"An inner process stands in need of outward criteria"

This quote by Ludwig Wittgenstein suggests that when we are dealing with inner procedures, such as emotions or thoughts, there must be some external criteria, or requirements, that we utilize to understand and examine them. To put it simply, we require something outside of ourselves to help us understand what is going on within us. This might be in the form of language, social norms, cultural values, or other contextual elements that form our understanding of our own mental processes. Without these external criteria, our inner experiences might be hard or impossible to interpret or understand.