t listen to you.
take you all the way to “happy” or would it just stop the
pain? Be sure that the needs you have expressed are
specific, practical, and detailed.

16 The Work of Byron Katie An Introduction 17

Question 1. Is it true? Question 3. How do you react, what happens, when
you believe that thought?
As you consider the situation again, ask yourself, “Is it
true that Paul doesn’t listen to me?” Be still. If you really How do you react when you believe that Paul doesn’t
want to know the truth, the honest yes or no from within listen to you? How do you treat him? Be still; notice.
will rise to meet the question as you recall that situation For example: “I feel frustrated and sick to my stomach;
in your mind’s eye. Let the mind ask the question, and I give him ‘the look’; I interrupt him; I punish him; I
wait for the answer that surfaces. (The answer to the ignore him; I lose my temper. I start talking faster and
first two questions is just one syllable long; it’s either louder, and I try to force him to listen.” Continue your
yes or no. Notice if you experience any defense as list as you witness the situation and allow the images
you answer. If your answer includes “because…” or in your mind’s eye to show you how you react when
“but…”, this is not the one-syllable answer you are you believe that thought.
looking for, and you’re no longer doing The Work.
You’re looking for freedom outside yourself. I’m inviting Does that thought bring peace or stress into your
you into a new paradigm.) life? What images do you see, past and future, and
what physical sensations arise as you witness those
Question 2. Can you absolutely know that it’s true? images? Allow yourself to experience them now. Do
any obsessions or addictions begin to appear when
Consider these questions: “In that situation, can I you believe that thought? (Do you act out on any of
absolutely know that it’s true that Paul isn’t listening to me? the following: alcohol, drugs, credit cards, food, sex,
Can I ever really know when someone is listening or not? television, computers?) Also, witness how you treat
Am I sometimes listening even when I appear not to be?” yourself in this situation and how that feels. “I shut
down. I isolate myself, I feel sick, I feel angry, I eat
compulsively, and for days I watch television without

18 The Work of Byron Katie An Introduction 19

really watching. I feel depressed, separate, resentful, at least three specific, genuine examples of how this
and lonely.” Notice all the effects of believing the turnaround is true. For me, one example is that in that
thought “Paul doesn’t listen to me.” situation I was out of control emotionally, and my heart
was racing.
Question 4. Who would you be without the thought?
Another turnaround is “I don’t listen to Paul.” Find at
This is a very powerful question. Picture yourself least three examples of how you were not listening to
standing in the presence of the person you have Paul, from his perspective, in that situation. Are you
written about when they’re doing what you think they listening to Paul when you’re thinking about him not
shouldn’t be doing. Consider, for example, who you listening to you?
would be without the thought “Paul doesn’t listen to
me.” Who would you be in the same situation if you A third turnaround is “Paul does listen to me.” For
didn’t believe that thought? Close your eyes and example, he put out the cigarette he was smoking.
imagine Paul not listening to you. Imagine yourself He might light another one in five minutes, but in that
without the thought that Paul doesn’t listen to you situation, even as he was telling me that he didn’t care
(or that he even should listen). Take your time. Notice about his health, he was apparently listening to me. For
what is revealed to you. What do you see now? How this and for each turnaround you discover, always find
does that feel? at least three specific, genuine examples of how the
turnaround is true for you in this situation.
Turn it around. The original statement, “Paul doesn’t
listen to me,” when turned around, becomes “I don’t After sitting with the turnarounds, you would continue
listen to myself.” Is that turnaround as true or truer? a typical inquiry with the next statement written on the
Now identify examples of how you don’t listen to Worksheet—in this case, I want Paul to see that he is wrong—
yourself in that very same situation with Paul. Find and then with every other statement on the Worksheet.

20 The Work of Byron Katie An Introduction 21

 Your Turn: The Worksheet
Now you know enough to try The Work. First relax,
get very still, close your eyes, and wait for a stressful
Judge your neighbor, situation to come to mind. Fill in the Judge-Your-
write it down. Neighbor Worksheet as you identify the thoughts and
Ask four questions, feelings that you were experiencing in the situation
you have chosen to write about. Use short, simple
turn it around.
sentences. Remember to point the finger of blame or
- bk
judgment outward. You may write from your point of
view as a five-year-old or at any age in your life. Please
do not write about yourself yet.

22 The Work of Byron Katie An Introduction 23

1. In this situation, who angers, confuses, saddens, Your Turn: The Inquiry
or disappoints you, and why?
I don’t like (I am angry at, or saddened, frightened, One by one, put each statement on the Judge-Your-
confused, etc., by) (name) because ______________ . Neighbor Worksheet up against the four questions.
Then turn around the statement you’re working on and
2. In this situation, how do you want them to
find at least three specific, genuine examples for each
change? What do you want them to do?
I want (name) to _______________________________ . turnaround. (Refer to the previous section “Inquiry: The
Four Questions and the Turnarounds.” You can also
3. In this situation, what advice would you offer find help at thework.com, or with The Work App, which
them? includes a tutorial with Byron Katie.) Throughout this
(Name) should (shouldn’t) ______________________ . process, explore being open to possibilities beyond
what you think you know. There’s nothing more
4. In order for you to be happy in this situation, what
do you need them to think, say, feel, or do? exciting than discovering the don’t-know mind.
I need (name) to ______________________________ .
This Work is meditation. It’s like diving into yourself.
5. What do you think of them in this situation? Make Contemplate the questions, drop down into the depths
a list. (Remember, be petty and judgmental.) of yourself, listen, and wait. The answer will find your
(Name) is _____________________________________ .
question. No matter how closed down or hopeless
6. What is it about this situation that you don’t ever
you think you are, the gentler polarity of mind (which
want to experience again? I call the heart) will meet the polarity that is confused
I don’t ever want ______________________________ . because it hasn’t yet been enlightened to itself. You
may begin to experience revelations about yourself
and your world, revelations that will transform your
whole life, forever.

24 The Work of Byron Katie An Introduction 25

Look at the first statement that you have written Question 2. Can you absolutely know that
on your Worksheet. Now ask yourself the following it’s true? If your answer to question 1 is yes, ask
questions: yourself, “Can I absolutely know that it’s true?” In
many cases, the statement appears to be true. Of
Question 1. Is it true? Reality, for me, is what is true. course it does. Your concepts are based on a lifetime
The truth is whatever is in front of you, whatever is really of uninvestigated beliefs.
happening. Whether you like it or not, it’s raining now. “It
shouldn’t be raining” is just a thought. In reality, there is After I woke up to reality in 1986, I noticed many
no such thing as a “should” or a “shouldn’t.” These are times how people, in conversations, the media,
only thoughts that we impose onto reality. Without the and books, made statements such as “There isn’t
“should” and “shouldn’t,” we can see reality as it is, and enough understanding in the world,” “There’s too
this leaves us free to act efficiently, clearly, and sanely. much violence,” “We should love one another more.”
When asking the first question, take your time. The These were stories I used to believe too. They seemed
answer is either yes or no. (If it’s no, move to question 3.) sensitive, kind, and caring, but as I heard them, I
The Work is about discovering what is true from the noticed that believing them caused stress and that
deepest part of yourself. You are listening for your they didn’t feel peaceful inside me.
answers now, not other people’s, and not anything you
have been taught. This can be very unsettling at first, For instance, when I heard someone say, “People
because you’re entering the unknown. As you continue to should be more loving,” the question would arise in
dive deeper, allow the truth within you to rise and meet the me “Can I absolutely know that that’s true? Can I really
question. Be gentle as you give yourself to inquiry. Let this know for myself, within myself, that people should be
experience have you completely. more loving? Even if the whole world tells me so, is it
really true?” And to my amazement, when I listened
within myself, I saw that the world is what it is in

26 The Work of Byron Katie An Introduction 27

this moment and that in this moment people couldn’t Question 3. How do you react, what happens,
possibly be more loving than they were. Where reality is when you believe that thought? With this
concerned, there is no “what should be.” There is only question, we begin to notice internal cause and
what is, just the way it is, right now. The truth is prior effect. You can see that when you believe the
to every story. And every story, prior to investigation, thought, there is an uneasy feeling, a disturbance
prevents us from seeing what’s true. that can range from mild discomfort to fear or panic.

Now I could finally inquire of every potentially After the four questions found me, I would notice
uncomfortable story, “Can I absolutely know that thoughts like “People should be more loving,” and I
it’s true?” And the answer, like the question, was an would see that thoughts like these caused a feeling of
experience: no. I would stand rooted in that answer— uneasiness in me. I noticed that prior to the thought,
solitary, peaceful, free. there was peace. My mind was quiet and serene. This
is who I am without my story. Then, in the stillness of
How could no be the right answer? Everyone I knew, and awareness, I began to notice the feelings that came
all the books, said that the answer should be yes. But I from believing or attaching to the thought. And in the
came to see that the truth is itself and will not be dictated to stillness I could see that if I were to believe the thought,
by anyone. In the presence of that inner no, I came to see the result would be a feeling of unease and sadness.
that the world is always as it should be, whether I oppose When I asked, “How do I react when I believe the
it or not. And I came to embrace reality with all my heart. I thought that people should be more loving?” I saw that
love the world, without any conditions. not only did I have an uncomfortable feeling (this was
obvious), but I also reacted with mental pictures to
If your answer is still yes, good. If you think that you prove that the thought was true. I flew off into a world
can absolutely know that that’s true, that’s as it should that didn’t exist. I reacted by living in a stressed body,
be, and it’s fine to move on to question 3. seeing everything through fearful eyes, a sleepwalker,

28 The Work of Byron Katie An Introduction 29

someone in a seemingly endless nightmare. The remedy For many people, life without their story is literally
was simply to investigate. unimaginable. They have no reference for it. So “I
don’t know” is a common answer to this question.
I love question 3. Once you answer it for yourself, once Other people answer by saying, “I’d be free,” “I’d be
you see the cause and effect of believing a thought, all peaceful,” “I’d be a more loving person.” You could
your suffering begins to unravel. also say, “I’d be clear enough to understand the
situation and act in an appropriate, intelligent way.”
Question 4. Who would you be without the Without our stories, we are not only able to act clearly
thought? This is a very powerful question. Who or and fearlessly; we are also a friend, a listener. We are
what would you be without the thought? How would people living happy lives. We are appreciation and
you be without the thought? Visualize yourself standing gratitude that have become as natural as breath itself.
in the presence of the person you have written about Happiness is the natural state for someone who knows
when he or she is doing what you think he or she that there’s nothing to know and that we already have
shouldn’t be doing. Now, just for a minute or two, close everything we need, right here now.
your eyes and imagine who you would be if you didn’t
even have the ability to think this thought. How would Turn it around. To do the turnarounds, find opposites
your life be different in the same situation without the of the original statement on your Worksheet. Often a
thought? Keep your eyes closed and watch them statement can be turned around to the self, to the other,
without your story. What do you see? How do you feel and to the opposite. First, the turnaround to the self.
about them without the story? Which do you prefer— Write it as if it were about you. Where you have written
with or without your story? Which feels kinder? Which someone’s name, put yourself. Instead of “he” or “she,”
feels more peaceful? put “I.” For example, “Paul doesn’t listen to me” turns
around to “I don’t listen to myself.” Find at least three
specific, genuine examples of how this turnaround is

30 The Work of Byron Katie An Introduction 31

as true as or truer than your original statement. Next anything else is responsible for your suffering—the
is the turnaround to the other. “Paul doesn’t listen to situation is hopeless. It means that you are forever in
me” becomes “I don’t listen to Paul.” A third type is the role of the victim, that you’re suffering in paradise.
a 180-degree turnaround to the extreme opposite: So bring the truth home to yourself and begin to set
“Paul doesn’t listen to me” becomes “Paul does listen yourself free. It’s no longer necessary to wait for
to me.” Don’t forget, for each turnaround find at least people or situations to change in order to experience
three specific, genuine examples of how the turnaround peace and harmony. The Work is the direct way to
is true for you in this situation. This is not about orchestrate your own happiness.
blaming yourself or feeling guilty. It’s about discovering
alternatives that can bring you peace.

Not every statement has as many as three turnarounds,

and some have more than three. Some turnarounds
may not make any sense to you. Don’t force these.

For each turnaround, go back and start with the

original statement. For example, “He shouldn’t waste
his time” may be turned around to “I shouldn’t waste
my time,” “I shouldn’t waste his time,” and “He should
waste his time.”

The turnarounds are a very powerful part of The Work.

As long as you think that the cause of your problem
is “out there”—as long as you think that anyone or

32 The Work of Byron Katie An Introduction 33

The Turnaround for It’s good to acknowledge that the same feelings or
situation may happen again, if only in your thoughts.
Statement 6 When you realize that suffering and discomfort are
the call to inquiry and to the freedom that follows, you
The turnaround for statement 6 on the Judge-Your- may actually begin to look forward to uncomfortable
Neighbor Worksheet is a little different from the other feelings. You may even experience them as
turnarounds. “I don’t ever want to…” turns around to “I friends coming to show you what you have not yet
am willing to…” and “I look forward to…” For example, investigated thoroughly enough.
“I don’t ever want Paul to lie to me again” turns around
to “I am willing to have Paul lie to me again” and “I look
forward to having Paul lie to me again.”

These turnarounds are about embracing all of life,

just as it is. Saying—and meaning—“I am willing
to…” creates open-mindedness, creativity, and
flexibility. Any resistance you may have is softened,
and that allows you to open up to the situation in your
life rather than keep hopelessly applying willpower
to eradicate it or push it away. Saying and meaning
“I look forward to…” actively opens you to life as it
unfolds. Some of us have learned to accept what is,
and I invite you to go further, to actually love what is.
This is our natural state. Freedom is our birthright.

34 The Work of Byron Katie An Introduction 35

 my abusive thoughts? If not, I’m continuing in
Questions and Answers myself the very thing I want to end in the world.
Sanity doesn’t suffer, ever. Can you eliminate war
Q I have a hard time writing about others. Can I write everywhere on earth? Through inquiry, you can
about myself? begin to eliminate it for one human being: you. This
is the beginning of the end of war in the world. If
A If you want to know yourself, I suggest you write life upsets you, good! Judge the war makers on
about someone else. Point The Work outward paper, inquire, and turn it around. Do you really
in the beginning, and you may come to see that want to know the truth? All suffering begins and
everything outside you is a direct reflection of your ends with you.
thinking. It’s all about you. Most of us have been
pointing criticism and judgments at ourselves for Q So what you’re saying is that I should just accept
years, and it hasn’t solved anything yet. Judging reality as it is and not argue with it. Is that right?
someone else, questioning these judgments,
and turning them around is the fast path to A It’s not up to me to say what anyone should or
understanding and self-realization. shouldn’t do. I simply ask, “What is the effect of
arguing with reality? How does it feel?” The Work
Q I’ve heard you say that you’re a lover of reality. What explores the cause and effect of attaching to
about war, rape, poverty, violence, and child abuse? painful thoughts, and in that investigation we find
Are you condoning them? our freedom. To simply say that we shouldn’t argue
with reality just adds another story, another spiritual
A How could I condone them? I’m not crazy. I simply concept. It hasn’t ever worked.
notice that if I believe they shouldn’t exist when
they do exist, I suffer. Can I just end the war in
me? Can I stop raping myself and others with

36 The Work of Byron Katie An Introduction 37

Q I don’t believe in God. Can I still benefit from The Work? A Yes. Do The Work on any subject that is stressful.
As you become familiar with the four questions and
A Yes. Atheist, agnostic, Christian, Jew, Muslim, the turnarounds, you may choose objects such
Buddhist, Hindu, pagan—we all have one thing in as the body, disease, career, or even God. Then
common: we want happiness and peace. If you are experiment with using the term “my thinking” in
tired of suffering, I invite you to The Work. place of the object when you do the turnarounds.

Q Loving what is sounds like never wanting anything. Example: “My body should be strong, flexible, and
Isn’t it more interesting to want things? healthy” becomes “My thinking should be strong,
flexible, and healthy. Isn’t that what you really
A My experience is that I do want something all want—a balanced, healthy mind? Has a sick body
the time. What I want is what is. It’s not only ever been a problem, or is it your thinking about
interesting, it’s ecstatic! When I want what I have, the body that causes the problem? Investigate. Let
thought and action aren’t separate; they move as your doctor take care of your body as you take care
one, without conflict. If you find anything lacking, of your thinking. I have a friend who can’t move his
ever, write down your thoughts and inquire. I find body, and he loves his life, because he loves what
that life never falls short and doesn’t require a he thinks. Freedom doesn’t require a healthy body.
future. Everything I need is always supplied, and Free your mind, and the body will follow.
I don’t have to do anything for it. There is nothing
more exciting than loving what is. Q How can I learn to forgive someone who hurt me
very badly?
Q What if I don’t have a problem with people? Can I
write about things, like my body? A Judge your enemy, write it down, ask four
questions, turn it around. See for yourself that

38 The Work of Byron Katie An Introduction 39

 forgiveness means discovering that what you Katieisms
thought happened didn’t. Until you can see that
there is nothing to forgive, you haven’t really
When you argue with reality, you lose—but only 100%
forgiven. We’re all innocent; we hurt others of the time.
because we believe our unquestioned thoughts. No
one would ever harm another human being unless Personalities don’t love—they want something.
they were confused. So whenever you suffer, If I had a prayer, it would be this: “God spare me from
identify the thoughts you’re thinking, write them the desire for love, approval, or appreciation. Amen.”
down, question them, and allow the answers from
Don’t pretend yourself beyond your own evolution.
within to set you free. Be a child. Start from the
mind that knows nothing. Take your ignorance all An unquestioned mind is the only suffering.
the way to freedom.
You either believe what you think or you question it.
There’s no other choice.
Q Is inquiry a process of thinking? If not, what is it?
No one can hurt me—that’s my job.
A Inquiry appears to be a process of thinking, but The worst thing that has ever happened is an
actually it’s a way to undo thinking. Thoughts lose unquestioned thought.
their power over us when we realize that they simply
Sanity doesn’t suffer, ever.
appear in the mind. They’re not personal. Through
The Work, instead of escaping or suppressing our If I think you’re my problem, I’m insane.
thoughts, we learn to meet them with unconditional I don’t let go of my concepts—I question them. Then
love and understanding. they let go of me.

40 The Work of Byron Katie An Introduction 41

You move totally away from reality when you believe
that there is a legitimate reason to suffer.
The School for The Work
The School for The Work is the ultimate inner adventure.
Reality is always kinder than the story we are believing
about it. Unlike every other school on earth, this one isn’t for learning—
it’s for unlearning. You’ll spend nine days losing the fear-
I’m very clear that the whole world loves me. I just based stories you’ve innocently clung to all your life. The
don’t expect them to realize it yet. curriculum at the School is a living, evolving process,
There are no physical problems—only mental ones. changing with the needs of the participants and on the
basis of past students’ experiences. Each School is led
Reality is God, because it rules.
directly by Katie; she is there every day, leading exercises
When I am perfectly clear, what is is what I want. from morning till early evening, and tailoring the curriculum
to meet the needs of the participants attending—no two
Arguing with reality is like trying to teach a cat to
Schools are exactly the same. And after nine days with
bark—hopeless.
Katie, you won’t be either. “Once the four questions are
How do I know that I don’t need what I want? I don’t alive inside you,” Katie says, “your mind becomes clear, and
have it. therefore the world you project becomes clear. This is more
Forgiveness is realizing that what you thought radical than anyone can possibly imagine.”
happened didn’t.

Everything happens for me, not to me. The No-Body Intensive

Gratitude is what we are without a story. The No-Body Intensive, a five-day guided exploration of
your belief system, lovingly explores and questions the main
aspects of identity. It brings to awareness everything identity
is made of. It looks at how we create an identity, what it feels
like to carry it, and how we can un-create it. Every step is a
joyful lightening of being as your true nature appears.

42 The Work of Byron Katie An Introduction 43

Weekend Workshops The Work on the Internet
Weekend workshops are an opportunity to experience
Katie and The Work are always accessible at
the power of the School in a two- or three-day program.
thework.com. When you visit the website, you’ll be able
Katie leads participants through some of her most
to read detailed instructions about The Work; watch
powerful exercises, designed to mirror the transformation
video clips of Katie facilitating inquiry with people on a
she went through after awakening to reality. By working
wide variety of issues; view Katie’s calendar of events;
on issues such as sex, body image, addiction, money,
and relationships, you’ll discover deeper levels of download free materials; register for an upcoming
freedom. The workshops have been called “amazing,” School for The Work, a No-Body Intensive, a weekend
“revelatory,” and “the most powerful weekend of my life.” program, or Turnaround House; find a facilitator; learn
how to call the free Do The Work Helpline; learn about
the Institute for The Work and its Certified Facilitators;
The Store for The Work download Judge-Your-Neighbor Worksheets; listen to
archived interviews; download apps for your iPhone,
A popular and enjoyable way to deepen one’s
iPad, or Android; subscribe to the free newsletter; and
understanding of The Work is to listen to Katie as she
shop at the online store. We also invite you to Katie’s
facilitates others. Her fluidity, her balance of firmness
Facebook, Twitter, Google+, and Pinterest pages. For
and compassion, and her trademark sense of humor all
videos, visit TheWorkofBK YouTube channel; and for
make for great entertainment and powerful realizations.
The Store for The Work offers audios and videos of live streaming events, visit livewithbyronkatie.com.
Katie expertly facilitating audience members on topics
such as sex, money, parents, relationships, work, and
much more. Visit storeforthework.com.

44 The Work of Byron Katie An Introduction 45

For School Graduates: Turnaround House
The Institute for The Work for The Work
After attending the School for The Work, Turnaround House is the
you are invited to join the more than twenty-eight-day residential
one thousand members enrolled in program that confronts the
the Institute for The Work of Byron ultimate addiction, the only
Katie. The Institute offers School addiction: the mind’s addiction to the unquestioned
graduates a way to stay immersed thoughts that cause all the suffering in the world. At
in The Work and offers the only official certification Turnaround House, we guide participants through
program for The Work. Whether or not you choose this intensive, one-of-a-kind program by offering The
to enroll in the Certification Program, you’ll have Work on addiction, depression, post-traumatic stress
access to The Work community forums, an exciting syndrome, and confusion of all kinds. Also, as part of
interactive hub where members from around the world the program at Turnaround House, we show you how
connect to discuss relevant issues. You’ll also have to change your lifestyle and how to maintain those
the opportunity to do The Work on a regular basis in changes when you go home. Byron Katie is on staff
our Daily Practice program. For more information, visit as often as her schedule allows.
instituteforthework.com.
For further information go to thework.com and click
on “Turnaround House,” call 805.444.5799, or email
[email protected].

46 The Work of Byron Katie An Introduction 47

The Four Questions
Here are the four questions again. Some people print
them from a free template available at thework.com or
buy The Work App to keep sanity close at hand.

1. Is it true? (Yes or no. If no, move to question 3.)

2. Can you absolutely know that it’s true? (Yes or no.)
3. How do you react, what happens, when you
believe that thought?
4. Who would you be without the thought?

Turn the statement around to the self, to the other,

and to the opposite. Then find at least three specific,
We invite you to help us move The Work in the world by
genuine examples of how each turnaround is as true as
supporting scholarships for the School and other projects
or truer than the original statement. of The Work Foundation, a 501(c)(3) charitable organization.
We deeply appreciate your donation, which you can
make on our website, theworkfoundationinc.org; by
calling Byron Katie International at 805.444.5799; or by
mailing a check to The Work Foundation, P.O. Box 638,
Ojai, CA 93024.

14 Nov. 2017

48 The Work of Byron Katie

“ Byron Katie’s Work is a great
blessing for our planet.
The Work acts like a razor-sharp sword that
cuts through illusion and enables you to know
for yourself the timeless essence of your being.”

—Eckhart Tolle, author of The Power of Now

T H E W O R K O F B Y R O N K AT I E
P.O. Box 1206, Ojai, CA 93024, USA

A PDF version of this booklet can be downloaded

on thework.com . This booklet includes excerpts
from Loving What Is, which is available
in bookstores, and through
thework.com.