What is the best way to use our tools of observation to drop our conditioning?

There is a practice tool I have used for many years that does help in speeding up the process of dropping the conditioned self. I am not so sure it is so much a matter of re-inventing yourself as getting to the self that lies behind the conditioned self & has always been there. In your observation take a step back in your head. It will take some practice, & even after you succeed it will take practice to perfect. You will know you are beginning to get there when instead of feeling like you are "out there" observing you are centered behind your eyes looking out there. You will find that the normal human emotions are blunted. This will allow you to respond instead of react to people, places, & events in your daily life. At first you will find yourself observing others reactions mostly, but with practice you wll begin to find yourself observing your reactions & responses. Remember, a thing can not see itself, so anything you can step away from & observe can not be your authenic self, so you begin to see more & more of your conditioned self you would not have seen otherwise. We are already, so it really it just a matter of revealing & dropping the conditioned self that is covering up our authenic self. To "re-invent" yourself is basically just to create a new programed self, it may be better than the old, but it is still just a programed self. There are a few other tools I have also used with good success, but it is probably best to start with this. Blessings.

When you drop the wanting to drop your conditioning and begin to notice the deep stillness within and all around you will laugh at your struggle.

The question to ask yourself is: If you were not mulling over these questions in your mind would the "AHA moments" still come or would you be in a continual state of "AHA"?

The human ego identified mind wants you to believe that you have to do something or think something in order to attain something ( a higher level of awareness ). You do not.

When the realization comes that you are the awareness you seek, you may stop struggling and just relax into the conscious awareness you are.

There is nothing you need do. There is nothing you can do. You are what you are, where you are, now.

Change comes naturally, now, when awareness operates from the center of being. No struggle or manipulation required. Until then the mind tries to manipulate habits and circumstances, directing the flow of the universe to suit its own perceived "needs".

We have many hours of 'peace' during the day while we are doing our chores...many mundane hours pass by with little thought. Suddenly, we find ourselves (it seems sudden) caught up in a memory or a story, or worrying about a future event, etc. This is when consciousness is piqued and old "conditioning" seems to kick in.

When I have those hours of just 'hanging out' with little thinking, well great! When I realize I am caught, once again, in some repeat/karmic story line, I see it and stop it.

I don't find fault with being human anymore. I see life as more of a challenging game. I don't look for blissful states, nirvana, or anything other than ordinary existence. Being ordinary is wonder-full. :)

Guru types have gotten us into a complicated quagmire of wanting to be 'special'. It's a crime against just being.

Being plain and simple and 'with what is' as it unfolds is living life close to the heart. The mind will always ramble on...that's what minds 'do', but heightened awareness ignores its antics.

I can use my abilities of observing, hearing, talking, feeling, thinking, and being aware to get to know myself and what surrounds me. I can understand how things are connected and what holds them together. Understanding human nature, I can observe myself and understand my motivations and also might go so far to see that I can be very sophisticated in my observations but still it is a trick of my identification to hold on that what I believe I am. Working on my 'personality' is another nice game to keep me busy. I can demonstrate how clever I am in my work on myself and how advanced I am after many years of self-investigation. Oh boy! What a game, it never ends...

BeiYin

PS: Pretty clear, that's not what you want as an answer, but...

Rene Descartes wrote;" I doubt, therefore I think, therefore I am". A first step toward self realization is self awareness. Another great philosopher said "I yam what I yam" Popeye was comfortable in his skin. You are what you are, Changing yourself through "tools of observation" will be time consuming, risky (if you absorb bad observations) and generally not worth it. Unless you are becoming a serial killer maybe you should sort through your "personality inventory" and use what you already have, discard the unwanted.

Meditation. You have to invert your self to get deconditioned. The inward movement must end in the self; the beginning and the final end.

Continue to increase the breadth, depth and continuity of attention.