Triple Filter
In ancient Greece, Socrates was reputed to hold knowledge in high esteem. One day an acquaintance met the great philosopher and said, “Do you know what I just heard about your friend?”
“Hold on a minute,” Socrates replied. “Before telling me anything I would like you to pass a little test. It is called the Triple Filter Test.”
“Triple filter?”
“That is right,” Socrates continued. “Before you talk to me about my friend, it might be a good idea to take a moment and filter what you are going to say. That is why I call it the triple filter test.”
Truth
“The first filter is Truth. Have you made absolutely sure that what you are about to tell me is true?”
“No,” the man said, “Actually I just heard about it and ...”
“All right,” said Socrates. “So, you do not really know if it is true or not.
Goodness
“Now let us try the second filter, the filter of Goodness. Is what you are about to tell me about my friend something good?”
“No, on the contrary…”
“So,” Socrates continued, “you want to tell me something bad about him, but you are not certain it is true.’
Usefulness
“You may still pass the test though, because there is one filter left: The filter of Usefulness. Is what you want to tell me about my friend going to be useful to me?”
“No, not really …”
“Well,” concluded Socrates, “if what you want to tell me is neither true, nor good nor even useful, why tell me at all?”
“The story is about a little wave, bobbing along in the ocean, having a grand old time. He is enjoying the wind and the fresh air until he notices the other waves in front of him, crashing against the shore. “My God, this is terrible,” the wave says. “Look what is
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