You may have heard the advice, “don’t take anything personally”. And what’s not to like about the idea that other people's challenging behavior has nothing to do with us and is all “about them”? But… is it true? If so, would that not also infer that all of our actions are only “about us” and have nothing to do with what other people do in our midst? What does “taking something personally” actually mean? And for that matter, what does “personal” mean? (This may not be as obvious as it sounds). How much of human behavior is about the characteristics of the person exhibiting it, and how much of it is a “normal” reaction to their context, and what factors does the answer to that question depend on? When are we at risk of taking something too personally, and when might we not take something personally enough? And how can we skillfully make a case-by-case, nuanced discernment of the extent to which our behavior arises from our personality and past conditioning, as opposed to being simply proportionate responses to real impacts of others’ choices upon us? I’m taking a look at these and other questions in my latest video series, called “The subtle art of taking it personally.” This is part 1.