Well, this article was well timed for me. I just recently (two days ago) hit upon the concept of accepting fears instead of trying to 'squirm' away from them. It was nice to see Steve mention something similar. My approach to it was from a slightly different angle, and Steve's comments helped see the concept a bit more broadly. I also rally appreciated the comments about seeing intentions as an entire package.
I've always found myself being self-critical anytime I think positively about myself. For instance I was playing the piano and I thought "I'm playing rather well," and then part of me responded: "Not that well. Who do you think you are kidding?" This time, instead of trying to change to a different thought as quick as possible (like I usually do), I decided to face the this critical voice. In my mind I imagined it as a big dog outside my house, and every time I tried to walk to the road it would bark at me. Instead of running back in the house I imagined myself just accepting the dog--petting it, talking to it, giving it a treat. I imagined that instead of a big mean attack dog it became a fluffy little thing running through the grass and chasing a ball.
This worked pretty well because now instead of getting a critical voice inside my head when I think positively about myself, I think about a cute dog running through the grass.
Sometimes it gets so excited it starts peeing everywhere.
Silly dog!