A space $X$ has the disjoint (discrete) shrinking property if for any family ${U_n: n\in\omega}$ of non-empty open subsets of $X$ there exists a disjoint (discrete) family ${V_n:
n\in\omega}$ of non-empty open sets such that $V_n \subset U_n$ for every $n\in\omega$. We present a topological equivalent of the disjoint shrinking property in general spaces and apply it to characterize the disjoint shrinking property in topological groups and locally convex spaces.